The synthetic cannabis named Kronic is legal to buy in Australia. Picture: Liam Driver Fiona Patten wants synthetic drugs to be renamed social tonics. Picture: Adam Ward SYNTHETIC drugs should be renamed "social tonics" to differentiate them from illicit substances, an Australian adult industry group has said. The Eros Association has controversially rebranded synthetic drugs - which are chemically-laced substances such as Kronic, a synthetic cannabis, sold over the counter at some adult-only shops and tobacconists - as "social tonics in industry material. "When you start saying its a synthetic of an illicit substance it makes it illicit by word association," Fiona Patten, the founder of the Eros Association, said. "Calling it a social tonic takes it out of that. It makes it very clear theyre very different from illicit substances." But Dr Steve Hambleton, the Australian Medical Associations president and one of the country's leading doctors, said the branding was disingenuous as it put a positive spin on a dangerous product. Dr Hambleton said the word "tonic" suggested the drugs consisted of vitamins or were a mixtures of juices. Most adult stores remove illegal substances in line with federal and state government bans. But the bans, described as a … Continue reading →

Police said drugs appear to have played a role in a shooting Monday afternoon that a left a 10-year-old boy and a woman dead and the boy's father critically wounded at the victims' home in Alief. The wounded man's 14-year-old son found the victims when he returned to the home after school. The shooting happened about 4:15 p.m. in the 6600 block of Westwick, according to the Houston Police Department. Police said 29-year-old Le "Lena" Nguyen, 29, and Brandon Vu died at the scene. Brandon's 40-year-old father, Hoai Tranh Vu, was seriously wounded. He was rushed to Memorial Hermann hospital and was in critical condition. Police said the shooting is believed to be drug-related. But investigators did not release details that led them to that possibility. Witnesses told police they saw two men seen leaving the home in a hurry, driving away in a gray car. Houston police did not have a detailed description of the two men and only a minimal description of their car - an older model two- or four-door sedan painted silver or gray. Police said Brandon and Nguyen, the elder Vu's girlfriend, were found on the floor in an upstairs bedroom. Hoai Tranh Vu was … Continue reading →

NEWTOWN, Conn., May 14 (UPI) -- Adam Lanza had no drugs or alcohol in his body when he shot and killed 20 students and six women at Sandy Hook Elementary School, toxicology tests show. The results of the tests are included in a final report by state Chief Medical Examiner Dr. H. Wayne Carver II that has been turned over to Connecticut state prosecutors, The Hartford Courant reported Monday. The tests did not find any traces of alcohol, illegal drugs or anti-psychotic or antidepressant drugs. The absence of drugs in Lanza's body indicated that "something else" made him commit the murders, said Dr. Michael Baden, the former chief medical examiner for New York City. The findings did not surprise former FBI profiler Mary Ellen O'Toole. Shooters in other recent killings also tested clean for drugs, she said, because they wanted a "clear head" during the attacks. A final report on the police investigation of the shootings should be released by the end of June, Danbury State's Attorney Stephen Sedensky said. Go here to see the original: Newtown shooter had no drugs, alcohol in body … Continue reading →