What an amazing picture, isn't it? It is perfect for what I want to talk about this month of May, when many of the turbulant weather seasons begin. We can see that the storms, tornadoes and earthquakes have been coming sooner every year....with greater devastation. Have we neglected our planet so much that it's too late to turn back, or is He so angry at us that even prayers won't help us any longer?
Don't worry...I'm not trying to blame anyone else. I have personally neglected what I should have been doing also. We all kept figuring that someone else would take care of it, not even realizing that the "someone else" would end up being our children and grandchildren. Leave everything for them to clean up....I am personally ashamed of myself.
But there might be help in the horizon....somebody's finally saying that it's not too late. I heard some words...the color "Green"...and slowly, I began to see heads coming up out of the sand. Then, they began to tell us how we could help save something from this wonderful planet for the generations to come.
So, what is it we should begin doing? Recycling we should have been doing for years....hey, that one I did! And now that gas is at an all-time high, let's save some money and some air and walk to work....or carpool. My husband came home the other day with these funky looking lightbulbs that are really dim when you turn them on, but they quickly turn bright. And my husband told me that they are worth the $20 a bulb....they last for like 956 hours or so.
So, my home is going as "Green" as I can, and I really do feel like I am giving back something for what I kept taking while I was growing up and older. It's only a beginning, but if we all just do a little, it will add up, I promise. Oh, and by the way...He always listens when you pray, but then again, He also knows when it's something we really don't need His help for....we can figure some things out on our own.
I apologize for not having this month's "What's Happening" up on time, but I was a bit under the weather...I was sick with pneumonia. The first day that I had where I was feeling back to my old self was Mother's Day....and I was able to go out to brunch with Mark, my daughter and grandson. For those who don't know, I have 4 daughters. The oldest was able to be with me this year, but the other 3, which are Triplets, weren't able to make it. But, because I wasn't able to wish the women readers a Happy Mother's Day, I'm doing that now. I hope you had a wonderful, cook-free, clean-free day! Happy Mother's Day from Rozi!!
May 9, 2008 SAN DIEGO -- A Santee woman accused of giving her daughter's friend a fatal dose of pain killers has rejected a plea deal. Laura Wion was expected to plead guilty Friday to involuntary manslaughter in the death of 17-year-old Kelsea Phelps, but now Wion will go to trial.
Wion allegedly gave Phelps 18 methadone tablets after she complained of a sore throat.
Methadone is usually only prescribed for chronic pain or for addicts suffering from withdrawal.
A licensed practical nurse facing charges of stealing a patient's methadone pills is free on a $3,000 bond.
Elizabeth Hope, 55, was arrested Monday on one count of possession of a controlled substance by misrepresentation, fraud, forgery or deception and one count of theft.
Hope is suspected of stealing methadone from a patient under her care at University Hills Health and Rehabilitation Center in Pensacola, the Florida Attorney General's Office said.
Hope was confronted about thefts by the facility's nursing director, and she admitted to taking more than 180 pills, the Attorney General's Office said.
If convicted, Hope could receive up to five years and two months in prison and be fined up to $5,500. April 29, 2008
May 06, 2008 09:10 AM Isabel Teotonio STAFF REPORTER A Toronto man was charged with uttering death threats yesterday after shouting at a doctor who was testifying at an inquest into his brother’s death at the Don Jail.
The eruption occurred when Dr. Todd Overholt was testifying about methadone withdrawal on the opening day of an inquest into the death of Keigo White, who choked himself while incarcerated in October 2006.
The 40-year-old former heroin addict reportedly told jail guards he would kill himself if he wasn’t given methadone. Later that night, he was found with bedsheets tied around his neck and no pulse. He was revived but died in hospital nearly three months later.
Overholt, an expert witness, told the five-person jury that although the symptoms associated with methadone withdrawal can make some people feel very sick, the medical risks are not high. In other words, he said, symptoms such as extreme fear, inability to sleep and deep pain can become so intense some may think they’re going to die, but in reality, giving up cold turkey will not actually result in death.
From Rozi: ( Are you thinking what I'm thinking? )
During Overholt’s testimony, White’s brother Michael yelled out, “That’s a lie,” before storming out of the court. As his girlfriend, Christina Montrait, followed, she too called Overholt’s statement a lie. In the lobby, Michael White continued the diatribe.
“My brother died after being in jail for three days without (methadone),” yelled the former heroin addict, who has himself been on methadone for eight years. “How can they say it doesn’t kill you?”
His rant prompted Ontario Provincial Police officers to order him outside the Grosvenor St. court. There, the officers and White family lawyers Barry Swadron and Mercedes Perez encouraged the couple to go home.
However, as White and Montrait were preparing to drive off, Toronto police arrived and arrested them. They were later charged with uttering death threats.
When the inquest resumed more than an hour later, Swadron apologized on White’s behalf.
“It was very, very difficult for him to listen to the testimony,” said Swadron, adding that White is on a very high daily dosage of methadone.
“He was very, very close to his brother. They were both taken in by another family when they were in their teenage years and they’ve had a relatively similar history.” The jury was not told that the couple had been arrested, and the presiding coroner, Dr. David Eden, instructed jury members to ignore media reports about the inquest.
Michael White is expected to testify at the inquest later this week.
He believes his brother asphyxiated himself to numb the pain from withdrawal, not because he intended to kill himself .
~ The STAR.com ~ Isabel Teotonio / Staff Reporter ~
From Rozi
"Giving up cold turkey will not actually result in death???" Of course it can! And people HAVE died from stopping their methadone cold turkey!! I couldn't believe what I was reading!
When I first read this article, I could have sworn that there was a misprint, and that they would be correcting it really soon. When they didn't, and I saw the story on other websites the same way, I knew I had to make a phone call. I kept thinking how I would feel if I was that man who's brother had taken his own life because he couldn't handle the horrific withdrawal symptoms! I had never heard of a sadder story.
So I emailed the website that had printed the story, and told them what I was trying to do, which was to get ahold of the brother to let him know that there are documented cases in the United States where people have definitely died simply from having their methadone taken from them all at once....with no taper at all. The next day I got a response from the writer of the story, who gave me the brother's lawyer who, by now, had been charged with "uttering death threats"! How crazy is that?
So I called the White family lawyer Barry Swadron and told his secretary about the information I had, which by then was 4 cases of someone dying in jail for having their methadone stopped cold turkey, without anyone there to help them. The lady seemed very excited, and gave me their email address as I asked of her. Before I said goodbye, she did ask me if I would leave a message for Barry in case he called to check his messages, which I did.
I never did hear back from them, but that is truly fine with me. I just pray that they got to use the information to impeach that "star" witness they had, the one saying you couldn't die from being cut off cold turkey from methadone. And if nothing else, I pray that the dead man's brother can rest assured that he was right...that his brother didn't want to die....he simply wanted the horrific pain to go away. And since they wouldn't listen to his begging, he made it stop the only other way he knew how.
April 29, 2008
Opponents of a law that prevents students who are convicted of drug offenses from receiving federal financial aid were handed another legal defeat today.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit,upholding a2006 decision by aU.S. District Court, has refused to reinstate a lawsuit that sought to strike down the law.
Inits ruling the appeals court rejected arguments by the Students for Sensible Drug Policy Foundation, which filed the appeal, that the federal law is unconstitutional.
The group argued, in part, that denial of financial aid by the Education Department to students who have already served a court-imposed sentence violates the U.S. Constitution’s ban on double jeopardy, criminally punishing someone twice for the same offense. But the appeals court said that the federal law’s sanctions cannot be considered criminally punitive, especially in the double-jeopardy context. —Sara Hebel
Contact: LaWanda Johnson (202)-558-7974 x308
WASHINGTON - Community-based substance abuse treatment reduces crime rates and helps states reduce corrections costs, according to a new policy brief released today by the Justice Policy Institute (JPI).
The Substance Abuse Treatment and Public Safety brief found that the sooner substance abuse is treated, the bigger the long-term cost savings and increases in public safety. At a time when some have raised concerns about the release of people convicted of drug offenses from federal prison due to U.S. Sentencing Commission reforms, the research shows that substance abuse treatment helps individuals transition successfully from the criminal justice system to the community.
"This new report confirms that investing in drug and alcohol treatment is both socially responsible and fiscally prudent and should be a top public policy priority," said Maryland Delegate Bill Bronrott, chair of the House Committee on Drug and Alcohol Abuse. "The report documents the tangible results of treatment, such as cutting crime, reclaiming lives, and making healthier families and safer communities. More investments in these lifesaving and cost-effective services are needed now to expand the benefits of treatment that this report so clearly demonstrates."
The policy brief—the last in a series that examines the impact of positive social investments on public safety—found that:
"If lawmakers invest in community-based substance abuse treatment—instead of prison beds—for people living with addiction, our communities will reap tremendous benefits,” says JPI Executive Director Sheila Bedi. “Crime rates will decrease, families will remain intact and since treatment is less expensive than incarceration, state budget dollars can be redeployed to meet education, housing, infrastructure and other pressing needs. “Author(s): Justice Policy Institute
Well, everyone, it's Rozi once again, here to say goodbye for now. Once again, I apologize for not having this out any sooner this month. I'm feeling much better and I have some new articles which I will be adding to "News & Views", "Bits & Pieces", and "For Women Only". Keep an eye out for them, and always remember if you come across a great story or article, feel free to email it to me for next month's "What's Happening". I'd be sure to give you the credit.
Also don't forget to leave a comment below, so that I will know how you are feeling about what is being done on YOUR website. Always feel free to contact me at Rozi.Director@MedicalAssistedTreatment.org if you need anything at all. For now, this is Rozi, sending you a Smile. I am only here because you are.
