1996_09 Insight September 1996

              Described as the Quaalude ofthe '90s, the black-market sleeping pill is suspected in
six rapes in the Fresno area - and officials are warning women to be on guard.
■ RohypnoNeaves
rape victims unable
to remember attack
by Candace Cline />
Staff Writer
In 1993. Mark Perez bragged to friends in
Florida that he had raped more than 24
His accomplice in each case was a drug that
rendered his victims semi-conscious and unable to defend themselves.
Thc pill was a "roofie." thc street name for
Rohypnol. a potent tranquilizer 10 times more
powerful than Valium.
"When they're on Rohpynol they're like
zombies." said Sgt. Tim McFadden of the
Fresno Police Department's Sexual Assault
Unit.
"There's no fighting or resisting their assailant. They have only Hashes of recollection. The next morning they have lhc feeling
and the physical evidence that they've been
sexually assaulted, but they are not able to tell
us what happened."
Rohypnol use is spreading. It's use is suspected in thousands of sexual assault cases
across the nation.
Though it is illegal to possess or sell
Rohypnol in thc United States, it can be
bought on the street for anywhere from SI to
S5 per pill. Some of its other street names are
"roachies." "rope." "rib." "rophies" and
"ruffies."
The one- to two-milligram white tablets dissolve quickly in liquid and can take effect
within 20 minutes. The effects ofthe drug can
last up to eight hoots.
Rohypnol mimics the effects of alcohol.
People who have taken ihe drug will experience dizziness, drowsiness, slurred speech.
See ROHYPNOL, page 3
Students cash in
as guinea pigs
m by Ryan McKee
Ten.times more potent than Valium, Rohypnol takes effect within twenty minutes.
Campus police offer defense class
I Instructors say
women need not
become victims
Rohypnol facts
I Rohypnol tablets are white and
are single- or cross-scored on one
side. "ROCHE"and Tor "2" is
encircled on the other side. The
drug enters the U.S. through
Mexico. States affected most by
the drug include Florida, Texas
and California.
by Kelly Hansen
Staff Writer
Fresno State police Sgt. Richard Gaines
is not only doing his part to protect women
on campus, he's ensuring women arc educated to protect themselves;
Fresno State is thc latest of 350 universities in the United States and Canada tq establish a self-defense program for women
called Rape, Aggression, Defense (RAD.)
Eight years ago in Virginia, a university
police officer named Larry Nadcau established RAD. There are now 1,300 instructors nationwide.
What this program provides to women is
a hands-on approach to self-defense. In each
12-15 hour course, women arc given a hefty
dose of vital information as well as demonstrations. The final exam for thc students of
this class is a bit unique. They must defend
themselves against Sgt. Gaines in thc final
portion ofthe program called dynamic simu-
"At the end of each session, what I will do
is dress up in a suit and the women must apply thc techniques that they learned in thc
class," said Gaines. "This program is great
because it gives the womesn a hands-on experience to take away with them."
Fresno Slate police chief Willie Shell first
saw the program demonstrated at a campus
police seminar, and was immediately sold.
Gaines is the first officer from the Fresno
State police unit to have undergone the necessary training to teach the seminars. He
will conduct thc first series of classes and
eventually, more officers will be trained to
follow suit.
Gaines traveled to San Diego State University to complete his training. It is there
that Lt. Steve Williams . the California director of RAD. oversees all of the divisions
within the California State University system. Williams has maintained this position
since 1994. and said that the program has
been received exceptionally well in San Diego, where it is in full swing.
"We have heard nothing but great comments and extremely positive responses
from the students that leave these seminars,"
said Williams, who along with five other
officers, teaches seven RAD classes a year.
He .agrees with Sgt. Gaines that RAD is
above standard because of its format.
"We want these women to be trained to
survive and protect themselves in an unsafe
environment." said Williams.
He believes thai since students who complete this course have already had the opportunity to do this once in class, they have
an advantage.
The program is also unique to others in
lhat once a woman has completed a session,
she is certified by a 75-page manual. With
this manual, she can then attend any RAD
See RAO. page 3
I Some scientists say
experiments have led
to powerful vaccines
by Elaina Conroy
Staff Writer
College students on campuses
across America have been probed,
poked, and drugged for the sake of
science, and for some extra cash in
their pockets.
Each year, several million people,
many of them college students, have
volunteered to be guinea pigs in thc
testing of new drugs. One student in
a John Hopkins test was even paid to
smoke government- supplied mari-
Poor college students and other under-employed Americans looking for
extra cash see no harm in selling their
bodies to medical researchers for thc
sake of science.
The use of human subjects in
medical research has not only made
new drugs possible for the treatment
of leukemia! and other forms of cancer, it has also brought about polio
vaccines, penicillin, antibiotics and
may be crucial in the advancement of
drugs to treat HIV patients, maybe
even the development of a cure.
In past years, many people have expressed negative opinions about the
term "medical testing."
And for good reason.
Some have become skeptical of human experimentation due to medical
recklessness revealed by occurrences
such as: thc Army's secret tests of
LSD on unsuspecting soldiers; the
controversial Tuskegee Study in
which a group of mostly black syphilis patients were allowed to die untreated in order to document the
natural course of the disease; and the
shocking radiation experiments performed on soldiers and civilians during the Manhattan Project financed
by the government from 1944 until
1974.
These events provoked fear and
distrust in human experimentation.
The ethical breeches committed in
the name of science allowed the U.S.
Government to be get away with
murder.
In the past 50 years, since those
landmark violations of human subject rights took place, the U.S. Government has developed stringent
regulations regarding medical research.
Because of thc outcry from scientists as well as the public, rules have
been in effect since 1966. requiring
.ill research on human subjects to be
approved and overseen by Institu- ■
tional Review Boards (IRBs). that
subjects be fully informed of the risks
and lhat they give their consent to participate in the research.
Even here on campus, any research
thai is intended to use human subjects
See TESTING, page 3
Dogs' airline deal
could land in court
by Robert Bilvado
Staff Writer
A S168.000 bill and a possible lawsuit could be brewing in the Fresno
State Athletic Department from the
football team's trip to Auburn three
weeks ago.
The trip would have normally cost
$110,000 from the football team's
1996 traveling budget. But, six days
before they were to leave on Rich
Airlines, thc FAA grounded the
team's charter flight.
Enns said the additional cost of
roughly $58,000 resulted from him
making last minute arrangements to
fly up and back on two smaller airplane charters with Southwest Airlines and Miami Air.
"We scoured North America for another wide-body [airplane to cany the
entire team]." said Enns. whoMhed-
uled the Auburn trip last year.
According to Enns this has been the
most expensive trip he has scheduled
at Fresno State.
Athletic Director Al Bohl said there
is a possibility lhat ihey could be pursuing legal action against Rich Air
lines if it doesn't help offset the additional travel cost.
"We don't want to get into a legal
suit." said Bohl. "But I would not be
against it."
Bohl said thai he and ihe account
manager. Les Snider, are working together with Rich Airlines to see that
Ihey are treated fairly. Enns said during the year-long process of searching for charters ihey "definitely never
look for the cheapest flight."
Athletic department officials are
uncertain bow ihe additional cost will
effect iheir budget. They confirmed
that future travel wouldn't be affected.
Normally the department has extra
money allocated forweatherand tournament delays; and each case is reviewed on its individual claim.
The traveling budgets for all teams
is made one sear in advance and must
follow NCAA regulations and play-
Traveling expenses for each sport
is normallv accounted for bv a representative from each team.*The representative then makes airline and hotel
arrangements through the athletic
department's business office.        J*
Departments crack down on students who don't seek advising
I Schools want
students to think
about their futures
by Janet Soules
Staff Writer
Hector Vega's name was listed
among more than 80 engineering students inside the glass case in thc East
Engineering building.
A bright yellow piece of letter-sized
paper was attached to the names with
a message from the school of engineering directing students to an adviser.
Unwelcome sight
Each student who failed to meet
with an adviser during the 1995 academic year had a big problem trying
to register for classes this fall because
a hold was placed on their rcgistra-
"you forget about it. You put if off."
said Vega, who finally got his classes.
According to Leonard Salazar, associate vice president for academic
affairs. Fresno Stale does not have a
mandatory advising policy.
The university leaves it to the discretion of each eight schools to
implement one.
mandatory policy
The School of Engineering was the
first at Fresno Slate to implement an
advising policy lhal. if nol adhered
to. would penalize students for not
meeting thc requirement
According to John Johnston, professor of civil engineering at Fresno
State, (he school has maintained a
mandatory advising policy since the
1994 academic year.
Johnston believes there are some
particular reasons for the students
faced with this problem.
He puts them in categories, students who are "irresponsible or terribly forgetful," and freshman and
sophomores who do not take classes
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Junior Ariana Cervantes gets advice from Dr. J. Richard Amdt
in the east engineering building where
notices are posted to remind students
who have switched, for example,
from civil to survey engineering but
haven't notified either department.
The Sid Craig School of Business
and some departments in the School
of Agriculture have also implemented
an advising policy, but a hold is nol
placed on a student's regislraiion if he
or she doesn't meet see an adviser
"They |the School of Engineering
and the Sid Craig School of Business)
want their students to be sure they're
on the right track
They see their adviser and thai ihey
are in harmony vv ith the total curriculum of the department,'* said Salazar.
Although other schools and departments on campus do not hav e a policy
like the School of Engineering, there
still are requirements.
majority seek+elp
In thc department of history about
75 percent of its students meet with
advisers, according to Jcronima
Echeverria, associate dean at the
school of social sciences..
"It makes it all easier. There are
fewer surprises at the end of their career," said Echeverria.
Once in a while a student comes to
her confused about course require-
"I've been here
for four vears. I
don't know whal li
ecd to graduate."
a student told Eche
erria. .
friendly advice
She knows that
it times students
w ill relv on the adv
ee of colleagues
instead ol v isiting v
ith an adviser.
"Thev just take
whatever their
friends tell them to
ake. And a lot of
limes they've neve
seen a catalog."
she said.
Tom Allen's nam
has appeared on
a list at the School of Engineering
very much like ihe
me Vega's name
was on. According
0 Allen the man-
datory advising po
licy is good be-
cause it helps to prev
ent students from
vvasiinc lime t.cknm
classes that aren't
needed
"I've seen whal
1 does. It docs a
good thing because
ii keeps people in
the program and i
keeps them fo-
cused." he said.
i