Ecstasy Believed To Have Killed Girl, 13

[Alfa]

ECSTASY BELIEVED TO HAVE KILLED GIRL, 13
Montreal-Area Death
MONTREAL - A 13-year-old girl has died after taking what is believed to have been Ecstasy at a friend's house.
Police say the teenager took the substance while on a weekend visit with a 14-year-old friend in Hudson, about 40 kilometres west of Montreal, on Saturday. During the visit, the pair decided to go over to the nearby home of a 16-year-old friend. His parents were not home at the time.
"During the night, the two girls consumed a drug that we suspect was Ecstasy. [Investigators] think it was that. We can't confirm it, but that is what we were told was consumed," said Constable Marc Butz of the Quebec provincial police.
Later that night, the two girls returned to the 14-year-old's home, where the younger one began feeling sick.
At approximately 3 a.m. on Sunday, the 14-year-old girl's mother called an ambulance when the 13-year-old's situation became serious.
The girl, whose name is under a court-ordered publication ban, was no longer breathing when ambulance technicians arrived. She was taken to the Montreal Children's' Hospital, where she was placed on an artificial respirator. She died on Monday.
The 14-year-old girl did not report feeling sick even though she consumed what investigators have been told was the same illicit drug (also known as methylenedioxymethamphetamine), Const. Butz said.
At the 13-year-old girl's high school, in a town west of Montreal, administrators issued a notice to students letting them know social workers were available if they wanted to talk about her death.
Marcus Tabachnick, chairman of the Lester B. Pearson School Board, of which the girl's school is a part of, said he fears teenagers underestimate the danger of consuming such drugs as Ecstasy.
"It's a social problem," Mr. Tabachnick said. "There's a popular belief that Ecstasy is a safe drug and as long as you keep the person hydrated it's fine.
"I think society is taking a much too soft approach to drugs. All this stuff can harm you."
The 16-year-old boy was arrested on Sunday, hours after the girl was taken to the hospital. The youth, who was released after his court appearance on Monday, faces charges of drug possession, drug trafficking and obstructing a police investigation. Police said yesterday the girl's death might mean further charges will be filed against him.

Source: National Post (Canada)