Ketamine

An interesting story in Sin City. A VIP gambler with a long history with the MGM Grand Casino in Las Vegas, NV is suing the parent company over an incident that involved his being drugged and signing marks worth a fortune while in a stupor that he claims was induced by drugs in his drink. A doctor examined Dwight Manley, a California real estate executive, after he cut his hand on a broken ash tray and advised him to supply samples of his hair for testing. The hair was said to contain levels of ketamine, an animal tranquilizer that's also used as a date rape drug. He has offered a $500,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of whoever "slipped him a mickey".

The interesting aspect of this affair is speculation on how often this might happen in different circumstances. When a driver is arrested for DUI, he is tested for physical agility and alcohol impairment. It's also possible that he could be tested for other drugs. There are ordinarily no tests made for ketamine or other "date rape" drugs. It's statistically certain that an unknown percentage of arrested drivers may have consumed alcohol but were not over the legal limit. The ketamine in their system would mimic the effects of alcohol and being impaired isn't 100% determined by blood alcohol level. DUI can be charged at any percentage if the officer feels that the driver is impaired.

 

 

Why would someone in a bar or restaurant put an animal tranquilizer in another person's drink? There's been a long history of this, perhaps as long as consumption of alcohol itself. The usual explanation is that spiking a drink is a first step toward theft or sexual assault. But there can be other reasons.

Perhaps the "spiker" has some kind of grudge against the victim. Leaving a bar in a seriously compromised condition can cause all kinds of problems for the victim, as can be easily imagined. 

There's another, even more sinister, possibility. As law enforcement uses women pretending to be prostitutes to trap "johns" or poses as an underage girl on the internet to catch child molesters, they can also use drugged drinks to corral drunken drivers.

Policemen could team up, one or more tainting a victim's drink, another making a traffic stop a few blocks away. All that's necessary is for the impaired driver to have "some" alcohol in his system for the case to be made. The driver is already befuddled by the drug and probably isn't coherent enough to demand testing for ketamine or GHB or any other drug. He wouldn't be accommodated in any case. 

What would the law enforcement motive for this be? Actually, cops that make many DWI arrests get awards and promotions. Those benefits are much easier to gain when the process is directed from the beginning. 

If the above is in fact happening, there's little that can be done about it other than what's already the best approach. If drinking, never let the drink leave your hand. Better yet, don't frequent saloons.