When a number of extremely intoxicated youths in tiny Roslyn Washington started to sicken and, in some cases pass out, some of the young women became convinced that their drinks had been spiked with rohypnol, also known as “roofies,” which can cause people to lapse into a catatonic state.
Police arrived, sent for ambulances, and upon finding a young man in bed with a woman seized him and arrested him.
Local and then national news immediately picked up on the story, running sensationalist reports of a dozen women being drugged in some “nefarious” plot by a shadowy cabal of men bent on violating their honor:
Most of the victims were young women who attend Central Washington University. Detectives are now investigating whether they were given spiked drinks to render them defenseless against a sexual assault, but were saved by the timely arrival of police at the scene.
From KOMO news:
It’s certainly a concern we have — that the women were targeted moreso than the men for possibly nefarious reasons,” said Rosyln-Cle Elum Police Chief Scott Ferguson. “The majority of the people affected by the drugs were females.
I suggest watching the KOMO video, as following the report they bring some fool on Good Morning America who tells us that it is very common for women to be drugged by men, and women should always travel in packs and watch their drinks constantly. Although he spouts off a few stupid soundbites, the last one is probably the worst: “Now it’s no longer drugs sex and rock ‘n roll, it’s drugs sex and let’s control.”
Now, after a thorough search of the house and the men in attendance at the party, and presumably a heavy-handed interrogation of the young man yanked out of bed, police are starting to doubt that there was actually a rape scheme. It turns out that not a dozen, but nine students were heavily intoxicated, and three of them were men. Also, the man who was seized and arrested turned out to be with his girlfriend, who was of the age of majority.
Unfortunately, the fact that it was an overreaction likely won’t get nearly as much press as the initial, lurid reports of young women in peril at the hands of wicked men. It may be that someone spiked the drinks, but it’s also possible that the intoxicating agent may turn out to be nothing more than ethanol. No drugs were found, no women were sexually assaulted, and all of the sickened partygoers are now safe and sound. In fact, other than the arrest and interrogation of an innocent young man, everyone is just fine.
