Experts to address teen drug use trends

An Orange County Superior Court judge, Mission Hospital’s emergency services director and a sheriff’s deputy will discuss recent drug-use trends in Orange County at a public meeting May 12 in the Laguna Beach High School library.

Laguna Beach Unified School District middle and high school students and parents are invited to attend “OC REALITY— Electronic Cigarettes and other Drug Trends … What Every Parent and Student Should Know.”

Speakers will touch on a variety of topics, from e-cigarette use to the types of drugs that doctors see in patients who enter emergency rooms, according to a district news release.

Mike Ritter, Mission Hospital’s emergency services medical director, said Orange County has a heroin epidemic. He will also talk about prescription drug abuse.

Superior Court Judge John Adams said he has seen a plethora of cases involving drug use.

“Our courts are overwhelmed with felony drug cases, many involving young adults just out of high school,” he said in the release. “The scourge of drug addiction knows no social or economic bounds. It is an epidemic every bit as dangerous as a virulent disease.”

Sheriff’s Deputy Brian Gunsolley will discuss e-cigarettes and drug and alcohol trends.

A 13-minute version of “Overtaken,” a documentary about drug abuse told through young adults’ stories, will also be shown, according to the film’s Facebook page.

The event, a collaboration with California Youth Services, will take place from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the school, 625 Park Ave. Exhibits are available for viewing in the quad from 5:30 to 6 p.m.

Parents and students interested in attending are asked to reserve a space by May 9 by emailing Laguna Beach High Assistant Principal Robert Billinger at [email protected].