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(Sacramento News & Review) Alexis Smart, a philosophy student who used to work as a bartender, was in downtown Sacramento when a friend started showing all the signs of being drugged.
“I feel like she eventually began shutting down a little bit, to the point where she wasn’t really able to engage in conversation anymore,” Smart remembered. “We eventually realized that her drink was spiked. It was really scary. She ended up forgetting her own name, she couldn’t tell us where she lived, she was not able to recall any memory of what had happened.”
Such incidents of drink-spiking have been too common in the Capital City, and in some cases are linked to medical emergencies and sexual assaults.
A new law may help prevent someone else from suffering the same experience as Smart’s friend. Assembly Bill 1524, which went into effect in January, mandates that all state schools, such as community colleges and the California State University system, provide free and accessible drug testing devices to students on college campuses. Self-governing institutions, such as the University of California and private schools, will not be required to stock the kits but are encouraged.