Youths apologise for drug death

Press, 4 September 1980, Page 2

Youths apologise for drug death

PA 1 Wellington Porirua schoolboys . involved in a drug party on Monday have apologised to the father of a boy who died after swallowing 16 amatyl sodium barbiturate capsules apparently as an experiment to see what would happen. The dead youth was Hugh Arthur McMillan, aged 15. One of the other six boys who also took the barbiturate told the dead youth’s father, Arthur McMillan, “None of us had done it before. We didn’t know you could die) We did it to get pretty good and.it got pretty bad” •: ' ■ ’ ‘ ’ 1 • The boys, aged 15 and 16, said they had not known that their fun could be fatal. They had believed they were taking Valium (a tranquilliser) but they had had no idea of how much they should take to get a “buzz”. Most of them had taken about five tablets. Ambulancemen found Hugh McMillan dead when they were called to a house in Natone Street, Waitangarua, east of Porirua, just before noon on Monday. The police found the other boys in nearby houses suffering from the effects of

the drug. They were treated by a local doctor. The police later arrested a man, aged 22, and charged him with supplying a classC drug to a person aged under 18. Mr McMillan said his son’s death was a tragedy. Hugh had been no angel but he had not been involved with drugs. “His name was down with the Seaman’s Union, said Mr McMillan. “He wanted to get on a ship. He knew there was no way he would if he was tied up with drugs.” Mr McMillan said that Hugh had not been keen on school and had left in April when he had turned 15. But he had loved art. Murals painted by him still adorn Aotea College in Porirua. “Art was what he liked but a kid of 15 hasn’t got much chance with that” said Mr McMillan. The boys who were with Hugh during the drug-taking said they had all been experimenting, Hugh had been a daredevil and had taken more than the others. He had started taking the capsules on Saturday night and had taken more when a group of boys had met at one of their homes. One of the boys said that

taking pills had been s ‘just something to do.” He had taken four. After "’feeling funny for a while he had passed out and had cbme to only on Monday morning. Hugh had become incoherent and had been unable to control his body. He had been taken home and put to bed. Mr McMillan said that on Monday morning Hugh had still not been well. “One of the other boys told me what happened and I started to tell Hugh off.” he said. “I was giving him hell and he was just sitting there looking at fne alt drowsy. He couldn’t talk to me: anything. We Celled an ambulance but when they got here he was dead."