Palm Harbor Woman Failed to Supervise Paint Sniffing Child

Palm Harbor- Florida

According to the St. Petersburg Times a 35 year old Palm Harbor woman, Deborah Lee Pavlat, had fallen asleep after ingesting several a narcotic painkillers and failed to arrange childcare for the 7 year-old boy in her care.

While she was asleep, the young boy wandered outside and was caught by neighbors huffing spray paint. The boy reported that this was the first time he had tried it, and he liked the smell.

Pavlat was charged with child neglect and is currently being held in the Pinellas County Jail.

Hong Kong: Adolescent Drug Use On The Rise

From the Hong Kong Information Services Department:

A survey recently made public by the Narcotics Division shows an increase in teenage drug use. During the 2008-2009 school year, students at 100 schools completed the survey which focused on drug abuse. Based on 158,000 surveys or 20% of the student body, researchers noted the following trends:

• Among secondary students aged 12 or below, 4.6% said they had abused drugs. Four years ago only 2.4% claimed the same.
• 30.7% of primary school students had used inhalants.
• 36.2% of secondary school students who used drugs claimed to have used at friend's home while 25% had used in their own home.

In response, the government has allocated $3 billion for the Beat Drugs Fund. The Fund is an arm of the Narcotics Division that oversees efforts to stem drug abuse and raise awareness. The nearly tenfold increase in funding, indicates the governments increased commitment to fight a growing drug culture since the Fund started in 1996. Other tangible measures include community mobilization programs, establishing more counseling centers, and hiring more social workers.