• 11
  • March
    2011

A 19-year-old Alabama girl was huffing chemicals from an aerosol can and high on marijuana before the car accident that took the life of her18-year-old friend and passenger, Indiana police say. The girl has now been charged with felony drugged driving and inhaling toxic vapors, which is a Class B misdemeanor in Indiana.

On January 4, say police in Michigan City, Indiana, the teen driver from Alabama purchased an aerosol can and began huffing on it as she was driving. She was already under the influence of marijuana.

As she headed north on Indiana Highway 22, she blacked out. Her car struck a utility pole, causing area homes and businesses to lose power, and then rammed into a large tree. Her friend, an 18-year-old from New Buffalo, Michigan, was critically injured in the car accident and was hospitalized. Tragically, she died from her injuries a month after the crash.

The Alabama teen was arrested, and a blood sample obtained by police tested positive for marijuana and diflouroethane, a chemical found in aerosol cans that both displaces oxygen and sends toxic chemicals to the brain, causing the inhaler to experience a short-term "high."

She has been charged with DUI-drugs in LaPorte County, Indiana. Because she is currently at home in Alabama, she was taken into custody by state police and is awaiting extradition to Indiana.

Huffing aerosol chemicals is extremely dangerous, even when you're not driving

Driving while under the influence of drugs is inexcusable, and it is also extremely dangerous to you and everyone around you. This fatal accident needs to serve as an urgent reminder of the dangers of huffing inhalants. Here are some facts:

  • Huffing aerosol chemicals such as diflouroethane can cause death by suffocation, brain damage, and permanent damage to the nervous system, liver, kidneys and bone marrow.
  • First-time users of inhalants can and do die. Around 20 percent of all fatalities from huffing happen to people who had never tried it before.
  • The level of chemicals found in the brains and bloodstreams of inhalant users are considered unsafe even in industrial situations.
  • Huffing is highly addictive, and the toxins can cause withdrawal symptoms for a month or longer.

Don't be put in the position of causing the wrongful death of a friend. Never use alcohol, drugs or other chemicals while driving.

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