Do You Face a Risk of Being Roofied at Baltimore Gay Bars?
Share
A rash of roofies at Baltimore gay bars has led to bar owners and news reports asking patrons to be vigilant and watch unattended drinks.
The Baltimore Banner:
When Brendon Huffman steps behind the bar at The Manor, an LGBTQ bar in Mount Vernon, he has a number of things going through his mind: being friendly to customers, pouring well-balanced cocktails in a timely manner, and making sure that drinks are not unattended.
The first two priorities are important to any bartender; increasingly, Huffman is paying special attention to the third.
The 25-year-old Abingdon resident said he has been “roofied” — or unknowingly drugged with sedative or hypnotic substance such as Rohypnol in a drink — four times in the past seven years. The first time was at a popular gay bar in Baltimore. He likens the feeling afterward to a bad hangover — but far worse.
“It’s a feeling that you never want to … have,” he said. “You don’t remember anything that happens past a certain point. It’s just black. You feel like shit the next day. Your body hurts. Your head hurts. Everything feels like a blur. You feel gross about yourself. You feel like you blacked out, but you didn’t.”
Baltimore police don’t have any data showing an upward tick in such crimes, and bar managers play down the frequency of the incidents. But such actions have been linked to sexual assaults and robberies in other cities, and advocates and some Baltimore-area patrons say the problem is real.
The Pride Center of Maryland has been tracking drugging reports at gay bars for the past year. The group said that based on 1,200 surveys, 11% of respondents have reported being drugged in gay bars.
The center’s director, Cleo Manago, calls this “an epidemic waiting to happen.”
“It’s a problem,” he said, adding that the crime is usually combined with robbery and/or sexual assault. “It’s not a small problem. It’s going to get worse. It won’t change unless the conditions changed. There has been no focus on it.”
