The Orion Vol 72 issue 10 by The Orion

scream machine

Track Attack Chico State track and field dominated 12 events at the FourYear Invitational on Saturday. theorion.com/sports

Dance Gavin Dance performed at Bell Memorial Union Auditorium Friday night. Read the review at theorion.com/arts

Chico State’s Independent Student News Source since 1975

news all week at theorion.com

volume 72 Issue 10

FIRST COPY FREE

wednesday, APRIL 2, 2014

additional copies 50¢

Bath salts masked as MDMA TJ Carter

Staff Writer M1 is the street name for a research chemical that is being passed off as MDMA, also known as “Molly,” and Chico users of the drug may not know the difference. Methylone, M1’s scientific name, first hit the streets around 2004, as reported by Erowid, a nonprofit drug facts website. Head shops around the United States classified the drug as a “bath salt” to sell it as a “legal high,” as reported by The Guardian in 2013. Methylone is produced by chemists in places like Germany and sent to Chico through the mail, said an anonymous Chico drug dealer. “I call and place a small order, something like 28 grams,” he said. “My guy will send what I need within three days and then I package it up and sell it as ‘Molly’ to people at concerts.” The usual user won’t know the difference, he said. The going price for 28 grams is $1,000 for methylone and $2,000 for MDMA, so there is a higher profit margin when it is passed off as MDMA, he said. Methylone has been illegal since 2011, after the Drug Enforcement Administration put an emergency ban on the drug, according to a DEA press release. With so many different variations of this compound, it seems unlikely that the DEA will be able to stay in the race of criminalizing these drugs before they hit the street, according to The Guardian’s article. A basement chemist can slightly change the structure of the molecule they are working with and finish with a new chemical for the market, said Larry Kirk, a Chico State biochemistry professor. The three common drugs that Enloe Medical Center tests patients for are opiates, amphetamines and alcohol, said Christina Chavira, Enloe Medical Center spokeswoman. When a patient comes in from an overdose, Enloe doesn’t test specifically for MDMA, she said. Since both MDMA and M1 have a similar chemical structure to amphetamine, it will test positive as an amphetamine and will be treated as a mental health issue if the patient doesn’t exhibit any serious symptoms, Chavira said. There have only been a few documented cases of users overdosing on methylone. One case from Alaska in 2012 attributes the use of methylone to the death of a 20-year-old, according to a press release by the district attorney’s office in Alaska. Kits that test the purity of MDMA are available through organizations like Dance Safe.

The Orion ∤ Photographs by Annie paige

CHAVEZ CELEBRATIONS House partying, front-yard snowboarding and rooftop drinking were seen Sunday afternoon during the three-day weekend.

Holiday weekend arrests down, police say The Orion

Staff Reports

esar Chavez weekend was celebrated in Chico with hijacked firetrucks, front-yard snowboarding and public service by the campus and community. Energy was high Sunday afternoon. At a house party on Warner Avenue, more than 20 people danced on the roof overlooking matches of beerpong. On the streets of South Campus, groups of people were ducked through traffic yelling wildly as they roamed from one loud party to the next. A house party on Sixth and Hazel streets built a snowboard ramp in the front yard. Monday was largely uneventful and with few arrests, according to Chico Police. A total of seven arrests were made Monday and early Tuesday morning, half of last year’s numbers. “Regardless of the origin, this should be a welcomed change from previous Cesar Chavez Day celebrations, which have been marred by violence and other illegal behavior,” according to the press

release. Rain started pouring around 2:30 p.m Monday. Numerous party sites were abandoned to the elements, leaving trash and red plastic cups full of rainwater outside on tables and the sidewalks. The rained-on party-goers didn’t flood the downtown bars either. Aside from Madison Bear Garden and Riley’s, the bars only had a handful of patrons. Some students participated in ‘Cats in the Community, a day of public service sponsored by Associated Students and Chico State. The day of service was pushed as a way to respectfully celebrate Cesar Chavez Day. One of the students that participated was Ashley Simon, a project assistant for AS. “I had a phenomenal day at ‘Cats in the Community,” Simon posted on Instagram. “I was able to meet some amazing students who exemplify the Wildcat Way while helping out at the Boys and Girls Club.”

Total arrests Monday and early Tuesday morning SOUrce ∤ Chico Police

The Orion can be reached at

newseditor@theorion.com or @theorion_news on Twitter.

TJ Carter can be reached at

newseditor@theorion.com or @theorion_news on Twitter.

Workplace bullies push faculty into early retirement Yessenia Funes

Staff Writer

Concerns of workplace bullying of California State University employees, including professors, were brought up at a Board of Trustees meeting on Tuesday in Long Beach. John Orr, a California State University Employee’s Union representative of employees in clerical and administrative support services at Cal State Fullerton, mentioned it first. Two employees he met took early retirement to escape bullying by their manager, he said. “Bullying is a disease, and it spreads from campus to campus, from department to department,” Orr said. Susan Smith, representing employees in technical support services at Cal State Fullerton, echoed some of Orr’s comments. Smith said she has also met faculty who re-

intimidating or humiliating; intentional sabtired early because they were bullied. otage of an employee’s work performance,” It’s become an accepted culture, she said. according to its website. “Stop workplace bullying,” Smith said. Long Beach State’s policy tells its campus “Develop a policy that is systemwide and how to report mean it. Take it if they are some action. bullied and Make sure it’s enCal State San forced because if Bernadino is you don’t do someworking on thing about bullya training to ing, then you are help its campart of the bullypus undering.” Susan Smith stand it, Orr Chico State’s Union representative, Cal State Fullerton said. policy defines bul“The pieces lying as “intenexist throughtional intimidaout the systion or infliction tem,” he said. “We need you to put it together of emotional distress, characterized by verbal abuse, derogatory remarks, insults and and help all the campuses have access to this, so once again I come before you and ask epithets, verbal and physical behavior that a reasonable person would find threatening, please do something. Bullying is a problem

If you don’t do something about bullying, then you are part of the bullying.

Index

in the Cal State system.” Other issues discussed by the board Tuesday included: • 28 percent of California State University Employees Union members reported working a second job to “make ends meet,” said Alisandra Brewer, the union’s vice president of representation bargaining updates. • Over the next three years, $15 million will fund near-term deferred maintenance, a $63 billion problem. • Students can now regain Cal Grant eligibility even if they lost it the year before. The Cal Grant program originally made students ineligible for the grant permanently if they lost it at all. Yessenia Funes can be reached at

newseditor@theorion.com or @yessfun on Twitter.

Inside

Corrections

Sports

Weather