Dylann Roof and Psychiatric Drugs

The avoidable heart-wrenching racist shooting at a Black Charleston, S.C. church has reopened the discussion about gun control. However, only scant attention has been given to the psychiatric drug-induced states of the shooters.

For example, Allen L Roland, a practicing psychotherapist, writes:

• It is estimated that at least half of all Americans who commit suicide or commit violent acts were on psychiatric drugs and there are more than 3000 deaths a month attributed to psychiatric or psychotropic drugs. http://www.veteranstoday.com/…/true-source-of-random-shoot…/

Psychology Today writes:

• The 31 "suspect" drugs accounted for 1527 of the 1937 case reports of violence toward others in the FDA database for that 69-month period. The drugs in that list of 31 included varenicline (an aid to smoking cessation), 11 antidepressants, 6 hypnotic/sedatives, and 3 drugs for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Antidepressants were responsible for 572 case reports of violence toward others; the three ADHD drugs for 108; and the hypnotic/sedatives for 97. https://www.psychologytoday.com/…/psychiatric-drugs-and-vio…

In addition to these alarming statistics, FDA tabulations reveal:

• Despite 22 international drug regulatory warnings on psychiatric drugs citing effects of mania, hostility, violence and even homicidal ideation, and dozens of high profile shootings/killings tied to psychiatric drug use, there has yet to be a federal investigation on the link between psychiatric drugs and acts of senseless violence.

• At least 35 school shootings and/or school-related acts of violence have been committed by those taking or withdrawing from psychiatric drugs resulting in 169 wounded and 79 killed (in other school shootings, information about their drug use was never made public—neither confirming or refuting if they were under the influence of prescribed drugs).

• Between 2004 and 2012, there have been 14,773 reports to the U.S. FDA’s MedWatch system on psychiatric drugs causing violent side effects including: 1,531 cases of homicidal ideation/homicide, 3,287 cases of mania & 8,219 cases of aggression. Note: The FDA estimates that less than 1% of all serious events are ever reported to it, so the actual number of side effects occurring are most certainly higher. http://www.cchrint.org/psychiatr…/drug_warnings_on_violence/

These stats are alarming enough. Now ad this, Dylann Roof, the Charleston shooter, who was using Suboxone:

• Used to treat addiction to opioid drugs such as heroin. It’s adverse effects include anxiety, irritability, depersonalization, confusion, suicidal thoughts and irrational, sometimes violent behavior. http://www.wnd.com/2015/…/big-list-of-drug-induced-killers/…

For an extensive list of mass murders on psychiatric drugs, see: http://www.wnd.com/2015/06/big-list-of-drug-induced-killers/

These findings do not mean that there aren’t other causes involved like racism, political extremism, the promotion of violence through games and media, and various mental issues. However, the drugs might have provided the necessary lubricant to release these mental demons. Nor should the use of drugs mitigate these horrible offenses. Instead, the perpetrators are no less culpable than the alcoholic who kills with his vehicle. At least the alcoholic’s crime wasn’t intentional.