What can be done about spiked drinks in Boston? Readers have ideas.
“Everyone deserves to feel safe all the time. No one has the right to treat others this way.”
Warnings about spiked drinks at local bars, clubs, and restaurants have taken off on social media as residents share their own scary experiences. Boston.com readers told us they’re worried about the problem and are already taking precautions to stay safe when they go out drinking.
Between April 10 and June 4, Boston police received nearly a dozen reports from alleged victims of drugged drinks at clubs and bars, according to reporting by the Boston Globe. On TikTok and Twitter, people have shared their own stories, and a Facebook group dedicated to “shedding light on any and all date rape drug incidences occurring in and around the Boston area” has compiled a list of more than 70 establishments where its members allege they’ve had spiked drinks.
The Boston Police Department is aware of the allegations and issued a community alert on the issue, encouraging victims to call 911 or file a report, and citing common date-rape drugs like Rohypnol (or “roofies”), GHB, and Ketamine.
“These drugs and substances can cause disorientation, confusion, temporary paralysis or unconsciousness along with a host of other symptoms, leaving the potential victim vulnerable to the intentions of the suspect,” the department said in a statement.
Many readers agreed that it would take a combination of an increased awareness from patrons and security from bars, clubs, and restaurants to make the nightlife scene safer.
“People should take greater caution when out drinking. Cover your drinks and keep a greater vigilance around them. If you have to leave your drink alone consider it spiked and get a new one,” AJ from Fenway said. “Bartenders and security staff should also keep an increased vigilance as well as security cameras to catch who it might be after the fact.”
In a recent Boston.com poll, 66% of the 129 respondents said they were concerned about spiked drinks at Boston-area bars and many of those readers shared what they think should be done to keep patrons safe. Below you’ll find a sampling of those responses.
Some entries may be edited for length and clarity.
Increased security, covered drinks, bystander intervention, and more
“Provide lids for all drinks, and encourage people to never leave their drink unattended, for any reason. This has been an issue in and around the Boston/Cambridge nightclub/bar scene for quite some time now. It was at least 5-10 years ago when I was going out more. This is just the latest uptick. Lids, on all drinks. I know bars that tried more security. Still didn’t fix the problem. Lids on all drinks could help, even if it might not entirely put an end to it happening. I’m not sure this is something that can be realistically eliminated entirely. But, any reduction would be welcome.” — Kristen Z., Malden
“It starts and ends with venue security, both staff and security tools. All front-of-house staff and preferably even backend staff need to be trained in what to look for and, gosh forbid, how to respond if there’s a spiked drink incident. I also can’t stress enough how important it is to have multi-angle, high-definition security cameras inside the venue, again gosh forbid there should be a need to reference the footage. Venues of all shapes and sizes should want to take a leading position on this to protect everyone’s safety and the industry’s reputational upside.” — Alex, Cambridge
“The perpetrators who are toxifying women’s drinks at bars, what do they have in mind to do next? We should do everything possible to find out who is doing this and put them behind bars. There should be an immediate and aggressive ‘no tolerance’ policy against this and other types of predatory behaviors. Everyone deserves to feel safe all the time. No one has the right to treat others this way.” — Anonymous, Cape Cod
“More surveillance, test strips provided by establishment for starters.” — Bobby, Quincy
“Camera surveillance, training staff to be vigilant. Call EMTs if concerned that a person loses the ability to stand, walk, etc. Be wary of people trying to ‘assist’ someone who is impaired if they are unknown to the person. Bystander intervention is key!” — Claire S., East Sandwich
“This shouldn’t even be up for debate. Women shouldn’t have to cover drinks, test them, or constantly watch them all night. The criminals and offenders that spike the drinks should be caught and prosecuted. ‘It’s too hard to catch offenders’ is an excuse. If BPD and bars cared enough about the safety of women, they would stop it.” — Amanda G., Somerville
Boston.com occasionally interacts with readers by conducting informal polls and surveys. These results should be read as an unscientific gauge of readers’ opinion.
Be civil. Be kind.
Read our full community guidelines.To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address