The eight-count indictment of three Northern Illinois University students for the possession, sale and trafficking of GHB, or gamma hydroxybutyrate, has prompted law enforcement officials, university administrators and concerned citizens to explore the mysterious world of date rape drugs.

GHB, considered one of these drugs, was classified a dangerous and illegal drug by the state Aug. 15, and has since become a hot topic on college and high school campuses across the state.

The indictment was handed down by the Statewide Grand Jury Dec. 5 and alleges that one of the defendants arranged for the drugs to be sent from California via a delivery service. It further alleges that the drugs arrived at a house in Sycamore and, upon delivery, were distributed in DeKalb and metropolitan Chicago. The defendants are William Bryant, 24, of Sycamore; Todd Miller, 21, of DeKalb; and Richard Seldal, 30, of DeKalb.

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The incident at NIU raises questions about the prevalence of date rape drugs in Illinois and their use among college students. In response to these questions, Attorney General Jim Ryan has called an emergency summit to deal with the problem. The day-long forum is scheduled for Jan. 26 at the Springfield Hilton. It will be divided into two parts, a morning and afternoon session. During the morning session, several speakers, including Ryan, will address attendees on the drug’s background and recent steps to combat it. The afternoon seminar will offer attendees a chance to voice their concerns and discuss personal experiences with the drug.

Nobody really knows the extent of the problem, Ryan spokesman Charles Jolie said. We want to get a gauge on how serious the problem is and what can be done about it.

Jolie said that to this point state efforts have focused on the possession and sale of the drugs rather than what the drugs have been known to accomplish. GHB, and other drugs of its kind, including rohypnol, predominant in Europe and Latin America, have been linked to scores of alleged sexual assaults across the country. Though no incidents of this kind have surfaced in Illinois, Ryan’s office will begin to concentrate its efforts in this area.

The Attorney General’s office is not the only state entity intent on carrying the date-rape-drug baton. The state Senate Rules Committee is preparing to hear the merits of a bill sponsored by Sen. Kirk Dillard, R-Downer’s Grove, and Sen. Edward Petka, R-Plainfield, that seeks to confront date rape drug problem.

SB 1224 was introduced in November and aims to make the administration of a controlled substance to a person without his or her consent for non-medical purposes a case of aggravated battery. The bill also provides that delivering a controlled substance to a victim without his or her consent as part of the same course of conduct as the commission of criminal sexual assault or criminal sexual abuse is an aggravating circumstance, upgrading the offense to aggravated criminal sexual assault or aggravated criminal sexual abuse.

Dillard and Petka were not available for comment, but a spokesman for Dillard said the bill could be called as early as Jan. 28 when the committee reconvenes.

With all the attention being given to the date-rape-drug phenomena, investigations into the darker side of college life seem imminent. Jolie said the stories currently surfacing at colleges and universities evoke unsettling images of the widely popular Animal House, in which a young girl, after a night of heavy drinking, passes out and falls prey to a desperate fraternity brother who is seen contemplating her victimization. To aid in his decision are a devil and an angel, both debating the merits of an assault. Jolie said the state of Illinois must alter the substance of their debate by including a few choice words on the part of the angel.

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We need the angel to be saying, You could be facing 30 years for this pal,’ he said. Parents shouldn’t have to be worry about their daughters being sexually assaulted at college.