The Florida chapter of the Citizens Commission on Human Rights (CCHR), a non-profit mental health industry watchdog organization that has been investigating and collecting information on psychiatric drug links to school shooters and other acts of senseless violence since 1989, has reported that those taking or withdrawing from psychiatric drugs have committed at least 36 school shootings and/or school-related acts of violence.

Recently the nation and the world were shaken by an act of lethal violence when Nikolas Cruz opened fire at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School killing 17 students and teachers. Although many reasons for this horrific tragedy have been proposed and even actions taken to hopefully prevent another catastrophe, one vital fact is being overlooked - and that fact is that the prevalence of psychotropic drug use amongst Americans may be driving a percentage of these people to commit acts of violence.

According to CCHR an investigation into the link is long overdue when you take into consideration that between 2004 and 2012 the FDA's safety information and adverse event reporting program, known as MedWatch, received a staggering 14,773 reports of psychiatric drugs causing violent side effects, including 1,531 cases of homicidal ideation/homicide, 3,287 cases of mania, and 8,219 cases of aggression. 

These purportedly "safe" psychiatric medications prescribed to troubled individuals, including children, come with black box warnings, which clearly state side effects of homicide, suicide, mania, and violence.

A black box warning is the strictest label possible that the FDA can put on a drug, or medical device, to alert people that serious safety risks, including life-threatening dangers, are associated with the drug. In fact, 

over 34 antidepressants alone come with these warnings, with additional classes of psychiatric drugs labeled with over 409 warnings. Despite these alarming public alerts, from 1999 to 2013, psychiatric drug medication prescriptions have increased by 117%, resulting in a 240% increase in death rates.

The United States is not the only country to have reported the alarming connection between psychiatric drugs and violence. A Swedish study published in 2015 based on 856,493 individuals prescribed SSRIs ("selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors", aka, antidepressants) clinically proved an increase in violence in the group prescribed the drugs versus a control group of people who didn't take any antidepressants. Another example was published in 2016 from Professor Jari Tiihonen, whose research group analyzed the use of prescription drugs of 959 people convicted of a homicide in Finland. It was found that pre-crime prescription of benzodiazepines and opiates, both of which have black box warnings in the U.S., resulted in the highest risk (a 223% increase) of actually committing homicide. Moreover, there is continual anecdotal evidence that link psychiatric drugs to violence on sites such as AntiDepAware , which has been reporting on antidepressant-related homicides since 2003.  

CCHR is asking you to call Florida Governor Rick Scott and 

let him know that as a citizen you are requesting that an investigation into the connection between psychiatric drugs and violence be launched.

(850) 717-9337

Thank you,