Tests show date-rape drugs not involved in incident last fall at downtown bar

Results of a laboratory analysis were unable to detect any known date-rape drugs in the systems of three women who were found impaired in downtown Whitefish last fall, according to the Whitefish Police Department.

On Oct. 27, 2019, the Whitefish Police responded to Casey’s bar in downtown following the report of one unresponsive woman and two others who were seriously impaired. The three women were taken to North Valley Hospital where they were treated and released.

At the hospital, bodily fluids were collected from the women and sent to the Montana State Crime Lab for analysis.

Police Chief Bill Dial said the results while unable to detect any known date-rape drugs, however, found a high level of alcohol in all three women and one also had THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol the main active ingredient of cannabis, in her system.

Following the incident, social media posts alleged that a “date-rape drug” was involved in the incident. The police department at the time said the information was unsubstantiated and it would provide information following a completed investigation.

“The Whitefish Police Department encourages anyone who suspects they or anyone else have been drugged to contact the police immediately so we can investigate,” Dial said in a release. “However, unsubstantiated rumors and social media postings containing only part of the story and conjecture is discouraged as it serves no purpose.”