Note from CCHR: Yesterday we posted an article from the St. Louis Post Dispatch regarding Forrest Laboratories quietly settling a slew of lawsuits with parents who claim the antidepressant drugs Celexa and Lexapro caused their children to become suicidal/violent. Our question is this: Why is this story remaining quiet? Are the press not aware that 10 of the recent school shooters were under the influence of psychiatric drugs? That Columbine ringleader Eric Harris was on the antidepressant Luvox? Or that Red Lake Minnesota school shooter was on Prozac, as was Springfield Oregon shooter Kip Kinkel? And those are only the cases where toxicology reports were made public. The FDA admits these drugs can cause mania, psychosis, violence, and in the case of the antidepressant Effexor, “homicidal ideation.” So we think the press should pay a bit more attention to this “quiet” story of a drug company settling lawsuits as they relate to acts of violence. To quote the Post Dispatch, “In vivid detail, the complaints allege that children under the influence of Celexa and Lexapro committed acts of suicide and violence. And the victims’ families accuse the pharmaceutical company of fraud and negligence in failing to warn physicians and the public about the drugs’ known dangers.” So again, we ask…why is this story remaining quiet?
See Fox News report from Douglas Kennedy, Deadly Drugs http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9S-7aNPf33A Read the international drug regulatory warnings/studies here: http://www.cchrint.org/psychdrugdangers/drug_warnings.php
FiercePharma, November 2, 2010
by Tracy Staton
Forest Laboratories ($FRX) is quietly settling liability lawsuits over its antidepressant drugs Celexa and Lexapro, which parents claim caused their children to either attempt or commit suicide. According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, four lawsuits were settled Friday, with two more settled in recent weeks. The company faced a total of 54 suits with similar claims, all consolidated in St. Louis federal court.
More settlements are expected in the coming months, the newspaper reports, as Forest attempts to wrap up its legal troubles with Celexa and Lexapro. The settlement amounts aren’t public, but analysts don’t expect the litigation to have much effect on the company’s finances.
Just last month, the company agreed to pay $300 million to settle off-label marketing charges with the U.S. Attorney’s office in Boston. A company subsidiary pleaded guilty to criminal charges related to marketing the antidepressants for pediatric use, which wasn’t approved by the FDA.
– read the Post-Dispatch story
http://www.fiercepharma.com/story/forest-settles-antidepressant-liability-suits/2010-11-02
Also see CCHR’s mini-documentary Prescription for Violence, here http://www.cchr.org/videos/psychiatrys-prescription-for-violence.html