04/18/24
July 06, 2010
JaMarcus Russell arrested; not likely to be employed soon: Codeine syrup, also known as purple drank, lean, or sizzurp, typically contains codeine and promethazine, ingredients found in prescription cough syrup. ESPN's "Outside the Lines" just did a feature on the beverage.
This seems like a crap arrest to me. The media is blowing it up by talking about drugs you can make from codeine syrup, but the stories don't say he did that. He was just found with codeine without a prescription. It's possible that he lost the prescription. Many of us probably have expired bottles of codeine in our refrigerators. He was released on $2,500 bond, so it's clearly not a major crime to the Alabama police.
posted by rcade at 08:38 AM on July 06, 2010
I agree. It could have been third and eight and he thought the prescription was a live football.
posted by beaverboard at 08:44 AM on July 06, 2010
Many of us probably have expired bottles of codeine in our refrigerators.
?!
posted by grum@work at 08:53 AM on July 06, 2010
The media is blowing it up by talking about drugs you can make from codeine syrup, but the stories don't say he did that.
Rcade, you need more hip hop in your life. Codeine syrup is a trendy drug of choice for the young uns.
posted by bperk at 09:14 AM on July 06, 2010
The "BIGGEST" dumb ass of all time, and the richest.
I think that the tone of the reporting and commentary on this is pretty messed up. Every story so far mentions the "street" names of codeine syrup, giving this whole thing the veneer of "ghetto black player on drugs - what a dumbass." But Russell would hardly be the first or five hundredth professional athlete to have a problem with prescription painkillers. After all, it wasn't too long ago that Sean Payton was accused of stealing prescription painkillers. When Brett Favre admitted he was addicted to painkillers, Peter King wrote a laudatory piece in which he noted that "NFL player after NFL player last week expressed sympathy for Favre, who was worried he would be cast as a druggie if he stepped forward and admitted his addiction."
Russell may or may not also be addicted to prescription painkillers, but the immediate slant of the reporting is far different from the reporting on Payton and Favre. Maybe its Russell's history of bad behavior and his status as one of the top three underperformers in the history of the NFL that is slanting the reporting in this way. But I can't help thinking that the color of his skin has something to do with it too.
posted by googly at 09:34 AM on July 06, 2010
rcade, I don't know what pharmacy you go to, but every single one I've ever been to prints out a prescription label (including the name of the person, prescribing doctor, dosing information, and number of refills) and slaps it on the drug. For example, a bottle of codeine syrup would have his name and amounts and prescribing doctor, etc all on it. And even if it didn't, it's only a question of going to the pharmacy and verifying the prescription.
posted by apoch at 10:29 AM on July 06, 2010
Even without the arrest, I don't think he wasn't gonna find much work in the NFL anymore.
posted by mjkredliner at 11:45 AM on July 06, 2010
Rcade, you need more hip hop in your life. Codeine syrup is a trendy drug of choice for the young uns.
Jamarcus was 'Sippin on some sizzurp'
posted by BornIcon at 12:24 PM on July 06, 2010
Correction: JaMarcus was Sippin on some sizzurp.
Or did he have purple stuff in his cup?
posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 12:55 PM on July 06, 2010
Jamarcus was 'Sippin on some sizzurp'
Show me where, in any of the press coverage, the cops allege he was doing that.
?!
You've never been prescribed codeine for pain after a surgery?
posted by rcade at 02:08 PM on July 06, 2010
Show me where, in any of the press coverage, the cops allege he was doing that.
?!
Rcade, you need more hip hop in your life
It's the name of a Three Six Mafia song that YMM put a link to.
posted by BornIcon at 02:59 PM on July 06, 2010
You've never been prescribed codeine for pain after a surgery?
Thankfully, I haven't had any surgery since I had my tonsils taken out back in 1975, so I've never been prescribed any codeine.
It's another thing to think that "many" people have expired bottles of controlled substances in their fridge.
posted by grum@work at 03:39 PM on July 06, 2010
Many of us probably have expired bottles
Bottles ?
Plural ?
posted by tommybiden at 03:44 PM on July 06, 2010
I've had expired bottles in my fridge before. Although it was due to a relative that worked for Anheuser Busch and he would hook me up with the replaced cases of beer that were maybe a week passed the expiration date.
Ahhhhh!! Good times.
posted by BornIcon at 04:32 PM on July 06, 2010
I don't know about the fridge, but I've got narcotics around the house. I had throat surgery a few years back, and was left with a half of a bottle (refill) of liquid Lortab, which I'm sure is very close to codiene; I've got random bottles of Lortab, vicodin, oxycontin, and darvocet in drawers from various broken bones, torn muscles, back injuries and other issues that my wife and I have suffered. I can't bring myself to throw them away because I never know when my back is going to sieze up on me (20 years of hockey). I'd rather have leftover pain killers around the house than mash my thumb with a hammer and try to quell the pain with an advil. I'm sure many of you think that keeping these things around is irresponsible, and I appreciate that view. But I hardly think it makes me a criminal.
**In no way trying to exonerate Russell, I'm just saying that rcade's prior statement isn't completely off-base.
posted by tahoemoj at 05:08 PM on July 06, 2010
Ah, this is a large slice of total bullshit. The article does not jive with the facts, makes several leaps of assumption and sensationalizes the whole thing. I find it a bit revealing.
I've also had a bit of sizzurp in my day - and it's so overrated. It ain't PCP people.
Fucking PTI is on right now, yelling about how Russell is done and a fuck up - their show is sponsored, of course, by Smirnov mixed drinks. Funnily enough - vodka and codeine, with some other items, is one of the variations on sizzurp.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 05:36 PM on July 06, 2010
In other news, JaMarcus Russell has just signed play in tahoemoj's medicine cabinet.
posted by wfrazerjr at 06:25 PM on July 06, 2010
Like hell, let him get his own "prescriptions"
posted by tahoemoj at 06:48 PM on July 06, 2010
their show is sponsored, of course, by Smirnov mixed drinks
Have I told you lately that I love you? I can understand the NFL trying to distance themselves from this rather than lose audience members unfamiliar with the NFL's message of intoxicating yourself only with cheap domestic quaff to the point where beer ads seem believable.
DEFEND THE SHIELD!
posted by yerfatma at 07:03 PM on July 06, 2010
... I'm just saying that rcade's prior statement isn't completely off-base.
This is the kind of qualified praise that keeps me coming here.
posted by rcade at 07:05 PM on July 06, 2010
You're not the worst poster.
Off-topic: Weedy, did you also catch on PTI where they decided it was either a 5% or a 0% chance the octopus was right in predicting the winner of tomorrow's match? At no point did it occur to them that was the same as saying Germany would win in a laugher. Math majors.
posted by yerfatma at 07:11 PM on July 06, 2010
They also noted that Paul was a crustacean. Which of course, is totally factual. I looked it up. In my gut.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 08:51 PM on July 06, 2010
Fucking PTI is on right now, yelling about how Russell is done and a fuck up
Well in their defense, their saying he is done had little to do with the drug rap and more to do with the fact that they thought he sucks as a football player :-) Wilbon even said that if anybody actually thought he could play football, they wouldn't care if he brought it into the huddle with him.
I'm actual with Lebertard on this one...this seems like a drummed up charge against a "semi-celeb" to bring some publicity to this whole shizzle-nizzle-syrup or whatever you called it. Seems to be popular amongst the youth and they found someone they could bust for it that would get everyone talking about it (which seems to work as I had never heard of the combination before this)
posted by bdaddy at 09:03 PM on July 06, 2010
This is the kind of qualified praise that keeps me coming here.
I've got (part of) your back, man.
posted by tahoemoj at 09:13 PM on July 06, 2010
tahoemoj/rcade, I think the issue with expired medicine is less the legality and more the fact that, just like food, medicine can spoil if held onto for too long. I'm not a pharmochemist so I'm not qualified to get into a debate about how long past the expired date the stuff is good for, or how the exactly the stuff goes bad (my guess, it depends on the stuff and storage conditions as they'll all go bad differently), and I have a feeling this has nothing to do with the Russell situation.
Apparently, he was caught up in an undercover probe.
posted by apoch at 10:18 PM on July 06, 2010
I won't be impressed until they find an athlete curled up in a fetal-position in the sand-trap of a public golf course after a night of candy-flipping.
JaMarcus wasn't doing anything that a bunch of (us) suburban teens did in the early 90's. A two month undercover probe? Ridiculous.
posted by Ufez Jones at 12:48 AM on July 07, 2010
To those of you who say, crap arrest, a two month investigation to find a bottle of codeine in his refrigerator. I have to think said bottle had no prescription label on it (illegal) so why was it there? Also, is he so stupid or disconnected that no one told him "Hey JaMarcass there are people asking some questions about you?" The guy has 36 or 39 million reasons to think he can do whatever he wants. From the Mercury News, "When arrested, Russell wasn't on the Raiders' roster. He had been cut in May. But only a fool would believe that Russell never sipped any "purple drank" during his time with the Raiders. Medical experts say that one symptom of "purple drank" is significant weight gain (from the soda and candy also involved in the concoction). Another symptom is concentration difficulties. Another is sluggish body function." From a former teammate and coach: "Dominic Rhodes said that Russell would often fall asleep in meetings and he would ask himself: "Is that the guy that's going to lead us?" In addition he would wonder if Russell had the mindset to be great." An ex-coach of the Raiders, who wished to remain anonymous, said that Russell was a "binge eater." Maybe it was a love for LSU's color purple, but if it looks like a duck, quacks like a duck, I'm guessing Mr. Biggest Bust was loving the "Purple Drank."
posted by gfinsf at 09:10 AM on July 07, 2010
From the article I linked: Mobile County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Lori Myles said Tuesday that the investigation wasn't targeting the former Oakland Raiders quarterback but that his name and home address had come up several times.
He wasn't the target of the probe, it didn't take them two months to find a bottle of syrup in his refrigerator, he was just one of people found during the probe. He's just the most famous collateral damage.
posted by apoch at 10:13 AM on July 07, 2010
gfinsf, I can't tell you how happy it makes me you're not a judge.
posted by yerfatma at 11:51 AM on July 07, 2010
... I'm guessing Mr. Biggest Bust was loving the "Purple Drank."
Because there's no other reason an athlete could get fat and fall asleep in team meetings. Sheesh.
This investigation and arrest is headline-seeking hysteria. A bottle of codeine without a prescription which is mixable with Sprite to give people a mellow buzz? Get a rope!
posted by rcade at 12:08 PM on July 07, 2010
I just can't understand why a guy with so much money for not being able to play is reduced to a bush league high like cough syrup. Jeez for the money he made a real high could be obtained on a reasonable budget.
As for football this guy was never a pro calibre QB prospect and why would anybody be surprised he is out of work. Of course he made enough that he won't need a real job which does leave a lot of time for finding cheap thrills.
Doesn't our government have anything better to do (like fix some shit) rather than chasing around a wash up athlete with a bottle of cough syrup. Jeez
posted by Atheist at 02:21 PM on July 07, 2010
I won't be impressed until they find an athlete curled up in a fetal-position in the sand-trap of a public golf course after a night of candy-flipping.
I think I'll just start repeating that for whatever reason. I like it.
posted by tselson at 11:49 PM on July 07, 2010
Because there's no other reason an athlete could get fat and fall asleep in team meetings. Sheesh.
This investigation and arrest is headline-seeking hysteria. A bottle of codeine without a prescription which is mixable with Sprite to give people a mellow buzz? Get a rope!
rcade, honestly, do you think J.R. is completely innocent of the allegations? Was he falling asleep in meetings because he was working out so hard that he couldn't stay awake? Or perhaps he knew the offense so well he didn't have to listen? His own teammates questioned why. Also the only surgery I found in his history was LASIK, hardly a procedure that requires codeine.
Also, no I am not a judge yourfatma, but if I was sitting on the bench and J.R. appeared before me, an out of work multi millionaire who has been questioned by those who he worked with as having the same tendencies of those who drink the "drank" and had evidence that he possessed it illegally, I would expect his defense team to have a very strong rebuttal to the prosecution's argument.
I think J.R. is an uneducated young, athlete/ man who probably associates himself with less educated people than himself and then falls into these situations but at the end of the day he has ruined his life, codeine or not.
posted by gfinsf at 10:20 AM on July 08, 2010
I think J.R. is an uneducated young, athlete/ man who probably associates himself with less educated people than himself
He spent 3 years at LSU. Regardless of what Randy Newman thinks, why would you presume someone who spent 3 years in a US college is uneducated? Is that the only reason people use intoxicants? And if he's so dense, why do you think he's hanging around with people even denser?
at the end of the day he has ruined his life, codeine or not
The only thing missing from this but of purple prose is a string section. It's like something out of Reefer Madness. He's made about $40 million dollars since 2007. I'd trade my current situation for his.
posted by yerfatma at 10:39 AM on July 08, 2010
Hi life is ruined? Not with that bank account it isn't. His athletic career? Yes, that one is probably ruined. But he's hardly the first big pick to totally bust.
I don't know why you're grinding this particular axe, gfinsf. It's hardly Vick, or even Favre for that matter. Of course, Favre is a hero for stoically admitting his addictions to vicodin. Is he uneducated too?
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 01:01 PM on July 08, 2010
It's like something out of Reefer Madness.
Nah, more like this.
posted by Ufez Jones at 01:14 PM on July 08, 2010
I guess the axe I'm grinding is that this guy has made up to $40 million dollars for doing nothing and now this comes out that he "maybe" drinking the "drank" on top of that. It should not be a shock to anyone that some college student/athletes do not measure up to the caliber of the general student body. Three years at LSU does not make him an academic and his professional record apparently shows he is not good in the classroom viewing films etc. I doubt it was different at LSU. For him to be even mentioned in this article and investigation shows he is really stupid, even if he is academically brilliant, which I doubt. He has no surgical reason to have codeine in his house based upon his medical history. So the simple question is, why was it there? According to the police the "drank" is not uncommon and the "Out Side the Lines" video which I was included in my post confirms just that. My question is why would you change places with him even if he does have a load of money? Do you want to be arrested? Called the biggest bust in NFL history? Or even worse having your character questioned on Sports Filter?
posted by gfinsf at 07:34 AM on July 10, 2010
rcade, honestly, do you think J.R. is completely innocent of the allegations?
I presume he's innocent until evidence is presented to convince me otherwise. I've had codeine in my house, so treating it like some dangerous street drug seems absurd to me. You don't know his complete medical history. Most NFL players have chronic physical ailments so it's highly likely they'd have powerful painkillers around the house.
All of the press coverage I've read about Russell contains a bunch of speculation about "purple drank" without a single bit of evidence he drank it. That seems unfair to me. They're making him the poster child for a drug problem without proving he has that problem. If he's out doing it, there should be people who can attest to that in various ways.
posted by rcade at 09:35 AM on July 10, 2010
The "BIGGEST" dumb ass of all time, and the richest.