River's casket picture,was it a good thing to publicise or not?.....will it deter other drug user's or people thinking about abusing drug's?...should more photo's of victim's of drug abuse be shown more often?

what do you think?

I think more photographs should be shown around the world of dead druggies,this drug thing is a big deal and something should be done about it,though it might not go down well with a lot of people,they will just shrug their shoulders and continue with doing it.

Hi, all. I do think more should me shown. People need to see the reality of what drugs do. I actually thought about taking a picture of my brother in his casket to show when I do public speaking. I never got any alone time with him or I would have done it. Truthfully though, and sadly, I don't think it would make a difference. A good friend of my brother's, who was at the funeral and saw him in his casket, died two weeks later of an overdose. Seeing my brother didn't help him, did it? An addict is an addict. Ironically, my brother's friend is only a few feet from my brother now...in the same cemetery and the same row...a few feet away.

I think its a good thing if loved ones and families of the person in question actually have an interest in WANTING to help/influence/detere other drug users.

Rivers family had no such want and no say in what happened- they were robbed of privicy, River was exploited and what happened was just plain wrong on every level.

The families of other celebrities such as Chris Farley (whose picture taken of him by police at the scene of his heroin overdose was used on bill boards as an anti drug canpaign) and Rodney Harvey (whose overdose picture was used in an anti-heroin advert after his death) agreed for their sons/brothers picture to be used because they felt it was right and would help people.

concent is everything in cases like this...without it, it just hurts people and its not our buisness to see those pictures.

Nice to see you again Rikki.

Well said Rikki. I agree, it should be up to the families.

Hi all, long time no see !!!

Here in Scotlandm we have a bad drug problem and a glasgow based newspaper prints pictures of OD victims, with the concent of the families of course. Last year they printed a picture of a girl who died of a heroin OD but not a casket picture, they printed the picture that the police took exactly where they found her.

Horrible!!!

hey ekoo!

I remember that nicola....it was awful...she was only like, 17? I remember watching panorama or something and her parents were talking about why they wanted to make it public...i really do think pictures like that can act as an important warning to young people...

i suppose for me its just that these parents knew their daughter and thought she would want to help others survive drug abuse. There is something about knowing that, that can make me look at those particular pictures and not at someone such as River's...

Nicola & rikki.

Good to see you back on the forum.Take carex

Hi Rikki & Riverfan, its nice to be back !!!

Rikki, remember the Leah Beatts case too ?

Showing deceased drug addict's around the world wont do diddly shit,who's gonna take any notice of that? its always gonna be the same scenario "it wont happen to me bullshit"

I believe that point was already made by me earlier:

"Truthfully though, and sadly, I don't think it would make a difference."

However, if it helps just ONE it would be worth it.

Whenever they show a commercial between programmes on tv,then they should show pictures of them,in fact tv should be bombarded with ad's like that so maybe the message will sink into people's heads
that drugs can kill.

It certainly wouldn't hurt.