Rachel Whitear
Rachel Whitear | |
|---|---|
Whitear, circa 1995 | |
| Born | Rachel Jayne Whitear 6 February 1979 Weymouth, Dorset, England |
| Died | 10 May 2000 (aged 21) Exmouth, Devon, England |
| Resting place | St. Peter Churchyard, Withington, Herefordshire, England 52°02′28″N 2°57′23″W / 52.0412°N 2.9565°W (approximate) |
| Nationality | English |
| Education | Graduate of Hereford Sixth Form College (two A-Levels) |
| Occupation(s) | Former student; bar worker, shop worker |
| Known for | Death via heroin overdose Rachel's Story |
| Parent(s) | Pauline (née Scorey) Whitear (mother) Michael Holcroft (stepfather). |
Rachel Jayne Whitear (6 February 1979 – 10 May 2000) was a young woman from Withington, Herefordshire, who died of a heroin overdose in Exmouth, Devon, in May 2000 at the age of 21. She had been a frequent user of the narcotic for two years, having been introduced to heroin usage by her partner, Luke Fitzgerald, in 1998.
Following Whitear's death, her parents authorised the publication of a police photograph of their daughter's slumped, flaccid and discoloured body as she was discovered clutching a syringe inside a rented bedsit approximately two days after her death. Her death and the publication of official police photographs of her body also led to a nationwide anti-drug campaign in Britain involving a 22-minute documentary titled Rachel's Story which focuses upon her life, her potential, her struggles with heroin addiction, and ultimate overdose. The particular focus of the broadcasting of this documentary was nationwide secondary schools.
The nationwide anti-drug campaign following Whitear's death has been compared to the anti-ecstasy campaigns undertaken after the 1995 deaths of English teenager Leah Betts and Australian schoolgirl Anna Wood.