Former Oklahoma State U. basketball coach Sean Sutton was unable to appear in court for his second arraignment Monday because of lingering withdrawal symptoms. Judge Stephen Kistler excused his absence again and postponed his next court appearance to 10 a.m. on June 7, according to court officials. Sutton is still under the pending plea of not guilty.

Sutton is charged with possessing drugs, primarily opiates, like Oxycodone and Clonazepam. Opiate withdrawal can cause sweating, nausea, vomiting, insomnia and anxiety, and can occur after weeks or months of prolonged use, according to www.healthcentral.com.

As of now, Sutton is facing four charges against him. The first count is for obtaining a controlled dangerous substance — Oxycodone — by fraud, a felony. He is receiving two counts for unlawfully possessing a controlled dangerous substance — Oxycodone, Adderall and Clonazepam — without a prescription, a felony.

His fourth count is for the use of a communication facility to facilitate a felony, or using his cell phone for the distribution of drugs. These charges are put forth by Payne County and were released by the plaintiff.

District Attorney Robert Hudson said in a press conference, “We are seeing more and more of this type of crime.” He said it’s a “silent epidemic in this country.”

Monday in the Oklahoma City News, it accounted 83 percent of drug-related deaths in Oklahoma to the abuse of prescription drugs. According to state narcotics officials, the number of drug-related deaths is the highest in state history.

According to the Drug Enforcement Administration Web Site, the leading statistic of drug arrests in Oklahoma are still overwhelmingly made on marijuana possession.