Logan City bans spice
The Logan City council unanimously approved an ordinance banning spice Tuesday night. Logan City attorney Kymber Housley said the ban will take effect upon media publication.
The city is the latest among a handful of jurisdictions, including Cache County, in Utah enacting anti-spice laws over the past few weeks. Spice is a relatively new drug that contains a synthetic form of THC. Because there had been no ordinance regulating the substance, it was technically legal to sell and purchase.
Before casting her approving vote, council member Holly Daines said, “If we can help people from being impacted by this, it is worthwhile.”
Logan City Chief of Police Gary Jensen said, “This is an excellent step forward for our community.”
Local news outlets began taking note of issues related to spice usage earlier this year. The media reports relating to the drug have increased to weekly and often daily announcements. Stories include crimes committed related to spice usage and legislative efforts by municipalities to curb this crime.
The local push to regulate spice began when County Attorney James Swank assigned Sgt. Michael Bartschi from the Cache County Sheriff Task Force and detective Nate Argyle of the Logan City Police to investigate the issue in order to determine what course to take. Bartschi said Detective Argyle, who works with the Logan City School District, had seen an escalating problem with youth as young as 12 years old abusing the drug.
Bartschi said when he came into the task force last August (2009), they were just beginning to hear about spice. He said Swank was first made aware of the problem by a concerned mother whose son had experienced a spice overdose.
Bartschi said he and Det. Argyle researched the internet, including DEA news. They then discussed the drug with DEA officials and that was when they first realized that spice was composed of a synthetic chemical sprayed onto an otherwise benign dried plant product.
Bartschi said they also began to notice an increase of hospital visits and crimes associated with people using spice. This compelled them to develop a course of action leading up to the passage of legislation regulating the drug.
“We are not looking to go out and arrest anyone under the sun,” Bartschi said. “We know that 82 percent of every crime committed in Cache County is related to drugs and/or alcohol. Nationally that figure is 80 percent. And so we recognize that anytime we start having issues arise with any new substance that is going to be frequently abused, causing intoxication, we recognize we are going to have individuals making poor decisions when they use that (substance). “
Earlier this month, county sheriffs arrested a man who was firing a weapon inside and out of a home in Clarkston. A goat near the residence was hit and later died. Investigators later found that the man had been smoking spice.
The new laws will enable law enforcement to prosecute cases that involve abuse of spice. Bartschi said the county had to drop a DUI case against an individual who had been driving recklessly while smoking spice because the current laws did not allow for the prosecution to justify its case.
The local debate about spice had advocates for keeping the drug legal. Others felt that there is not enough information known about this relatively new intoxicant to make an informed decision. Logan city council member Herm Olsen brought up the question of whether this really is a health issue, since the newness of spice results in a lack of information on its characteristics and effects.
– tam.r@aggiemail.usu.edu