FALL RIVER (FOX 25 / MyFoxBoston.com) – The mayor of Fall River is seeking to establish a city ordinance to prohibit the sale of synthetic drugs, specifically bath salts and synthetic marijuana in Fall River establishments.
Mayor William A. Flanagan's proposal would include a ban on synthetic cathinones ("bath salts") and synthetic cannabinoids ("synthetic marijuana")
Due to the lack of classification, synthetic drugs (which are not categorized as food, food supplement, or drug) are without any regulatory body overseeing sales, which also means there is no age restriction to purchase them.
Synthetic drugs produce a "supercharged high" which lasts three hours or longer with effects that include agitation, paranoia, delusions, suicidal thoughts, hallucinations and possible death as explained by city health officials.
The ordinance also grants enforcement power to the police department and the fine for violating the law would be $300 -- the maximum the city can impose by law. It would also apply to those caught using, as well as selling and displaying the products.
Forty-five states have already banned the sale of the synthetic drugs. Massachusetts is not one of them.
