County Supervisors to Talk Designer Drugs Tuesday

The San Diego County Board of Supervisors is poised to take on so-called designer drugs at its meeting Tuesday.

Supervisor Greg Cox, Sheriff Bill Gore and District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis will ask the panel to develop an ordinance declaring synthetic narcotics, commonly known as "bath salts" and "herbal incense," to be a public nuisance. That would make them subject to civil code enforcement in the unincorporated areas of the county.

The state Health and Safety Code has recently been updated to criminalize the possession, distribution and sale of both substances.

According to a letter from Cox, Dumanis and Gore in support of drafting a county ordinance, the American Association of Poison Control Centers received 6,702 calls about bath salts, which contain amphetamine-like chemicals, last year, up from 303 in 2010.

Herbal incense is a leafy material sprayed with chemicals. The drug, also known as "K2" and "Spice," is sold at gas stations, liquor stores, convenience stores, smoke shops and over the Internet.

The letter said herbal incense products sometimes contain warnings that they should not be used for human consumption even though that is the intention.

-City News Service