Village Board Passes Synthetic Pot Ordinance

Although a state law already bans synthetic marijuana, the approved its own local ordinance Monday that adds another level of regulation and penalty for possession of the herbal supplement.

The ordinance adds more local bite to the state law, allowing the village to suspend or revoke the business license of smoke shops and other outlets that sold the drug, known under names such as K2 or Spice, said Chief John Burica in an interview before Monday's meeting. Burica helped draft the measure along with the village's attorney.

"The state law is more of a possession thing," he said. "We wanted to create something for us with a little more bite."

Under the state ban, which went into effect Jan. 1, selling the drug is a felony offense, carrying a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $150,000 fine. Possession could lead to three years in prison and up to a $25,000 fine.

The local ordinance also broadens the definition for synthetic marijuana, Burica said. In the past, manufacturers have been able to skirt around bans by changing the molecular makeup of the drug, then arguing that it doesn't fit the precise description in the law, he said. Frankfort's legislation ties off this loophole by adding language that includes any other substances that create a similar effect to synthetic marijuana, Burica added.

Frankfort Police have run across the sale of synthetic marijuana only a few times, but Burica said village administrators and police officials visited many of the town's smoke shops ahead of time to talk to them about the state ban and the eventual local ordinance. In fact, Mayor Jim Holland personally visited the owners of store in the Frankfort Crossing shopping center at the end of last year to discuss the issue.

The new ordinance goes into effect 30 days from passage.