Pubdate: Tue, 10 Aug 2004 Source: Times-Picayune, The (LA) Copyright: 2004 The Times-Picayune Contact: http://www.nola.com/t-p/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/848 BANNING A BREW Some people who've experimented with angel's trumpet as a way to get high have learned the hard way that one of the tropical plant's other common names -- devil's weed -- is more apt. When ingested, angel's trumpet can cause fever, blurred vision and urine retention. Three Kenner teenagers and two Destrehan teens were hospitalized after drinking angel's trumpet concoctions. In Florida, a youth died from its effects. The plant's hallucinogenic properties are no less dangerous. One of the Kenner teens was poised to jump off a roof while under its influence; another tried to take a bite out of his arm. And in Germany, a young man seriously mutilated himself with garden shears while high on the substance. It shouldn't be legal to manufacture, use or sell such a dangerous substance, and in Kenner and New Orleans, at least, it's now a misdemeanor. The Kenner City Council adopted an ordinance last month that makes it illegal to consume or sell concoctions containing the plant. The New Orleans City Council voted last week to ban the manufacture or sale of compounds made from the plant. Neither ordinance bans the buying, selling or possession of the plant itself, and that's as it should be. The angel's trumpet has a legitimate use in landscaping, and it's hardly the only thing growing in people's gardens that could be dangerous if misused. But people who turn this flowering plant into a drug should face consequences, and not only in New Orleans and Kenner. Officials in both places say that a state law is needed, and they're right. This kind of dangerous trend would be better addressed by a statewide law than by piecemeal banning of the substance by local governments that may not learn about angel's trumpet until a tragedy happens in their backyard. A state law that bans the use, manufacture and sale of angel's trumpet concoctions could keep it out of the hands of someone's son or daughter. And it would ensure that those who seek to profit from this noxious brew will face appropriate punishment. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake