Pubdate: Sat, 2 Feb 2008
Source: Anchorage Daily News (AK)
Copyright: 2008 The Anchorage Daily News
Contact:  http://www.adn.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/18
Author: James Halpin
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/hallucinogens.htm (Hallucinogens)

HALLUCINOGEN IS LEGAL; THAT MAY CHANGE

Salvia: State Senate Bill Would Put It on Controlled Substance List.

It's been called the most potent naturally growing hallucinogen on 
the planet. And it's legal.

Salvia divinorum, a species of sage, isn't banned under the federal 
Controlled Substances Act, but more than a half dozen states have 
made the drug illegal through state law. At least 12 more states, 
including Alaska, are debating whether to do so.

Sen. Gene Therriault, R-North Pole, has been leading the charge here. 
Therriault said the drug's effects, which are similar to LSD's, are 
too powerful, dangerous and unpredictable to leave it unrestricted.

"What I'm trying to do here is be proactive instead of reactive to 
the newest drug on the scene," he said.

Users often experience effects typical of hallucinogens, including 
visual distortions, hallucinations, inability to speak, 
uncontrollable laughter and out of body sensations, according to the 
federal Drug Enforcement Administration. Unlike LSD, however, 
Salvia's effects generally last only about a half hour.

"My friend and her boyfriend and I melted into the wall," says one 
user, describing the experience at the Web site Salvia.net 
(http://salvia.net/ . "We were just objects with no meaning, being 
born = into the universe at this very instant, emerging from Play-Doh 
or something. I was thinking, who is she? What are people?"

Salvia, which is listed on a DEA "drugs and chemicals of concern" 
list, is cheap and easy to find online, and at least a handful of 
tobacco stores and head shops sell it in Alaska.

The Black Market downtown is one of several stores in Anchorage that 
sell Salvia under the brand name Salvia Zone, starting at $15 for a 
one-half-gram box -- enough for five uses.

The box, replete with cautions about the drug's use, touts it as a 
"tool for self discovery and introspective understanding." The Black 
Market's owner and manager didn't want to discuss Therriault's bill, 
but manager Jamie Allen said the product is a big seller at the 
store, which requires customers to be at least 19 years old.

Reports of problems stemming from the plant's use are rare to 
nonexistent in Alaska, said Lt. Andy Greenstreet, deputy commander of 
the Alaska Bureau of Alcohol and Drug Enforcement.

"It's popped up down south, but it hasn't been much of an issue here 
yet," Greenstreet said. "It's probably just a matter of time."

Its use while driving is of particular concern, he said, but driving 
under the influence laws already encompass all drugs.

Senate Bill 38, introduced last January, remains in the Finance 
Committee. Therriault said he hopes it will be addressed this 
session. Last session, a similar bill never made it to the Senate floor.

The bill didn't progress last time because it got buried behind 
higher-priority bills that needed to be heard in Finance, said Miles 
Baker, legislative assistant to Sen. Bert Stedman, R-Sitka, who 
co-chairs the committee. The bill has not yet been scheduled for a 
hearing this year, but Therriault said there has been little vocal opposition.

If passed, the bill would list Salvia divinorum and Salvinorin A, the 
psychotropic chemical in the plant, as Schedule IIA controlled 
substances under state law -- the same category as LSD, mescaline, 
peyote and psilocybin, the active chemical in hallucinogenic mushrooms.

One problem facing lawmakers is that the drug is undetectable in 
humans, an issue that's being addressed at the state crime lab, where 
analyst Jack Hurd is studying the drug and working to develop a test for it.

"We're in the initial stage, here in Alaska, researching it," Hurd 
said. "If you're going to say this is against the law, you've got to 
make sure the active ingredient isn't in other (plant) species."

There are some indications that Salvia could have legitimate medical 
applications, and Therriault's bill allows for an exemption for 
prescriptions, said Dave Stancliff, a legislative aide to Therriault.

"The jury's still out because there's not been a lot of study," he 
said. "But whenever there's uncertainty with a substance of this 
potency, there's a need to prevent injuries."

The major issue with the drug is its potency and unpredictable nature 
- -- having a bad trip is fairly common, Stancliff said. The DEA 
reports adverse physical effects include lack of coordination, 
dizziness and slurred speech.

But some relatively minor side effects should not mean the drug needs 
to be outlawed, said Jack Degenstein, with the Alaska Libertarian 
Party. Degenstein opposed Therriault's bill in a Senate hearing last year.

"This is absolutely not a public safety risk," he said in an 
interview this week. "It is the most powerful natural psychedelic, 
but just because it's powerful doesn't mean it's dangerous."

Many people are turned off by Salvia the first time they try it 
because of its potency and the uncomfortable feelings they get, he said.

The drug has been linked to at least one death.

According to news reports, a 17-year-old Delaware boy killed himself 
in 2006 after reportedly smoking the drug several times over a period 
of months, saying in a suicide note that the experience had convinced 
him life was pointless. A medical examiner eventually ruled Salvia 
use was a contributing factor to his death.

The coroner didn't make that connection until well after the boy's 
death, however, Degenstein said.

"That was actually quite a controversy because about a year after the 
fact the coroner changed his death certificate," he said.

For Degenstein and other opponents of the bill, the question is one 
of personal freedom and what consenting adults should be allowed to 
do in their own homes.

Although he doesn't advocate drug use, Jason Dowell, chairman of the 
Alaska Libertarian Party, said people should have the freedom to 
choose, especially when the choice is about a plant that has had 
traditional medicinal uses in Mexico.

"It's ridiculous that they would try to make plants illegal," Dowell 
said. "It's just a recipe for disaster. They're going to send 
innocent people to prison and invade their privacy." 
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake