USA: Drug Paraphernalia Act bans pipes and bongs in headshops

[Alfa]

FEDS TAKE AIM AT N.C. HEAD SHOPS

RALEIGH -- Just about every college town in America has stores that
openly sell marijuana pipes and other accessories that everyone knows
can be put to illegal use. Now federal authorities in North Carolina
have waded into what many thought was a gray area of the law by
cracking down on head shops. On Monday, Frank D. Whitney, the U.S.
attorney for central and Eastern North Carolina, announced that
federal, state and local agents raided six businesses last week to
launch "Operation Pipecleaner."

Officers seized nearly 3,800 glass and metal pipes, along with rolling
papers and other items from four stores in the Triangle on Thursday,
court records show. Two of the stores are next to N.C. State
University. Agents said they also raided two stores near the
UNC-Wilmington campus and hauled away paraphernalia.

The operation in the Triangle has been going on for three
months.

"Drug paraphernalia distributors legitimize the use of drugs by
selling through public retail establishments but acting deliberately
ignorant of the use of paraphernalia devices," Whitney said at a news
conference. "Most importantly and most frightening, drug paraphernalia
distributors prey on impressionable youth, targeting universities and
high schools and distributing through the Internet."

The local seizures were at Buddha's Belly, 2112 Hillsborough St.,
Raleigh; Snap Dragons, 2526 Hillsborough St., Raleigh; Rock 'N' Roll
Outlet, 3601 Capital Blvd., Raleigh; and Rock-N-Roll Village, 2808-B
U.S. 70 West, Clayton. In Wilmington, Buddha's Belly, 830 S. Kerr
Ave., and Expressions, 419 S. College Road, were also raided.

Owners Could Be Cited

No one was arrested, but Whitney said store owners could be charged.
Three of the store owners or managers in Raleigh declined to comment;
the fourth couldn't be reached.

Drew Skidmore, co-owner of Expressions, said the store has been in
Wilmington about six years and had the permission of local law
enforcement to sell its pipes.

"We market them for tobacco; we don't want them to be used [for
drugs]," he said. "But I don't know how you can really control that."

Skidmore said it wasn't fair to say the store was trying to lure
children to buy pipes just because it also sells skateboards. "They
sell candy in convenience stores," he said. "I don't know where you
draw the line."

Whitney said the operation sends a message that the merchandise is not
legal, even though it's sold openly.

He also said he wants to warn youth that marijuana is typically six or
seven times more potent than it used to be, leads to harder drugs and
is a health hazard. He added that most of the marijuana sold in North
Carolina is no longer grown locally but comes from drug cartels from
Latin America.

Whitney said U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft issued a directive
last year, urging federal prosecutors to target drug users.

Congress in 1986 made it a felony to mail paraphernalia, and in 1990
made it illegal to sell or offer for sale pipes that are primarily
used to ingest drugs. The law defines specific kinds of pipes. There
is no state law that could be used.

Kris Krane, associate director of the National Organization to Reform
Marijuana Laws, said Monday in a phone interview from Washington,
D.C., that the North Carolina crackdown is new.

He said the Justice Department has prosecuted large paraphernalia
makers and online distributors but hasn't gone after head shops on
such an organized level.

"It's an utter and complete waste of money," Krane said. "We're
talking about busting businessmen here, not street dealers. ... This
is a relatively new development and a scary one."

Store Closes

On Monday, one of the stores, Snap Dragons, was closed. Empty display
cases could be seen through the dark glass windows. Agents reported
seizing more than 800 pipes from the store.

Down the street, Buddha's Belly remained open despite the loss of more
than 640 pipes, which were only a small part of the store's business.
It also sells skateboards, clothes and other merchandise.

Paul Newby, the assistant U.S. attorney who coordinated the
investigation, said mixing merchandise is a concern to
authorities.

"The owners of drug paraphernalia businesses glamorize drug use by
stocking drug paraphernalia along with clothing, posters and other
items, such as skateboards, that are attractive to young adults," Newby said.

Whitney said that the government will continue to concentrate on drug
traffickers, but that will be easier if authorities can also reduce
the demand for illegal drugs.

"We have to draw the line somewhere," Whitney said. "Let's draw it at
drug paraphernalia, because it's so blatantly illegal."

[Alfa]

I wonder why the US government is not worried that they are becoming the laugh of the rest of the world, by doing more and more utter stupid things and declaring "facts"that have been proven to be not only wrong, but excactly the opposite decades ago.

[Alfa]

You would almost think that the US government has nothing better to do. No real treath to worry about.

[argovistov]

Here in Sweden a couple of years ago one got 4 years for selling pipes and cannabis seeds. Both are legal here, but the combination was regarded as preparations for crime since it is illegal to use narcotics.

[Alfa]

BUSTING RETAILERS: FAR OUT, MAN

To confiscate marijuana-smoking gadgets sold openly in two Wilmington
stores apparently required law-enforcement officers from the federal, state
and local levels.

Led by John Ashcroft's U.S. Department of Justice and U.S. Attorney Frank
D. Whitney, intrepid officers from the U.S. Drug Enforcement
Administration, the U.S. Marshals Service, the State Bureau of
Investigation, the New Hanover County Sheriff's Department and the
Wilmington Police Department somehow managed to detect the presence of
dopey paraphernalia and seize it, from stores here and in Raleigh.

It was as if the massed forces of Eliot Ness had busted one of Al Capone's
speakeasies and confiscated the little umbrellas that went in the tropical
cocktails.

Of course, photos and video footage of cheesy smoke dispensers would look
good in campaign commercials, and probably will.

Americans are threatened by terrorists trying to murder us and destroy our
free institutions. We're threatened by killer drugs such as
methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin. And to be sure, it's said that the
marijuana on sale these days is much more powerful than the weed some
adults remember (or think they do) from their hippy-dippy days.

But terrorists and drug dealers are hard to find and convict. Retail clerks
whose dubious wares are on brazen display don't present quite so difficult
a challenge.



Fortunately, no officers were harmed in the making of this media event.

[Alfa]

'OPERATION PIPECLEANER'

Officers Seize Stores' Drug Paraphernalia

Authorities Aim To Make Items Scarce

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - The federal government is going on the offensive
against drug paraphernalia, seizing pipes and other items from half a dozen
stores in eastern North Carolina.

Federal prosecutors said Monday the searches and seizures are the first in
a new campaign designed to make it harder to find materials that could
entice teenagers to begin smoking marijuana.

"The distribution of drug paraphernalia is a federal felony," U.S. Attorney
Frank Whitney said at a news conference in Raleigh. "If we can cut down on
the demand for drugs, it will make our jobs easier."

Federal, state and local agents participated in Feb. 26 searches of four
Wake County and two Wilmington businesses as part of "Operation
Pipecleaner." They recovered decorative and brightly colored bongs, as well
as "roach" clips and miniature spoons.

These kinds of items are defined in federal law as drug paraphernalia, and
someone selling or trying to sell them can receive up to three years in
prison, face fines and have ot forfeit the cited goods.

No charges have been filed against the owners or employees at the six
stores, but criminal counts are possible. The investigation and operation
are continuing, Whitney said.

Federal and local officials defended their campaign against retailers.

After years of continuing efforts to convict drug suppliers, Whitney said
Washington asked that local U.S. attorney come up with ways to reduce the
demand for drugs.

Marijuana is often labeled as a gateway drug because people who smoke it
are many times more likely to use heavier drugs such as heroin and cocaine,
according to the Office of National Drug Control Policy.

In the past, much of the marijuana smoked in North Carolina was grown
in-state. Now, more of the drug is coming aboard tractor-trailers from
Mexico and Central America and contains higher amounts of marijuana's
active chemical, tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC.

"The marijuana of 2004 is not your parents' marijuana, if they experimented
with it," Whitney said.

Keeping paraphernalia farther away from high-school or college students
should help discourage experimentation, the operation coordinator said.

"The message is, 'The gateway is closed,'" Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul
Newby said. "No more tickets will be sold."

In February 2003, federal authorities charged 55 people with trafficking in
illegal drug paraphernalia in an investigation they said targeted the
nation's biggest Internet distributors of bongs, crack pipes and other
gear. At the time, White House drug czar John Walters said, "This is a
devastating blow to the drug paraphernalia business."

Although Newby declined to discuss the specific stores in North Carolina
that were searched, he said many outlets sell drug paraphernalia alongside
skateboards and clothing.

Agents seized items at Buddha's Belly stores in Raleigh and Wilmington;
Snap Dragons and the Rock 'n' Roll Outlet in Raleigh; Rock 'n' Roll Village
in Clayton; and Expressions in Wilmington.

Drew Skidmore, the co-owner of Expressions, said the store talked to local
law enforcement to ensure that their sales inventory was legal. He was
surprised by the federal search.

"If they didn't want to us sell the stuff, they could have just sent us a
letter," Skidmore said. The items Expressions sells are intended solely for
tobacco or legal herbs, he said.

Skidmore questioned the point of singling out the six stores. "You can
smoke illegal drugs out of any pipe in the world," he said.

Police can charge paraphernalia vendors in state court, but there is no
specific count against paraphernalia sales.

A person who identified himself as the manager at Buddha's Belly said
agents removed items from about 20 percent of his store but declined
further comment. Attempts to reach the other businesses were not successful.

[Alfa]

NOTHING ILLEGAL ABOUT PIPE SALE

At least one local mom feels pipes and bongs shouldn't be sold near
schools, even though store owners insist they never sell to children
and police say the sales aren't breaking any laws.

As a mother of two elementary-age children, Kim Bradwell wasn't happy
when she found pipes, bongs, rolling papers and other items usually
associated with drug use in corner stores near schools.

"I'm not sure why they're selling them. They're only contributing to
our drug problem," Bradwell said of the stores' owners.

"They're all in neighbourhoods," she exclaimed, citing Tempo Gas,
Mac's Convenience Store and Kim's Grocery as businesses selling
marijuana merchandise.

Kim's Grocery owner Steve Kim insists he won't sell anything to
children that could be considered drug-related.

"I have never sold (pipes or bongs) to kids," he insisted.

"I have kids too, so it's something I won't do."

Other store owners reiterated Kim's feelings, and at least one said he
wouldn't sell pipes at all if he didn't need the extra revenue to run
his business-which costs about $20,000 each month.

Cpl. Sean Sullivan said pipes-which are usually made of glass, wood,
stone or metal-and bongs (which use water to cool marijuana smoke)
aren't considered drug paraphernalia until they're used with an
illegal substance.

"Bongs aren't illegal, however, we are well aware of what they're used
for," Sullivan offered.

"Once they use them to smoke crack or marijuana it becomes drug
paraphernalia."

Bradwell has addressed her concerns to store owners and relies on
education to keep students informed about the devices she doesn't like.

"If children go into a store for a slurpee and they see these things
they're going to have questions. What we've done is we've written to


schools to let them know what's going on in their neighbourhoods."

[sands of time]

Look out, John Ashcroft will have his team of goons over there before you know it.

[Insane Asian]

that mom is dumber than the one that wanted to take out "in god we trust" from the pledge of alegence..... it just wont happen

[Thegreatone]

a few head shops in my area have stoped selling pipes openly and one even shut down cause of all this bullshit.

[KingOfDiamonds]

It sucks that a few people have to ruin it for everyone<img border="0" src= "smileys/smiley13.gif">

[ShadyMilkman]

All the head shops in my area got raided a few months ago. It was crazy, and businesses lost a lot of $$$ in product.

[manda]

At least the D.E.A.'s off us.

[searcher]

"Concerned parents" boycotted the head shop near my 'hood. The place closed.

[Insane Asian]

i was in a smoke shop i go to a lot and there were tweaker pipes and said how can they sell these the only thing they are used for is smoking crack and meth, then the entire store got quiet and stared at me. i didnt know i said it as loud as i did cause i was high. how do they sell those pipes legally is my only question. it cant be used for tabaco so how can smoke shops sell them.

[airmax95]

<blockquote>Originally posted by Insane Asian on 04 July 2004<hr>
i was in a smoke shop i go to a lot and there were tweaker pipes and said how can they sell these the only thing they are used for is smoking crack and meth, then the entire store got quiet and stared at me. i didnt know i said it as loud as i did cause i was high. how do they sell those pipes legally is my only question. it cant be used for tabaco so how can smoke shops sell them.

<hr></blockquote>



That's why they can sell it, because you DON'T MENTION the intended use. Gee, you must be so lit that you don't know what the hell is going on. Don't you notice the sign that says "DO NOT MENTION ILLEGAL DRUG USE." That's why they were staring at you, cause you opened your big stupid, faded, mouth. Even if you whisperd that shit to the guy behind the counter, you would have gotten a stare. I remember one time in Santa Monica, this dumb shit started talking about weed out loud. This huge corn fed mofo behind the counter told him to shut up, but he wouldn't. He almost got his ass beat, his friend had to drag his stupid ass out of the shop.



They can't stop you from buying it the intended use is not known. As far as getting caught with paraphenilia, I'm not sure about that, I think you can argue your where out if you get caught with just the pipe and it has no resin on it.

God, i hope the head shops here dont shut down, i hate ordering online, tax and shipping up the ass

[Alfa]

LAW AIMS TO CURB PARAPHERNALIA

Although a recent amendment to Oklahoma's drug laws aims to tighten the
restrictions on marijuana paraphernalia, some Tahlequah residents feel
lawmakers might as well just be blowing smoke.

House Bill 1220, passed by the Senate April 22 and the House of
Representatives May 6, amends the state's list of illegal drug
paraphernalia to include "all hidden or novelty pipes," and "any pipe that
has a tobacco bowl or chamber of less than one-half inch in diameter in
which there is an detectable residue of any controlled dangerous substance
as defined in this section or any other substances not legal for possession
or use."

The law pertains to not only the actions of the owner of such a pipe, but
also his or her intent to either use it - or sell it to someone who intends
to use it - to smoke marijuana.

The law states, "The innocence of an owner, or of anyone in control of the
object, as to a direct violation of this act shall not prevent a finding
that the object is intended for use, or fashioned specifically for use, as
drug paraphernalia."

The new act puts even more pressure on novelty shops selling pipes, which -
ostensibly used to smoke tobacco - can make great pot pipes as well.

"I had a gut feeling that was coming," said Brandon Hamilton, who, after
eight years of operating a Tahlequah novelty store called Plumb Krazy,
closed his doors earlier this year. "The fact of the matter is, in eight
years, I never had any trouble, but I was getting gray hairs from worrying,
and I wasn't even doing anything illegal."

Hamilton said so many regulations - from the local level on up to federal
laws - pertain to the sale of smoking items, just trying to stay within the
law made running a novelty store a high-pressure career.

"For example, if a pipe crossed the state line, it was a federal offense;
everything had to come from in-state to be legal," said Hamilton, who's
also a professional photographer. "If the feds had come in, all the
pictures of bands I had in there, all the pictures of my brother riding
bulls, my Harley Davidson, everything I had in there could've been taken."

Katherine Smith of Tahlequah has some misgivings about a law that contains
language as broad as "novelty."

"What's a novelty pipe? Something novel?" she asked. "I would really worry
about the implications for craftsmen who make pipes, and I would say the
same would apply to glassblowers as well."

Smith said she owns several pipes made by Indian pipemakers that could
easily be construed as "novelty" pipes or "paraphernalia" as defined by the
state of Oklahoma.

"Pipes are very, very important to American Indian traditions," she said.
"I'd hate to see any regulations put on artisans; I don't think that's what
a democratic government was intended to be used for - to put limitations on
artists."

State Rep. Jim Wilson of Tahlequah said the recently-passed legislation
probably won't change the enforcement of the existing state drug laws much,
but it does give legislators a chance - in this campaign year - to claim
they took a stand against drugs, precluding any accusations that they might
be "soft on crime."

"It was something you couldn't very well vote against, even though there
wasn't much point in it; I think it passed the House unanimously," said
Wilson, who said he received only one phone from an opponent of the bill
before it was voted on. "They haven't outlawed Zig-zag [cigarette rolling]
papers, so this really didn't make any sense."

Mark D'Aquilla of Tahlequah agrees. Whether it's Zig-zag papers, pipes, or
pages from the Bible, people are going to find ways to smoke pot. All the
new legislation does, D'Aquilla said, is cut the state out of any
opportunity to make tax dollars from the sale of paraphernalia.

"I've seen people smoke pot rolled up in pages from the Gideons' Bible;
I've seen people smoke pot through carrots and apples with holes bored in
them; if someone [a cop, for example] comes along, they can just eat the
apple," said D'Aquilla. "If the state doesn't want to make any tax revenue
off the sale of pipes, fine - but I'd like to see them ban carrots, and I'd
like to see them ban Gideons' Bibles from Motel 6."

[Alfa]

CITY TO BAN DRUG PIPE SALES

Tacoma police could soon be arresting store clerks suspected of
selling crack pipes and other drug paraphernalia as part of the city's
continuing effort to quell drug use.

Tobacco shop owners aren't happy with the idea, but the City Council
is expected to vote Tuesday on an ordinance to toughen the city's drug
paraphernalia law.

The ordinance would replace an existing law described as "less than
effective" by Tom Orr, the police department's legal adviser. Last
week, he explained the key changes to City Council members.

The current law prohibits sales to minors, but allows sales to adults,
which Orr called "philosophically inconsistent."

The new ordinance would apply to everyone. The city would get a new
enforcement hammer with the power to suspend a shop owner's business
license, which Orr called, "the most powerful provision."

Under the proposed law, a store clerk could be charged with a gross
misdemeanor for selling drug paraphernalia - water pipes commonly
referred to as bongs, crack pipes, smoking masks, miniature cocaine
spoons, cocaine freebase kits and glass pens, which can be used to
smoke drugs.

If passed, the ordinance would be the first of its kind in Western
Washington, said Greg Hopkins, a Tacoma police community liaison officer.

"We'll have a law no one else has," he said. "It takes us to the next
level."

Tacoma police officials say the new law will help them address one
route addicts use to get the tools to smoke drugs.

Many of the drug paraphernalia items seem inconspicuous. One commonly
sold item is the Love Rose - a 4-inch glass tube stuffed with a small
rose.

However, when clerks sell the rose with a piece of Brillo pad, that's
a crack pipe, police argue.

"This item is known to be a crack pipe," Tacoma officer Robert Luke
said.

The pipe - which customers request by asking for a "rose" or "glass" -
costs from $3 to $5.

Another item is a glass ink pen, which but can be dismantled so that
only the glass tube remains for smoking crack cocaine.

"That pen surprised me," Luke said. "Why would you need a glass ink
pen?"

Hopkins said he saw the need for an expanded drug paraphernalia law
earlier this year when police were tipped to a convenience store on
Fourth Street and Tacoma Avenue that was selling crack pipes.

Inside, officers found several boxes of glass vials containing small
roses, balled-up pieces of Brillo pads and glass pipes used to smoke
methamphetamine oil.

"You can't say these are for anything else," Hopkins said of the meth
oil pipe.

In the past, officers have arrested chronic drug addicts under the
drug paraphernalia law for having a crack pipe, bong or other device.
Rarely, however, was it used to go after store clerks and owners who
supply the items to the users.

Not everyone is happy with the proposed ordinance. John Larson, owner
of South Tacoma Pipe and Tobacco Co. on South 56th Street, fumed at
what he sees as a double standard.

"You can't get high in my store," he said. "But you can go to
7-Eleven, buy a case of beer, go home and kill your wife."

Larson has owned his business for 25 years, and says it ranks as the
oldest tobacco store in Washington.

He says his customers include uniformed police officers who buy
cigars. There were only two customers who stopped in while a reporter
was at the store Thursday. Both were middle-aged white men. One drove
a gleaming black BMW, the other a red Mercedes.

The shop windows are shuttered, blocking the view from the
street.

Inside, tobacco and cigars dominate the displays, but one section
includes an array of glass pipes and multicolored bongs. A sign above
the display states, "All accessories are designed and marketed for use
with tobacco and legal herbs."

Larson said no one from the city or the police approached him about
the ordinance, and he hasn't heard any complaints about his inventory.

"We're part of the community," he said. "My grandchildren go to school
right down at the end of the street. We pay our taxes. You don't have
to come into my store if you don't want to."

He distinguishes his shop from smaller stores elsewhere in the city
that sell large knives along with adult magazines, tobacco and smoking
tools. Two of those smaller shops are also on South 56th Street.
Others are scattered through the city.

Last week, Councilman Rick Talbert praised the ordinance, citing it as
an example of bottom-up lawmaking, driven by concerns of neighborhood
groups.

"We've been battling drugs in this community for 40 years," he said.
"It's difficult to send a message when (kids) can go into a
convenience store and see these things."

Stacey Mulick: 253-597-8268 stacey.mulick@mail.tribnet.com Sean Robinson:
253-597-8486 sean.robinson@mail.tribnet.com

How to get involved

The Tacoma City Council is set to adopt regulations on the sales of
drug paraphernalia at its meeting Tuesday at 5 p.m. in the council
chambers at City Hall, 747 Market St.

What the ordinance would do:

Make it a gross misdemeanor to sell drug paraphernalia at a store. A
gross misdemeanor is punishable by up to $5,000 in fines and a year in
jail.

Make it a gross misdemeanor to distribute drug paraphernalia.

Make it a misdemeanor to use drug paraphernalia to use drugs.
Misdemeanors are punishable by up to $1,000 in fines and 90 days in
jail.

Pulls the business license from stores caught selling drug
paraphernalia.

[Alfa]

STORE GUILTY OF SELLING CRACK PIPE


Slender Glass Tube Houses 'Lover's Rose'


A Central City corner store intentionally sold crack cocaine pipes over the counter, an Orleans Parish magistrate court has ruled.


The slender four-inch tubes encase tiny plastic roses and are marketed as a "Lover's Rose," but law enforcement agencies across the nation have identified the gaudy knickknack as having a double life as a crack pipe.


The tubes can be found near cash registers of stores in the suburbs as well as the city. The Nguyens appeared in court Wednesday and opted for trial, which they swiftly lost.


The Nguyens were found guilty of having illicit drug paraphernalia, a misdemeanor, but won't serve jail time. Magistrate Commissioner Anthony Russo sentenced each to six months in the parish prison, all suspended, and one year of probation, along with $648 in fines and fees. Russo also ordered them not to sell the glass pipes or scouring pads. While the federal Drug Enforcement Administration and city police departments from Seattle to Nashville, Tenn., have gone after merchants for selling just the Pyrex glass tubes, this New Orleans case had its own added twist. The Nguyens sold what resembled a prepackaged crack kit: the tube, plus a tiny piece of steel wool, which crack users use as a filter when smoking, all for a dollar.


The added snippet of steel wool was an obvious sign of illegal intention, police said.


In November, an undercover officer entered the store and asked for "one pipe," placing his dollar bill on the counter. The 6th District police were tipped off by a neighborhood resident outraged that the store was selling pipes in one of the city's hot spots for drug dealing. Police officers quickly searched the store, finding more than 4,000 of the tubes in the back, along with boxes of steel wool.


Typically, prosecutors accusing people of having illegal drug paraphernalia have evidence of narcotic residue on the object to bolster their case. But in this case, District Attorney Eddie Jordan's office won without a trace of crack cocaine on the "Lover's Roses."

[Alfa]

Canada: SHOP OWNER ANGRY AFTER POLICE SEIZE DRUG PIPES


Public Complaints Led To Sweep, Police Say


Public complaints about area stores selling drug paraphernalia led to several arrests last week.


But the four-day investigation and subsequent police sweep has at least two Main Street shop owners fuming.


Adam Chaplin and his girlfriend, Alisha Wolfe, run Lotus in Newmarket and believe police are singling them out.


"I really can't understand it. I think (police) are trying to put us out of business," Mr. Chaplin said.


Because of the number of complaints, York Regional Police targeted shops selling pipes, bongs and other items that could be used for illegal purposes, York Regional Police Insp. Mark Tatz said.


"We received a number of complaints from people asking why some stores are allowed to sell (drug paraphernalia) when there's a crackdown on grow houses," Insp. Tatz said.


Police investigated 36 stores in Newmarket, Aurora, King Township and East Gwillimbury. Nine stores received warnings, while owners of two different Main Street, Newmarket stores were charged.


Mr. Chaplin, 25 and Ms Wolfe, 26, among them.


'I really can't understand it. I think (police) are trying to put us out of business.'


Police said more than $10,000 worth of smoking instruments were seized and the owners were charged with selling illicit drug paraphernalia.


It was the first time in the four years they've been open that the store courted police attention, said Mr. Chaplin, who's questioning the timing.


Mr. Chaplin acknowledged the store sells smoking pipes, commonly used for illicit drug use, along with hemp clothing, jewelry and cosmetics.


However, all of the stores in violation were issued warnings and told officers would return within two weeks to ensure drug paraphernalia was removed from their stores.


Seven of the nine stores complied, Insp. Tatz said.


Besides Lotus, officers also charged the owners of Times Square Convenience on Main Street south.


According to Town of Newmarket bylaws, however, both Main Street shops are legitimate operations, confirmed town spokesperson Wanda Bennett.


The town has bylaws and zoning restrictions in place only for body rub parlours and stores selling second-hand goods.


Insp. Tatz said front-line officers were receiving complaints about gadgets being sold in the community that could be used to smoke an illegal substance.


Main Street is part of Newmarket Councillor Joe Sponga's ward. He said the sale of drug paraphernalia doesn't fit into the town's plan to revitalize its downtown.


"Other shop owners were concerned kids were going into these stores and buying drug paraphernalia," Mr. Sponga said.


"I love to see people shopping on Main Street. It's what they're shopping for that concerns me," he added.


For police, it's a no-win situation, Insp. Tatz said.


"If police don't do anything, people will question why we aren't doing anything about (drug paraphernalia). When we do, people question why we're doing it," he said.


"It's low down on the scale of crime," he admitted.


"Just because certain crimes aren't seen as a threat to public safety, does that mean we should stop enforcing it?"


"The Criminal Code is full of crimes that aren't considered a threat to public safety," he added.


"It's up to the courts to decide. I think it's realistic to get a conviction," he added.


Meanwhile, Mr. Chaplin and Ms Wolfe have not appeared in court and say they will consider all of their options.


In the meantime, they have started an online petition in response to the police crackdown.Edited by: Alfa

[Alfa]

SHOPS ARE COMING DOWN OFF PARAPHERNALIA SALES


It's End-Of-The-Era Time For Local Head Shops, Kc Police Say.


Gone are those heady days when ballyhooing bongs, retailing roach clips and hustling hemp were commonplace, says Kansas City police Detective Maggie McGuire.


"The feds are behind us now on all this," McGuire says. "Up until March if you'd gone into 7th Heaven or Zowie! you would have seen bongs in the shape of guns that you put the barrel into your mouth to smoke out of it, all kinds of strange things."


Quoth the police, nevermore.


"Zowie! and all the other businesses that are distributing drug paraphernalia (were) issued a notice that they had 30 days to get rid of all their drug paraphernalia," McGuire says. "Otherwise they were in violation of federal law, and a search warrant would be served upon their business."


There's nothing particularly dramatic about the timing, says Drug Enforcement Administration spokeswoman Shirley Armstead of St. Louis.


"Parents and community coalitions are the people who are pushing these issues," Armstead says. "They're calling the local police and complaining about these shops that are selling drug paraphernalia."


The push here started earlier this year, McGuire says.


Since then, Zowie! has closed, 7th Heaven has dialed back its smoking section, What? on 39th Street did away with its profitable pipes biz, and Coopers at 36th and Broadway posted a list on its door of the "smoking accessories" it no longer sells.


Says What? manager Ashley Fletcher: "The only thing keeping us going now is the tattoos and the piercing. The shop's dead. Retail is dead. Pipes were 80 percent of our business. We can't even sell hemp lotion. Like people are going to put it in a bowl and smoke it. And we can't sell hemp papers."


"Regular rolling papers are fine," McGuire says. "The only rolling papers we made people take off the shelf were the ones with the word 'hemp' in them."


Seems 7th Heaven didn't get the memo. As of Tuesday it was still selling papers with names like Jamaican Hemp and Bob Marley Hemp, along with a selection of what appeared to be small ceramic pipes. Ostensibly for use with tobacco products.


Which speaks to the legal issues at hand.


"The general issue in these cases is whether the products (sold) are likely to be used for controlled substances," says criminal attorney J.R. Hobbs, who will represent 7th Heaven owner Jan Fichman in his trial next January.


Fichman and his wife, Anita, were indicted earlier this year by a federal grand jury for allegedly selling $3.1 million of illegal drug paraphernalia.

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POLICE SEIZE PIPES, BONGS AT HIP HOP HIPPIE STORE


After police went "shopping" at a recently opened store in Gillette, the only thing left to sell was incense.


More than 130 drug paraphernalia items were seized Wednesday afternoon from the Hip Hop Hippie at 610 S. Butler Spaeth across from Hillcrest Elementary, said police Detective Andy Boisvert.


The store claimed to sell tobacco products, but no tobacco or tobacco products were found on the premise, Boisvert said. Pipes, bongs and water bongs were among the items taken.


The only thing left in the store was incense, he said.


One employee was also ticketed for marijuana use, Boisvert said.


The store's utilities went into use on July 8 but store owner Jeffrey Doles said the store officially opened July 28.


"Business was excellent," he said today.


The store was bringing in up to $6,000 a week, Doles said.


Signs that said that the tobacco accessories were not for drug use were posted around the store, he said.


"We are just a hippie store, man," Doles said. "We sell pipes. What people do with them ain't our business."


Doles said that he had been informed by the police department that he could sell the products as long as they were advertised for tobacco use. He was shocked when the police showed up with a warrant, he said.


The store was closed this morning, but could be open by the afternoon.


Doles was waiting on word from his attorney and the county attorney, he said.


"I'm also expecting my biggest shipment we have received yet today," he said.

[Zandorf]

where is gillette?

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STORES OPENLY SELL CRACK PIPES


Drug Paraphernalia Displayed Beside Candies, Say Parents


A brother and sister from Surrey have launched a shame campaign aimed at forcing corner-store owners to stop displaying crack pipes next to candy bars.


Lisa Ebenal and Bob King Sierle have come across at least a dozen stores in the city that openly sell the tubular glass pipes, usually on display next to candy racks and within easy reach of children.


The Coalition of Parents campaign started when Ebenal saw paraphernalia for sale when she went into the store to buy cream and Tylenol.


"I was shocked," Ebenal said. "Nobody buys these [pipes] but people who are doing drugs. It's pretty hard to to tell your kids it's wrong when businesses are selling it. It's telling the drug users it's OK and it's telling the community it's OK."


Ebenal and King Sierle have made official complaints to the city about nine stores and confronted the owners of many more.


Some owners react badly, Ebenal says, threatening the two with violence and chasing them out of stores. Eight have relented and removed the offending items after a barrage of phone calls from the three-dozen coalition members.


"If you want to sell pipes, open a head shop," said King Sierle.


"It's like porno -- you don't put that next to the candy."


The two are pushing for a permanent solution. The problem is there's only so much the city can do, says John Sherstone, Surrey's manager of bylaw and licensing, .


There is no federal or provincial law prohibiting the sale of pipes, nor are there municipal bylaws, said Sherstone. Vancouver is working on a bylaw aimed at regulating the sale of pipes, but so far the city only requires that such items not be displayed in store windows.


Sherstone said letters have gone out to nine Surrey stores requesting they put the pipes out of reach of children. Bylaw enforcement officers will inspect the stores this week to see who's complying.


"If they don't, we will consider going to council and recommending they be prohibited from sale," he said.


If that doesn't work, he said, Surrey can suspend or cancel business licences.


In the meantime, says King Sierle, children who head off to the corner store to spend their allowance on candy have to rub shoulders with crack addicts.


"I have to do something. I have to protect my kids," he said.


The coalition is calling on parents to write to politicians demanding action and to tell store owners that crack pipes and gummi bears don't mix.


A large glass display case of pipes was on the front counter at Tom's Food Market on 148 Street yesterday. A sticker on the case noted the dozens of pipes inside were for "legitimate use" only. Crack pipes were for sale for $4.39 (an even $5 including tax).


The woman behind the counter pointed out that the slightly smaller glass tubes in a box atop the cash register were far cheaper at $1.75


($2 with tax). The smaller tubes have a peel-back lid on one end and hold a single plastic flower. It takes less than five seconds to convert one into a crack pipe.


When owner Saeyl Pok was asked why he was selling the pipes, he said they were "cigarette pipes."


He said he planned to return the large case of pipes to the wholesaler. Asked about the flower tubes, Pok said he didn't know what they were for.


"People ask, and I just sell it."