CROWDS PROTEST AGAINST SALE OF 'DESIGNER DRUGS' IN PRESCOTT

Cottonwood enacts ban; Prescott groups want same action

Monica Wipf, who runs two recovery homes in Prescott, said she put out
fliers for a protest against bath salts, window cleaner, spice, and
other designer drugs, because she's seen the damage they have done.

About 40 people gathered at the Yavapai County Courthouse on Wednesday
morning to protest the sales of designer drugs in Prescott.

"I know of a 17-year-old who OD'd on them and just came out of a coma
recently who can't talk," Wipf said. "(Another) woman said to come
down off of that stuff made her want to hurt herself."

The goal of the protest, organized by drug court alumni, was to stop
the legal sale of designer drugs in Prescott, said Jeanne Wellins,
spokeswoman for MATForce.

Wipf said she spoke Wednesday afternoon with state Sen. Linda Gray of
Phoenix about designer drugs, and Wipf said she plans to talk with the
Prescott city council about creating an ordinance, like one recently
passed in Cottonwood, that makes the sale of designer drugs illegal
within city limits.

On Tuesday, the Cottonwood city council passed an emergency ordinance
prohibiting the possession, use, sale and display of products
containing three chemicals - 4-methyl-N-methylcathinone (mephedrone);
3,4-methylenedioxy-N-methylcathinone (methylone);
3,4-methylenedioxypyrovalerone
(MDPV) - and their analogs found in designer drugs marketed as "bath
salts" and "window cleaner."

"In essence, what it does is ban any product that has three of the
particular chemical precursors that go into bath salts," Cottonwood
City Manager Doug Bartosh said. "It's patterned after the federal
government ban."

The ordinance makes any violation a misdemeanor punishable by a fine
up to $2,500, incarceration for up to six months, or both.

"Since synthetic drugs change as laws are passed, we are hoping this
gives us a chance to respond quickly to these changes," Bartosh said.
"The state government is looking at and supporting what we are doing."

Other names these drugs are marketed under include "potpourri," "plant
fertilizer" and "insect repellant," said Keith Boesen, managing
director of the Arizona Poison and Drug Information Center in Tucson.
Boesen noted that the center received 79 calls about bath salts in
2011 compared to 1 in 2010, and 90 calls about spice in 2011, up from
20 in 2010.

At the protest, Albert Padilla Sr., director of Prescott Sober Living,
said he's had clients who relapsed by using designer drugs. A standard
drug test won't show the chemicals, said Padilla.

On Tuesday, Wipf told Prescott city council members that she asked
store owners to stop selling designer drugs, but none said they would.
So after finishing up at the courthouse, protestors continued their
demonstration outside the stores.

"People in recovery can change the people, places and things around
them, but when you can buy this stuff at a convenience store, it's too
easy to access," Wipf said.

A staff member at C Stop, where the protesters gathered outside,
declined to comment. Staff at Mike's Mini Mart and Hippie Emporium
said protesters did not show up at their businesses, but a manager at
the Island Store said the owner asked the protesters to move to the
sidewalk after they were seen smoking near the gas pumps.

"We follow all the laws for selling liquor and all other products,"
said Lisa Winkelmann, manager of the Island Store, as she pointed to
MATForce awards the store has earned from 2008 to 2011 for their
compliance. "We sell the potpourri; it's clearly marked as not for
human consumption - we tell that to customers as well - and we never
sell to kids."

In the window of a store across from the courthouse was a sign that
read "Treat Center will never sell designer drugs." Kathi Gaspar,
co-owner, said she decided to display it after receiving a flyer about
the protest.

"I am 100 percent against kids getting involved in that kind of
stuff," Gaspar said. "I have a grandson in middle school and the
thought of someone offering that stuff to him is scary. I get really
upset when people prey on the vulnerable."

In the past four months, several people in Prescott have been found in
possession of bath salts during DUI stops, and some with severe
reactions to bath salts have been taken to local hospitals, according
to police reports.

"We have had reports of bath salt use, but not to the degree we were
seeing with spice," Prescott Police Lt. Andy Reinhardt said.

Daniel Mattson, an advocate who works with low-income people, said he
recently helped a couple who told him they'd used bath salts and left
their 1-year-old child in another person's care for six days.

"This is something that's in Prescott. It's bad and we need to get it
out of here," Mattson said.