PARAPHERNALIA DEFINED

Last week the owners of 101 North were indicted on federal charges of
trafficking paraphernalia. Three pages of the U.S. Controlled Substances
Act define drug paraphernalia. Section 863 of the act states, "The term
'drug paraphernalia' means any equipment, product or material of any kind
which is primarily intended or designed for use in manufacturing,
compounding, converting, concealing, producing, processing, preparing,
injecting, ingesting, inhaling or otherwise introducing into the human body
a controlled substance.

Possession of which is unlawful under the Controlled Substances Act."

According to the Controlled Substances Act, the term also applies to "items
primarily intended or designed for use in ingesting, inhaling or otherwise
introducing marijuana, cocaine, hashish, hashish oil, PCP or amphetamines
into the human body."

The act lists 15 items that are considered paraphernalia, including water
pipes, roach clips, chamber pipes, chillums, bongs, ice pipes or "chillers"
and wired cigarette papers. The act states that "logically-relevant
factors" may be considered.

Oral or written instructions or other descriptive materials that explain
the item's use may be considered, the act states.

National and local advertising, the manner in which the item was displayed,
whether the owner is a legitimate supplier of the item and expert testimony
concerning the item's use may also be considered, according to the Act.

The Local Definition According to Interim Police Chief Randy Mendosa, the
Arcata Police Department uses the California Health and Safety Code to
enforce para phernalia violations. Section 11364.5 (d) defines drug
paraphernalia as "all equipment, products and materials of any kind which
are intended for use or designed for use, in planting, propagating,
cultivating, growing, harvesting, manufacturing, compounding, converting,
producing, processing, preparing, testing, analyzing, packaging,
repackaging, storing, containing, concealing, injecting, ingesting,
inhaling or otherwise introducing into the human body a controlled substance."

The code states that water pipes, chillums, bongs and glass pipes, with or
without screens, may also be considered paraphernalia.

Mendosa said paraphernalia violations usually occur in conjunction with
drug violations.

"I can't think of a case where we arrested someone for just paraphernalia,"
he said.

Mendosa said it is normal for federal agents to enforce federal law within
local law enforcement municipalities.

"That's just part of how our country works," Mendosa said. "It's not a turf
issue."