From the
Bucks County Courier Times:
State Sen. Lisa M. Boscola wants to outlaw
salvia divinorum, which is native to mountains in the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca.
The Democrat, who represents parts of Lehigh, Northampton and Monroe counties, has introduced a bill that would make it illegal to use or possess salvia divinorum in the Keystone State. The bill is currently bogged down in the Senate's Judiciary Committee, but Boscola plans to press for a hearing on it in the coming weeks.
She was motivated to outlaw salvia divinorum after seeing news reports about Brett Chidester, a Delaware teen who committed suicide in 2006. Brett's parents believe his use of the plant contributed to his decision to kill himself.
Research indicates salvia divornum use is most common among young adults ages 18 to 25. Many parents and older people, said Boscola, are unfamiliar with the herb and its potential effects.
Salvia divinorum is not regulated by the Federal Controlled Substances Act. Still, at least 14 states had passed legislation regulating the plant as of Oct. 2009, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.
Nine states, including Delaware, Ohio, Virginia and Florida, have made salvia divinorum a Schedule 1 controlled substance, meaning it is illegal and is deemed to have no medical value.
States including California, Maine and North Carolina have enacted legislation that restricts distributing the plant, which is part of the mint family. (There are many different types of salvia, some of which are commonly grown in gardens. salvia divinorum is the specific type authorities are focused on.)
Locally, law enforcement has not seen much salvia divinorum in circulation.
Typically, salvia divinorum is chewed or smoked. After taking the herb, users have reported experiencing hallucinations and feelings of insight. The "high" can last for several minutes to a half-hour or so.
Nonetheless, noted
Dr. Barry K. Logan, in that time frame users become extremely disoriented and have problems communicating and standing. Users can focus so intently on their own thoughts that they are unaware of their environment, making them potential crime victims, Logan added.
Those in a salvia-induced state can also, as the parlance goes, "freak out."
"I don't want to suggest that it makes people violent, but people can have violent reactions to things they perceive as happening while in an altered state of consciousness," said Logan, a forensic toxicologist with
NMS Labs in Willow Grove, which makes tests that check for traces of salvia in blood and urine.
"When you take a drug that completely changes your level of conscious you are doing a dangerous thing," said Logan. "You open yourself to all kinds of risks."