West Bloomfield Board Votes to Approve K2 Ban

The unanimously voted to approve a ban on K-2—a synthetic marijuana sold and marketed as Spice.

The emergency ordinance will make the sale or possession of K-2 a misdemeanor with penalties of $500 and/or up to 90 days in jail. Clerk Cathy Shaughnessy said the ordinance could be enforced as early as Tuesday.

“We requested this ordinance be drafted after the overdose death of a Bloomfield Township teenager over the Memorial Day weekend,” wrote Shaughnessy and Trustee Howard Rosenberg in a June 1 memo to the board.

“While we agree that federal and state legislation would be preferable to enacting a patchwork of local ordinances, we think that we can no longer wait for those legislative bodies to act while the health, safety and welfare of our young residents is being threatened.”

According to a fact sheet from the Michigan Department of Community Health, 224 instances of synthetic marijuana exposure were discovered in Michigan in 2011. Robin Walsh, a therapist at  who treats teens addicted to the drug, says smoking K2 can cause hallucinations, seizures, vomiting, drowsiness, paranoia, tremors, loss of physical control, and higher blood pressure and heart rates.

Stay tuned for more from Monday's meeting.