Arrest Is Among First For Synthetic Marijuana

Friday, March 2, 2012 at 6:29 AM

(Lawrenceburg, Ind.) - An Indianapolis woman has become one of the first in Dearborn County to be arrested for possessing synthetic marijuana. Indiana State Police stopped a vehicle on Interstate 74 near the Harrison-Brookville Road exit in West Harrison on Sunday, February 26. During the stop, the trooper asked the driver about rolling papers spotted in the car. According to a court affidavit, Keara D. Sanders stated the papers were for her K2 Spice. The trooper then found the illegal drug in the car’s console. Sanders was booked into the Dearborn County Law Enforcement Center on charges of Possession of a Synthetic Cannabinoid and Possession of Paraphernalia, both Class A misdemeanors. Dearborn Superior Court I Judge Jonathan Cleary sentenced Sanders to one year on probation. She must also pay $365 in court costs, plus other fees. A law went into effect in Indiana last July 1 making it illegal to possess or sell synthetic cannabinoids, which produce effects similar to marijuana when smoked. Lawmakers are working to pass expanded legislation this year to outlaw two dozen more chemical compounds.