Over the past two years, several bills passed through the Illinois state government banning synthetic Marijuana, yet the drugs remain on store shelves. Rep. Bob Pritchard (R-Hinckley) said the problem lies with both FBI regulations and the producers of these drugs.

Some shops in DeKalb sell “Purple Magic,” a product marketed as incense or scented potpourri and labeled, “not for human consumption.”

“We’re sure these products are not being used for what they are advertised. That’s why lawmakers are trying to ban them,” said DeKalb Police Lt. Gary Spangler.

The scented herbs often contain a synthetic cannabinoid which can produce a marijuana-like high when smoked. Spangler said DeKalb has seen an increase in younger people having medical issues due to the misuse of the incense.

Pritchard said the FBI and Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) require a specific name and chemical composition of the drug be included in the legislation. This ensures the synthetic drug can be tested in a lab.

Lawmakers like Pritchard have found it difficult to keep such drugs off the market for this exact reason.

“I wanted to name all synthetic cannabinoids in the [most recent] bill,” Pritchard said. “Every time we make the current chemicals illegal, these punks just make a new one.”

Smoker’s World, 818 W. Lincoln Highway # 3, provided the Northern Star with a chemical analysis of the substance “Purple Magic.” The analysis was performed Jan. 21 by Research Triangle Park Laboratories Inc. (RTP) in Raleigh, North Carolina. RTP Labs is a DEA-registered analytical laboratory. The test results show no concentrations of any banned synthetic cannabinoids,

However, Purple Magic is no longer available.

Wednesday night, the distributors of Purple Magic posted a message on their website that states, “Unfortunately, certain circumstances have led us to the decision of ceasing operations as of Wednesday, October 19th. Purple Magic is no longer available.” The owners of the website, YourPurpleMagic.com, who created and distributed the potpourri, could not be reached for comment.

Claire McChristy, owner of Shadowlands, 1027 W. Hillcrest, said he heard there were court proceedings against the creators of Purple Magic. . McChristy’s shop sells incense and scented potpourri but he said he did not carry Purple Magic because it was created by a competing company in the area.

According to CBS Chicago, Max Dobner, 19, of Aurora, was killed in a car accident June 14 after smoking unbanned synthetic marijuana. Spangler said this was a very high profile case at the time. Less than a month later, the city of Aurora unanimously passed an ordinance making the possession, sale, use or offered sale of “any product containing a synthetic cannabinoid, stimulant or psychedelic/hallucinogen” a class 3 misdemeanor.

According to Aurora’s new ordinance, any suspected illegal substance will be sent to a lab for testing to determine if it contains any banned chemicals.

Spangler said DeKalb is looking into enacting such a ban, but has no time frame for when the ban could be enacted.

“The hope is that young people would stop trying to kill themselves,” Pritchard said. “Until people start being responsible, we’re going to have this problem.”