Bath Salt Law Causes Backup At Crime Labs

Ohio lawmakers made bath salts illegal last year, but some investigators said on Monday that they continue to find the drugs on store shelves.

According to scientists at the state’s crime lab, bath salt cases are up 10 percent.

Police have continued to find the illegal substance at a number of stores, 10TV’s Kevin Landers reported.

Travis Worst, a forensic scientist with the Bureau of Criminal Investigation, said that the volume of drugs has increased.

The drugs often are labeled “not for human consumption” and marketed as glass or jewelry cleaner.

The powder can cause violent hallucinations when ingested, Landers reported.

“Once a person starts taking the drug, before the effects even wear off, they have an incredible urge to start taking more, so it’s easier for them to overdose,” Worst said.

Experts said that one of the challenges with use of illegal bath salts is that drug makers change the formula in hopes it will not be detected at crime labs, Landers reported.

In Ohio, though, investigators do not have to find the exact makeup of the drug to prove a case, Landers reported. They can say that it had been modified slightly or had the same effect.

Toby Lyle said that he and his family had to deal with a family member who suffered from bath salt addiction.

“The way he looked out, it looked like someone else was inside controlling him,” Lyle said.

Lyle’s father, Pat Lyle, said that the family member became so violent they had to kick him out of the house.

“It can happen to anyone,” Pat Lyle said.

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