Head-Shop Low

An O.K. for drug-gear limits

Only in Alaska may a person possess a small amount of marijuana. Yet almost anywhere in the nation it is possible to find stores selling pipes and other gear with which to enjoy the illicit weed. Called head shops ("head" is slang for a frequent drug user), they number about 15,000 and do an estimated $2 billion in annual business. But after an 8-to-0 U.S. Supreme Court ruling last week, high times could turn into hard times.

The court was considering an ordinance in the Chicago suburb of Hoffman Estates that limits the sale of drug paraphernalia to those 18 or over and imposes a $150 licensing fee. A local head shop argued that the law was too unclear about which items are covered and was therefore unconstitutional. Nonsense, said Justice Thurgood Marshall, writing for the majority. The ordinance covers any item that "is designed or marketed for use with illegal cannabis or drugs." That language is "sufficiently clear," said Marshall. The court did not rule on whether towns may ban head shops completely, but most of the 30 state laws that order such a prohibition contain the same sort of language that the Supreme Court has now approved.

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