Not the "Spice" of life

  • Published
  • By Capt. Anna Rehder
  • 319 Air Refueling Wing Office of the Staff Judge Advocate
GRAND FORKS AIR FORCE BASE, N.D. --  New rules have been put into place that every Airman needs to be aware of regarding the abuse of spice, salvia and other "uncontrolled" intoxicating substances.

"Spice" is an intoxicating substance referred to as herbal marijuana and marketed as a "legal high." As a result of an order issued by Lt. Gen. Charles B. Green, Air Force Surgeon General, spice, salvia and any other intoxicating substance, besides alcohol and tobacco, are now illegal for military members to possess, use or distribute. Spice was also recently made illegal in North Dakota; however it is still legal under Minnesota law and available in Minnesota.

For everyone in Air Mobility Command, this is nothing new. The commander of AMC issued a General Order prohibiting the use, possession or distribution of spice, salvia or any other intoxicating substance on April 13, 2009. Any AMC Airman caught using, possessing or distributing spice, salvia, or any intoxicating substance since that time has been subject to punishment for failure to obey a lawful general order. And Airmen have been punished for this offense. Punishments have ranged from letters of reprimand to trial by court martial for those Airmen caught abusing these substances.

Over the past month several establishments known to sell these designer drugs or herbal smoking products have been put off-limits to members of the 319th Air Refueling Wing. This means just going into one of these establishments means you are in violation of an order and could subject you to punishment. In an order dated June 22, 2010, the following stores were placed off-limits to all 319 ARW military members: Discontent, located at 306 Demers Ave, East Grand Forks, Minn.; Discontent, located at 815 Main Ave, Moorhead, Minn.; Mellow Moods, located at 1506 Central Ave NE, East Grand Forks, Minn.

Bottomline: Don't be fooled by what you read online. In the Air Force, there is no such thing as a legal high. Airmen that engage in drug abuse are not only subject to punishment under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, but also are subject to involuntary administrative discharge. If you have questions, ask your supervisor, First Sergeant, or commander, but do not guess as to whether what you are doing might be illegal. It could cost you your career.