Video: Statement from Attorney General Eric Schneiderman
SYRACUSE -- New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman was in Syracuse Tuesday to announce that a judge ordered Twisted Headz to remove mislabeled and unlabeled products, including any synthetic drugs, from its store in Syracuse.
The order stems from a lawsuit Schneiderman filed against Twisted Headz, among other "head shops," back in July when a State Supreme Court Judge issued a temporary injunction against synthetic drugs sold at the store.
Additionally, former owner Gary Schiffer and Twisted Headz, LLC are now required to pay $27,000 in penalties and costs for violating the state labeling laws.
"The proliferation of synthetic drugs has become a crisis in Onondaga County, New York State and across the country," says Schneiderman in a media release. "The judge's order proves that, by taking a creative approach in using the state's existing labeling laws, we can get swift results to remove dangerous designer drugs off store shelves and hold sellers accountable for breaking the law."
Schneiderman has been cracking down on synthetic drugs by going after their packaging. In State Supreme Court back in July, Judith Malkin from the Attorney General's Syracuse office argued that many products don't list the ingredients, potential health risks, or even the manufacturer.
Malkin said at the time that Schneiderman was going after the packaging of synthetic drugs since it is easy for distributors to slightly alter chemical compounds when one is banned by law.
Schneiderman says that under New York’s Labeling Law, consumer commodities must be labeled with the common product name, the net quantity of contents, uses, directions, warnings and information about the manufacturer, packer, or distributor.
The lawsuits stemmed from an undercover investigation across the state which found that head shops were selling designer synthetic drugs such as bath salts and synthetic marijuana.
