DrHenryKillinger Wrote:
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> Do kindly point out where in Virginia law it says
> that you can't sell pipes. As long as they have a
> designation of tobacco pipes, and the seller has
> reasonable confidence it won't be used for illegal
> purposes, it's absolutely legal. And drug free
> school zone means just that: drugs, not pipes.
> Unless this store is within the legal limits of
> Fairfax county, they're not breaking any laws.
>
> And my example that I provided about the alcohol
> wasn't to question legality, but to get your
> opinion which I have yet to see.
Drug paraphernalia is defined in Virginia § 18.2-265.1.
http://leg1.state.va.us/000/cod/18.2-265.1.HTM The likeliest relevant section of the statute is section 12:
12. Objects intended for use or designed for use in ingesting, inhaling, or otherwise introducing marijuana, cocaine, hashish, or hashish oil into the human body, such as:
a. Metal, wooden, acrylic, glass, stone, plastic, or ceramic pipes with or without screens, permanent screens, hashish heads, or punctured metal bowls;
b. Water pipes;
c. Carburetion tubes and devices;
d. Smoking and carburetion masks;
e. Roach clips, meaning objects used to hold burning material, such as a marijuana cigarette, that has become too small or too short to be held in the hand;
f. Miniature cocaine spoons, and cocaine vials;
g. Chamber pipes;
h. Carburetor pipes;
i. Electric pipes;
j. Air-driven pipes;
k. Chillums;
l. Bongs;
m. Ice pipes or chillers.
There's a whole raft of factors that are to be considered whether or not an object is actually drug paraphernalia, which are listed in § 18.2-265.2.
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+18.2-265.2 In determining whether an object is drug paraphernalia, the court may consider, in addition to all other relevant evidence, the following:
1. Constitutionally admissible statements by the accused concerning the use of the object;
2. The proximity of the object to marijuana or controlled substances, which proximity is actually known to the accused;
3. Instructions, oral or written, provided with the object concerning its use;
4. Descriptive materials accompanying the object which explain or depict its use;
5. National and local advertising within the actual knowledge of the accused concerning its use;
6. The manner in which the object is displayed for sale;
7. Whether the accused is a legitimate supplier of like or related items to the community, such as a licensed distributor or dealer of tobacco products;
8. Evidence of the ratio of sales of the objects defined in § 18.2-265.1 to the total sales of the business enterprise;
9. The existence and scope of legitimate uses for the object in the community;
10. Expert testimony concerning its use or the purpose for which it was designed;
11. Relevant evidence of the intent of the accused to deliver it to persons who he knows, or should reasonably know, intend to use the object with an illegal drug. The innocence of an owner, or of anyone in control of the object, as to a direct violation of this article shall not prevent a finding that the object is intended for use or designed for use as drug paraphernalia.
So, for example, a fine Meerschaum pipe in a tobacconist's shop would likely not be considered drug paraphernalia, while a small metal pipe sold at a gas station likely would.
If the FCPD is having a slow day, they'll likely go ahead and get a warrant and seize the paraphernalia at the Braddock Road Convenience Store at 4133 Braddock Road, Alexandria, Virginia, 22312, unless the manager gets hip to the fact that there's a bust coming and disposes of it.