The Synthetic Psychedelic 2C-B
A generation ago, a literary drug adventure might have taken the form of following the recipe for pot brownies in the Alice B. Toklas Cookbook. Today, you can scroll aimlessly through subreddits about popular recreational drugs and lesser known “research chemicals.” This is a depressing state of affairs, where even drug experimentation, once known as expanding your mind, rots your brain. Let’s bring reading about drugs and daydreaming about drug trips in the distant future. Remember when Roger Waters of Pink Floyd first got rich as the band started to achieve success, and the first thing he did with his newfound success was to travel to the island of Patmos, where the Biblical Book of Revelation, also known as the Apocalypse of St. John, is believed to have been composed, and took psychedelics in pursuit of his own apocalyptic vision? If you want to daydream about drugs as the bibliophiles do, you could do worse than to read Phenethylamines I Have Known and Loved by Alexander Shulgin. He recounts his experiences synthesizing and consuming dozens of drugs throughout the 1970s. Shulgin brought these drugs into existence with the hope that they would be able to manage symptoms of illness more effectively than the drugs that were available at the time, but most of Shulgin’s creations have not found acceptance in the medical community. Every so often, though, they appear in the illegal drug supply and find a following among recreational users. Here, our Miami drug crimes defense lawyer explains the resurgence of 2C-B, a synthetic psychedelic first described by Shulgin.
Routes of Administration of 2C-B and the Effects of the Drug
2C-B, also known as Nexus, is a close relative of the synthetic drug 2C, also known as Tuci, which is itself no stranger to Florida’s illegal drug supply. Most of the 2C-B seized by law enforcement is in the form of pills and powder. Nexus pills often occur in a similar context to ecstasy pills, that is, in nightclubs, since Nexus affects some people similarly to the effects of MDMA, namely euphoria, increased energy, and a feeling of connection with other people. Some Nexus pills bear a heart-shaped stamp, in reference to their purported empathogenic qualities. In other cases, police have seized 2C-B powder that buyers ordered from the Internet and then distributed. The most common way to take 2C-B is orally, as a pill, but it is also possible to inhale it through the nose. Snorting 2C-B produces a stronger effect, but it is notoriously painful.
Legal Status of 2C-B
2C-B is a Schedule I controlled substance. Drugs in this category are always illegal and do not have any legally accepted medical uses. Consider that most of the most common drugs of abuse, including oxycodone, fentanyl, amphetamine, and even cocaine, are Schedule II, the category that includes drugs with extraordinarily high abuse potential and at least one legally acknowledged medical indication. In practice, the penalties for possessing a Schedule I drug do not differ from those for possessing an equivalent quantity of a Schedule II drug.
Professional and amateur researchers are always working to synthesize new drugs, many of which are minor variations on the active ingredients in legally recognized drugs. If a substance is so new that the law has yet to pronounce it, but it has intoxicating effects and is being manufactured, sold, or consumed for that purpose, the law treats it as Schedule I.
Okeechobee Man Faces Charges for Selling 2C-B to Undercover Police Officer
In November 2024, an undercover police officer communicated with Elijah Barney of Okeechobee about buying illegal drugs. Barney offered his interlocutor a vast array of drugs, even by Florida standards, and when the two met in person to close the deal, other law enforcement officers showed up to arrest Barney. A search yielded marijuana leaves, cannabis wax, cannabis resin, and THC oil, as well as promethazine cough syrup, known as lean, MDMA, LSD, and psilocybin mushrooms. The 28 2C-B pills were the rarest merchandise in Barney’s stash. Now Barney, 20, is facing felony charges for drug distribution. Barney consented to the search after an officer read him the Miranda warnings. If he chooses to plead not guilty, he may be able to advance the defense that the state was not within its rights to conduct the undercover operation.
Contact Our Criminal Defense Attorneys
A South Florida criminal defense lawyer can help you defend yourself against charges of selling illegal drugs to an undercover police officer. Contact Ratzan & Faccidomo in Miami, Florida for a confidential consultation about your case.
Source:
wpbf.com/article/okeechobee-man-drug-bust-undercover-sting/62896533
