Though synthetic drugs were banned in North Carolina in 2011, many gas stations and convenience stores continue to sell them under the guise of potpourri, herbal incense, bath salts, and jewelry cleaners, giving these dangerous products a false appearance of safety and legitimacy. Young drug abusers purchase these products and use them to get high—a practice that is both dangerous and illegal.

As attorney general Roy Cooper explained in a statement disclosed in a report by WRAL, “Despite laws against them, these potentially harmful dru­­­gs are all too easy to get, especially for [...]