Marion council bans sale and delivery of kratom after widow's testimony

The Marion City Council voted to ban the sale and delivery of kratom and kratom-derived products in the city after local residents and staff described public-health and enforcement concerns.

Mayor Absher introduced the topic and urged action, calling the substance — growing danger— and saying, —It's killing people, plain and simple.— He moved to approve an ordinance to prohibit sale and delivery of kratom within the city and to remove a ban on possession from the draft because staff lack field testing tools to identify the substance.

Emily Peroni, who identified herself as a Marion resident and the widow of Blake Peroni, told the council that her husband died after kratom use and described how the product was offered to him at a gas station. —My husband, Blake, was a vibrant, healthy individual— she said. —He was offered kratom in the form of an energy shot— and later died; she said kratom appeared on his toxicology report. Peroni urged the council to —ban the sale of kratom and kratom-containing products within our city limits.—

A council member who said they was a pharmacist described scientific literature showing stimulatory effects at low doses and sedative, hallucination and addiction risks at higher doses. That speaker warned that kratom and more-potent derivatives can be highly variable in strength and that many products are unregulated and lack standardized labeling.

Wendy from the city's codes office and other staff described enforcement steps if the ordinance passed: the city attorney would prepare a letter and an ordinance notice that staff would serve on businesses believed to be selling kratom, and businesses would be given a short compliance window to purge or return inventories. Council members debated a practical notice period and potential hardship for vendors left holding unsellable stock.

The motion to approve the ordinance (recorded on the meeting as ordinance 4041) passed by roll call: Commissioner Patton —Yay,— Commissioner Barwick —Yay,— Commissioner Webb —Yay,— Commissioner Stecklin —Yay,— and Mayor Absher —Yes.—

The ordinance as passed prohibits sale and delivery of kratom and derivatives within the city and removes a possession prohibition that staff argued could not be reliably enforced with current field-testing capability. The council also recorded the intention to follow up with an education effort and to coordinate notices for local vendors.

The council took the vote after more than an hour of presentation and public comment; staff and advocates said the city's action is limited to its jurisdiction and urged state action for broader impact.