Spice has become an increasingly popular drug, in part because it does not appear on drug testing typically implemented by employers and also by probation.

It is not technically illegal to possess synthetic marijuana, or spice, in Colorado.However, it is illegal to distribute, manufacture, or sell spice in Colorado. This distinction can cause confusion, since the Spice itself is not specifically an illegal drug either on the state or federal level, at least at this time. In fact, the out of state or foreign distributors of Spice may specifically market their product by telling the potential consumer that their product is legal. Technically, that may be true, which only serves to further the confusion that exists in this area.

Nonetheless, ignorance of the law is not a defense, and the sale of spice is being prosecuted all over the state of Colorado. The sale of spice is a Level 3 Drug Felony (formerly a class 4 felony), and punishable by between two and four years in the Department of Corrections, followed by a one year mandatory parole period.