Driver Admits to Smoking Marijuana Before Fatal Crash
According to news reports, a Wisconsin teen admitted to using marijuana shortly before his vehicle missed a stop sign and collided with an SUV.
The crash killed two people and put a third in the ICU.
Sadly, this is not an isolated incident. Marijuana-implicated car accidents have been on the rise in recent years. Moreover, people are increasingly being taken to the hospital due to marijuana overdose and poisoning.
For example:
- July, 2016: A California man was arrested for giving candy laced with marijuana to a 6-year-old boy and an 8-year-old boy; the 6-year-old was hospitalized for marijuana poisoning.
- June, 2016: Authorities in Arizona believe the woman who caused a deadly crash was driving under the influence of marijuana. Court documents reveal the woman was driving at least 75 MPH in a 40 MPH zone when she crossed the center line, plowing into an oncoming vehicle and killing a man and his daughter.
- May, 2016: A Washington man pleaded guilty to giving his 4-year-old daughter a piece of chocolate cake infused with marijuana. The man reportedly went to his daughter’s daycare, where he gave her the cake. The girl later became “extremely lethargic,” and was taken to a local hospital, where she tested positive for THC–the main, active ingredient in marijuana.
- May, 2016: Hospitals in Colorado reported a spike in the number of newborns born with marijuana in their systems.
- May, 2016: Several churchgoers were sent to the ER after accidentally eating marijuana-infused cookies following church services.
- May, 2016: A 7-year-old boy in Washington was paralyzed by a car accident involving a teen believed to be driving under the influence of Marijuana.
- April, 2016: A Utah man was charged with driving under the influence of marijuana following a fatal car crash.
- April, 2016: A Georgia woman was arrested after her five year old said he ate a marijuana cake for breakfast. The child was taken to the hospital for treatment following the incident; according to officials, his pulse was measured at over 200 beats per minute. According to the child’s mother, the cake laced with marijuana was given to her by another person.
- February, 2016: An eight-year-old Oregon boy was taken to the hospital after eating a marijuana-infused cookie he found. The cookie was sealed and labeled that it contained approximately 50 milligrams of THC, the active ingredient in marijuana.
- October, 2015: A 27-year-old Oregon man admitted to using marijuana shortly before he struck and killed a female pedestrian.
- March, 2015: Four high school students were hospitalized after eating brownies laced with marijuana hash oil. One student was actually found unresponsive in a school bathroom after eating a marijuana-laced brownie.
- February, 2015: A 20-month-old Canadian toddler overdosed after eating a marijuana-laced cookie authorities say his father baked. The child survived, but suffered seizures and had to be admitted to a hospital.
- January, 2015: News outlets in Oregon reported a woman overdosed after she ate three gummy candies laced with marijuana.
- December, 2014: Oklahoma authorities reported a man with marijuana both in his system and on his person drove into oncoming traffic, crashing into another vehicle and killing its driver.
- December, 2014: A high school teacher in Maryland was hospitalized after a student gave her a brownie containing marijuana.
- December, 2014: Two middle school students in Oklahoma were rushed to the hospital after one of them reportedly passed out following marijuana-use at school.
- November, 2014: A Connecticut teen was taken to the hospital from school after she started having difficulty breathing following ingestion of a marijuana-laced gummy bear.
- June, 2014: According to The Aspen Times, a seven-year-old girl was taken to the hospital after eating marijuana-laced candy her mother brought home from work at an area hotel. The candy was left by a hotel guest–presumably as a tip.
- March, 2014: A 19-year-old college student jumped to his death after eating a marijuana-laced cookie purchased at a licensed marijuana store in Colorado. Reports indicate the man began shaking, screaming, and throwing objects in his hotel room after eating the marijuana “edible.” He ultimately jumped over the fourth-floor railing, into the lobby of the hotel at which he was staying. According to CBS News, the autopsy report listed marijuana as a “significant contributing factor” to his death.
- December, 2013: A two-year-old in Colorado overdosed and was hospitalized after eating a cookie laced with marijuana. News outlet indicate the girl found the cookie in the yard of an apartment complex.
The claim that marijuana has never killed anybody simply is not true. Marijuana has caused and contributed to numerous deaths and injuries. As we keep saying, marijuana may be many things, but “harmless” simply is not one of them.
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