Category: Marijuana

Churchgoers Accidentally Eat Marijuana-Laced Cookies After Service

Six churchgoers in Indiana went the to ER on May 22 after eating cookies laced with marijuana following church services.

According to various news reports, the individuals experienced symptoms including high blood pressure, anxiety, lethargy, and paranoia. All six tested positive for THC–the active ingredient in marijuana.

Unfortunately, accidental ingestion of marijuana and marijuana-laced foods is becoming increasingly common–especially among children.

For example:

1. 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.
2. 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.
3. 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.
4. 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.
5. December, 2014: A high school teacher in Maryland was hospitalized after a student gave her a brownie containing marijuana.
6. 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.
7. 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.
8. 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.
9. 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.

These examples underscore what we have said time and time again: Marijuana may be many things, but “harmless” simply is not one of them.

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7-Year-Old Paralyzed in Washington DUI Crash

According to news sources, police in Washington State report a 15-year-old girl in a BMW crashed into a pickup truck carrying a man and his 7-year-old son earlier this week.

Police say the BMW was traveling at “incredibly high speed,” and they have reason to believe the driver may have been operating under the influence of marijuana. The father was critically injured as a result of the crash, and his son was paralyzed.

In Colorado, news reports indicate a teen driver charged in a fatal crash earlier this month is suspected of using marijuana. The Associated Press writes,

Police say the teen rear-ended two cars stopped at a red light on May 7 and that there was “minimal breaking” before the crash.

Two people in one of the cars, 39-year-old Joe Ramas and 30-year-old Stacey Reynolds, both died after being taken to the hospital.

Sadly, these stories continue to demonstrate what we have been saying for years: Marijuana may be many things, but “harmless” simply is not one of them.

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Major News Outlet: Marijuana Edibles “Sending Kids to the ER”

We have written repeatedly about how hospitals and emergency rooms are seeing more and more cases of accidental marijuana ingestion by children.

Because marijuana edibles often look like normal snack food, children mistake them as harmless. And because marijuana edibles often contain high concentrations of marijuana’s active ingredients, the effects of the marijuana are much more dangerous–particularly in small children, who seem to be most at risk.

NBC’s “Today” writes,

Marijuana is now legal for either recreational or medical use in 24 states and the District of Columbia. But “edibles” containing marijuana are spreading everywhere, and kids are getting hurt from California to New York. Last year alone, poison control facilities across the country reported 4,000 kids and teens exposed to marijuana.

Another issue we have highlighted before is the dangerous method many marijuana users employ to extract marijuana’s active ingredients.

Volatile chemicals–like butane–are used to extract hash oil from marijuana. Earlier this month police say a New Mexico man caused an explosion when he lit a pipe to smoke marijuana, but accidentally ignited the butane gas police say he was using to extract hash oil.

Situations like this one are particularly dangerous for apartment dwellers; in November of 2013 Seattle news outlets reported an elderly Washington resident was killed after a neighbor’s apartment exploded as a result of a hash oil operation.

These stories underscore what we continue to say: Marijuana may be many things, but “harmless” simply is not one of them.

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