Posted on 04/20/2014 6:04:41 PM PDT by mgist
DENVER – A college student eats more than the recommended dose of a marijuana-laced cookie and jumps to his death from a hotel balcony. A husband with no history of violence is accused of shooting his wife in the head, possibly after eating pot-infused candy. The two recent deaths have stoked concerns about Colorado’s recreational marijuana industry and the effects of the drug, especially since cookies, candy and other pot edibles can be exponentially more potent than a joint.
“We’re seeing hallucinations, they become sick to their stomachs, they throw up, they become dizzy and very anxious,” said Al Bronstein, medical director of the Rocky Mountain Poison and Drug Center. Studies are mixed about whether there is any link between marijuana and violence. Still, pot legalization opponents said the deaths are a sign of future dangers.
Twenty-six people have reported poisonings from marijuana edibles this year, when the center started tracking such exposures. Six were children who swallowed innocent-looking edibles, most of which were in plain sight.
Five of those kids were sent to emergency rooms, and two to hospitals for intensive care, Bronstein said. Children were nauseous and sleepy, and doctors worried about their respiratory systems shutting down. Supporters of the pot law and some experts counter that alcohol causes far more problems among users, and the issues with pot can be largely addressed through better regulations.
The deaths occurred as Colorado lawmakers are scrambling to create safety regulations for the largely unmonitored marijuana snacks. On Thursday, the Legislature advanced a package of bills that would lower the amount of THC that could be permitted in a serving of food and require more extensive warning labels.
“It really is time for regulators, and the industry, to look at how do we move forward more responsibly with edible products,” said Brian Vicente, who helped lead the state’s legalization campaign.
An autopsy report listed marijuana intoxication as a significant contributing factor in the death of 19-year-old Levy Thamba Pongi. Authorities said Pongi, who traveled from Wyoming to Denver with friends to try marijuana, ate six times more than the amount recommended by a seller. In the moments before his death, he spoke erratically and threw things around his hotel room.
RELATED: College Student Ate 6 Times Recommended Amount Of Pot Cookie Before Jumping To Death
Toxicologists later found that the cookie Pongi ate contained as much THC – marijuana’s intoxicating chemical – as six high-quality joints.
Kristine Kirk, left, and Richard Kirk, right 
Less is known about Richard Kirk, 47, who was charged in Denver with shooting his 44-year-old wife, Kristine, to death while she was on the phone with a 911 dispatcher. Police said his wife reported that her husband had consumed marijuana-laced candy, but no information has been released about potency. The public defender’s office has declined comment on the allegations against Kirk.
RELATED: Husband Charged With Murder In Wife’s Shooting Death “Sadly, we’re going to start to understand over time all of the damage and all of the problems associated with marijuana,” said Thornton police Sgt. Jim Gerhardt, speaking in his capacity as a board member of the Colorado Drug Investigators Association. “It’s going to dispel the myth that there’s no downside, that there’s no side effect, to this drug. It’s sad that people are going to have to be convinced with the blood of Coloradans.”
State lawmakers last year required edible pot to be sold in “serving sizes” of 10 milligrams of THC. Lawmakers also charged marijuana regulators with setting potency-testing guidelines to ensure consumers know how much pot they’re eating. The guidelines are slated to be unveiled next month.
For now, the industry is trying to educate consumers about the strength of pot-infused foods and warning them to wait up to an hour to feel any effects before eating more. Still, complaints from visitors and first-time users have been rampant.
“One of the problems is people become very impatient,” Bronstein said. “They eat a brownie or a chocolate chip cookie and they get no effect, so then they stack the doses, and all the sudden, they get an extreme effect that they weren’t expecting.”
Last year, the poison center run by Bronstein received 126 calls concerning adverse reactions to marijuana. So far this year – after pot sales became legal on Jan. 1 – the center has gotten 65 calls. Bronstein attributed the spike to the higher concentrations of THC in marijuana that has become available.
Although millions of Americans have used pot without becoming violent, Bronstein said such behavior is possible depending on the type of hallucinations a user experiences. Toxicologists say genetic makeup, health issues and other factors also can make a difference. “With these products, everybody is inexperienced,” Bronstein said. “It’s the first time people have been able to buy it in a store. People need to be respectful of these products.”
What is scary is that these same frickin lies are being told to our kids as a way to encourage them to use.
Hey, we didn’t vote for it!
Smoking pole is also condoned.
Yup. Even though it was a joke, there was a lot of truth to it.
"...can be exponentially more potent than a joint.
What comes first the dope or the dope?
Alcohol is fine in moderation, but we don’t want to bring up all the deaths by self inflicted alcohol poisoning now do we? Water is great for you, in fact needed. But (as we learned not too long ago) you can kill yourself with it as well. Maybe we should outlaw more substances for the greater good, comrade. I hear some kids at my school are allergic to peanuts. Need to ban them; oh wait, they did because the kids at risk are too damn stoopid to be educated by their parents. Point is, people are going to do stupid things; I don’t want my liberties infringed en masse because of others poor decisions (hold THEM accountable, NOT me) no matter what I choose to partake just so long as I don’t hurt or otherwise damage another citizens rights or liberties. You need to re-focus on personal responsiblity as does this society and quit punishing society through a politician because we can’t hold the offender accountable.
Absolutely!
;^)
I was just wondering if Colorado voters are rethinking their votes.
/johnny
Apparently the legalization of pot hasn’t reduced the illegal pot from Mexico. Guess we know why the drug dealers were so supportive of the move.
Too much revenue to give up, I’d wager. Besides, the Taxifornians have taken over there big time.
Time will tell.
Follow the (tax) money. Alcohol is ‘evil’ so they tax it. Tobacco is ‘wicked’ and it gets a slap tax. Pot is ‘holy smoke’ and they tax that too. LIEberalism is a religion full of ironic, moronic hyper critics.
The doctors say pot use causes changes to the brain. In other words there is scientific evidence that pot causes brain damage with even light use.
Not only that but it effects the DNA which results in changes to offspring.
Not to mention the drug lords and corruption this is increasing.
Look what thousands of years of Cannabis use did for the Hindus and Arabs, while Western Civilization was refusing to use it as an intoxicant, and was very much involved with alcohol (and advancing).
There’s an old saying where I live—”Let other people do your experimenting for you.” Colorado is an experiment and we’re beginning to see some results.
But hey, guns in the home are dangerous so let’s ban and confiscate them
They tax booze because they can and it raises a LOT of money.
Do pot edibles give one The Munchies?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.