Man chokes to death trying to hide bag of pot in mouth

Associated Press ^ | November 19, 2003

[Dog Gone]

FORT WORTH -- A man changing a flat tire choked to death on a bag of marijuana he stuffed down his throat in an apparent attempt to hide it from police who stopped to help him early today.

Cpl. Frank Lott of the Corinth Police Department said officers had no idea Nickolas Sandoval, 24, of Ponder, had drugs when they spotted him on Interstate 35E in Corinth, about 45 miles northeast of Fort Worth.

"Officers went from 'Oh, hey, here is someone with a flat tire' to 'Hey, this guy is choking,'" Lott told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram for its online edition today.

Officers noticed a plastic bag lodged in the man's throat, but it was too far down for them to extract. They kept trying to dislodge it until an ambulance arrived, and medical personnel were able to remove it, Lott said.

Sandoval was pronounced dead at Denton Regional Medical Center about 3:30 a.m., said Linda Anderson, a spokeswoman for the Tarrant County Medical Examiner's Office. The cause of death has been ruled as "asphyxiation due to aspiration of plastic bag," she said.

Sandoval had been convicted in Denton County of multiple counts of marijuana possession, a Class B misdemeanor, between September 1999 and December 2001, court records show. He pleaded guilty to the charge in September 1999 and received a deferred adjudication sentence after 12 months of probation.

In August 2000, he pleaded no contest to another marijuana possession charge and was sentenced to 40 days in jail. In December 2001, he was convicted of possession of marijuana and sentenced to 95 days in jail. Also in December 2001, he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of drunken driving and was sentenced to another 95 days in jail.

[Sabertooth]

A pair of scissors, a Swiss Army knife... even a feaking butter knife in a pinch.

[Dan from Michigan]

It's my MP-5 reflexes...

[South40]

A pair of scissors, a Swiss Army knife... even a feaking butter knife in a pinch.

Seems like a tire iron would have worked in this case.

[StriperSniper]

Recorded death due to marijuana

The cause of death has been ruled as "asphyxiation due to aspiration of plastic bag,"

Close, but no blunt. ;-)

[gcruse]

Oh, yeah, this is funny. Here's a guy that's dead over a grubby $20 worth of weed.

Almost as funny as believing the police will pull over to help a guy change a flat.

[Prime Choice]

Free Tommy Chong!

Oh goody! Where can I get one?

[gonzo]

Hi sweetie!.............FRegards

[Teacher317]

That struck me as well... especially in Ft Worth!

[Welsh Rabbit]

A pair of scissors, a Swiss Army knife... even a feaking butter knife in a pinch.

Always carry a Leatherman (or some other quality multi- tool). I was once able to pull a chicken bone from a friend's dog throat with the pliers after no one could reach it with their fingers (thankfully, I didn't have to try a tracheaotomy). That's just one time out of many my Leatherman has saved day (first time it ever saved a life though).

[Welsh Rabbit]

A pair of scissors, a Swiss Army knife... even a feaking butter knife in a pinch.

Always carry a Leatherman (or some other quality multi- tool). I was once able to pull a chicken bone from a friend's dog throat with the pliers after no one could reach it with their fingers (thankfully, I didn't have to try a tracheaotomy). That's just one time out of many my Leatherman has saved day (first time it ever saved a life though).

[Hoosier-Daddy]

Why do you think they call it Dope?

[jmc813]

You go girl!

[jmc813]

WOD Ping

[Wolfie]

That's why I always buy in large amounts. That way the bag is too large to risk the temptation to hide it in my mouth. Safety first, after all.

[Hemingway's Ghost]

This kind of pothead is giving the rest of us a bad name.

[tracer]

I swear -- that'll teach him to be a potty mouth....

[verity]

Thank God. It was not you!

[philman_36]

Recorded death due to marijuana
Pssssst...your agendum is showing.

Sandoval was pronounced dead at Denton Regional Medical Center about 3:30 a.m., said Linda Anderson, a spokeswoman for the Tarrant County Medical Examiner's Office. The cause of death has been ruled as "asphyxiation due to aspiration of plastic bag," she said.

[cinFLA]

I assume you are actually serious...

You are an ASSume.