Weed overdoses turn deadly in Colorado.

[FelixDeCat]

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/two-denver-deaths-tied-to-recreational-marijuana-use/

DENVER - This week, two Denver deaths were linked to marijuana use, and while some details of the deaths have yet to emerge, they are the first ones on record to be associated with a once-illegal drug that Colorado voters legalized for recreational use, as of January 1, 2014.
One man jumped to his death after consuming a large amount of marijuana contained in a cookie, and in the other case, a man allegedly shot and killed his wife after eating marijuana candy.


Wyoming college student Levy Thamba Pongi, 19, jumped to his death at a Denver hotel on March 11 after eating more of a marijuana cookie than was recommended by a seller, police records show - a finding that comes amid increased concern about the strength of popular pot edibles after Colorado became the first state to legalize recreational marijuana.


Pongi consumed more than one cookie purchased by a friend - even though a store clerk told the friend to cut each cookie into six pieces and to eat just one piece at a time, said the reports obtained Thursday.


Pongi began shaking, screaming and throwing things around a hotel room before he jumped over a fourth-floor railing into the hotel lobby March 11. An autopsy report listed marijuana intoxication as a "significant contributing factor" in the death.


Marijuana cookies and other edibles have become increasingly popular since Colorado allowed people 21 and over to buy recreational marijuana this year at state-regulated stores. Federal authorities don't regulate edible marijuana because it remains illegal under federal law.


In a separate case, a Denver man, Richard Kirk, 47, is accused of killing his wife, Kristine Kirk, 44, on Monday while she was on the phone with a 911 dispatcher. Police say he ate marijuana-infused candy and possibly took prescription pain medication before the attack, according to a search warrant affidavit released Thursday.


The affidavit states that Kristine Kirk told the dispatcher her husband had ingested marijuana candy and was hallucinating.

She pleaded with dispatchers to hurry and send officers because her husband had asked her to get a gun and shoot him. She said she was "scared of what he might do."


Richard Kirk could be heard in the background of the 911 call talking about the candy he bought from a pot dispensary earlier that night, and surveillance footage from the shop captured the transaction, police said.
A detective who interviewed him after the killing noted that he appeared to be under the influence of controlled substances based on his speech and inability to focus, according to the warrants. Blood samples will be tested to see whether he was on any drugs or medications


After voters approved recreational pot, Colorado lawmakers tasked regulators with setting potency-testing guidelines to ensure consumers know how much pot they're eating. Those guidelines are expected to be released next month.


Lawmakers also required edible pot to be sold in serving sizes of 10 milligrams of THC, marijuana's intoxicating chemical.


The cannabis industry tries to educate consumers about the potency of marijuana-infused foods. But despite the warnings - including waiting for up to an hour to feel any effects - complaints by visitors and first-time users have been rampant.


Investigators believe Pongi, a native of the Republic of Congo, and three friends from Northwest College in Powell, Wyo., traveled to Colorado on spring break to try marijuana.


At their hotel, the group of four friends followed the seller's instructions. But when Pongi felt nothing after about 30 minutes, he ate an entire cookie, police said.


Within an hour, he began speaking erratically in French, shaking, screaming and throwing things around the hotel room. At one point he appeared to talk to a lamp.

 

[z1ggy]

In other news, drunk people do stupid shit that gets them killed, too. More at 11.

 

[luv2liv]

as long as those dead people are not dragging others along, im perfectly happy with weed.

 

[mnewsham]

so one person took over 6 times the recommended starting dose and the other was likely on prescription pain killers before eating the pot.

Couldnt possibly effect anything at all...

 

[schmuckley]

An autopsy report listed marijuana intoxication as a "significant contributing factor" in the death.

but the PCP was insignificant,right?

 

[FelixDeCat]

Woah, you people need to step back and look at what happened here. Because of the overdoses of weed in their system, two people (so far) are no longer with us.

I think its time to start clamping down on this before it gets out of hand.

:\

 

[mnewsham]

Because of the overdoses of weed in their system

Now that's a conclusion I find hard for someone to come up with, logically speaking that is, you must be ignoring half of the other evidence in order to tout marijuana as the evil here. Good job being unbiased! :thumbsup:



The real lesson here is don't take more than is recommended and dont mix your substances because you don't know how they will react.

 

[Dirigible]

Been a while since you've been on your game, Felix. But now you're back to posting hilarious stuff again. Keep it up! :thumbsup:

 

[Triumph]

These tragedies would not have happened if marijuana had not been legalized. In fact, no one ever died in such a manner when pot was illegal. Ever.

 

[z1ggy]

Woah, you people need to step back and look at what happened here. Because of the overdoses of weed in their system, two people (so far) are no longer with us.

I think its time to start clamping down on this before it gets out of hand.

:\

There's no LD50 for Marijuana, therefore one cannot overdose.

I've smoked tons of weed before, taken way too many bong hits.. And guess what I did??? I ate a whole bag of cheetos then passed out.

This shit doesn't happen because you "take too much weed". You're a crackpot man.

 

[FelixDeCat]

These tragedies would not have happened if marijuana had not been legalized. In fact, no one ever died in such a manner when pot was illegal. Ever.

That statement is truer than you know. Legalized weed made available the edible variety, which is LOADED with THC, the active ingredient of weed. This is what led to these deaths.

Had it been illegal, these people would still be alive. :'(

 

[Anubis]

An autopsy report listed marijuana intoxication as a "significant contributing factor" in the death.

but the PCP was insignificant,right?

they are just tyring to scare people

PCP and Painkillers will override pretty much anything

 

[Anubis]

That statement is truer than you know. Legalized weed made available the edible variety, which is LOADED with THC, the active ingredient of weed. This is what led to these deaths.

Had it been illegal, these people would still be alive. :'(

yea cause no one ever made pot butter before

 

[surfsatwerk]

I'm glad nobody is talking about the PCP here because daddy needs his medicine to make it through the day. Now pardon me while I chase these cops around butt ass naked.

 

[z1ggy]

That statement is truer than you know. Legalized weed made available the edible variety, which is LOADED with THC, the active ingredient of weed. This is what led to these deaths.

ad it been illegal, these people would still be alive. :'(

LOL are you high?! Oh wait... 0_o Nope probably just an idiot.

 

[gorcorps]

as long as those dead people are not dragging others along, im perfectly happy with weed.

Did you miss the part where he killed his wife?

 

[brianmanahan]

I think its time to start clamping down on this before it gets out of hand.

agreed. limited medicinal use should be the only case where marijuana is considered for legality.

recreation? no way. get a life, druggies.

 

[shortylickens]

Motion for ban, misleading title.

They didnt overdose on weed, they acted stupid on weed and got killed.

 

[soulcougher73]

Woah, you people need to step back and look at what happened here. Because of the overdoses of weed in their system, two people (so far) are no longer with us.

I think its time to start clamping down on this before it gets out of hand.

:\

Got to weed (no pun intended) the weak ones.

 

[K1052]

If you gave out foam rollers a few morons would figure out how to kill themselves or others with them.

 

[Strk]

So neither OD is actually an OD?

 

[Vdubchaos]

Not a fan of eating weed. It's hard to know what is enough and ingredient % can be little or a lot.

As with anything, it's all about quantity/how much you do. With eating, it's HARD to know.

 

[JamesV]

I call complete and utter bullshit.

"Possibly took prescription pain medicine" in layman terms means he overdosed on Oxycodone or something similar, while he was smoking weed. But let's blame weed, a drug never once associated with an overdose kill, instead of wondering about the other drugs in his system that have caused these behaviors and overdoses before.

"Significant contributing factor" is the same thing. Maybe he had a lot of weed in his system, which by the way stays in your body for a long time... you could get the same results for someone that was perfectly sober but smoked a lot. What is the other factor CBS doesn't want to mention, so that their story is sensational? I'm betting hard drugs and alcohol.

You don't hallucinate on weed. Fact not fiction.

Complete bullshit.

 

[Markbnj]

Troll thread is trolling.

 

[schmuckley]

I'm betting prescription drug sales are down in CO.
Hack story is hack.