Sale of pot-laced cookies leads to arrest

On Friday, July 15, 2016 at about 1:30 a.m., Hollister Police were made aware of two juveniles at Hazel Hawkins Hospital who had possibly overdosed on marijuana-laced cookies. The subsequent investigation resulted in the arrest of one juvenile for sales of marijuana.

Here is the recap from an HPD press release:

Officer David Anderson was dispatched to the hospital in the early morning hours of July 15, 2016. There, he met with a 14-year-old and a 15-year-old juvenile and their guardians. Both juveniles complained of difficulty breathing and feeling sick. The officer found them to be extremely lethargic and displayed other symptoms typical of being under the influence of marijuana.

Officer Anderson eventually discovered the two juveniles had purchased a marijuana-laced cookie from another juvenile. Anderson continued his investigation and on July 18, he located the 16-year-old suspect. The suspect admitted to purchasing the cookie from another person he knows that sells marijuana edibles and he sold the cookie to the two juveniles.

The 16-year-old was arrested and transported to San Benito County Juvenile Hall, where he was booked for sales of marijuana, a felony charge, and contributing to the delinquency of a minor, a misdemeanor.

The Hollister Police Department would like to encourage parents to talk to their kids about the dangers of marijuana edibles and other types of marijuana. The edibles, sometimes homemade, have no dosage indications and eating one cookie may be the equivalent of smoking multiple typical marijuana cigarettes.

Disguising marijuana use in edibles like chocolate chip cookies, or gummy bears candy is a tactic to entice younger users into drug use and is similar to what cigarette industries have been accused of doing for years; marketing to children for future customers.

For more information, visit The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and this 2015 article in which the CDC attributes edibles to the death of several individuals. 

Anyone with information on activity like this is asked to call the Hollister Police Department. Those wishing to remain anonymous can call WeTip at 1-800-78-CRIME. Calls to WeTip can lead to rewards of up to $1,000.