A Michigan mom has been charged with second-degree child abuse after law enforcement officials said her child took a package of THC-laced gummies to school and shared them with his kindergarten classmates.
Melinda Gatica turned herself in to Genesee County authorities on Wednesday. She faces up to 10 years in prison.
Genesee County Sheriff Christopher Swanson said during a press conference that on Friday, four kids between the ages of 5 and 6, from Edgerton Elementary School in Vienna Township, Mich., were taken to a local hospital after feeling “short of breath, nausea and lethargic.”
Swanson said detectives initially believed the students fell ill due to carbon monoxide poisoning, but further investigation revealed the affected students ingested THC.
In a Facebook video featuring a discussion between Swanson, Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton, and Clio Area School District Superintendent Fletcher Spears, it was revealed Gatica allegedly infused homemade gummies with THC oil and placed them in a Life Savers package in her refrigerator, within her child’s reach.
“This is a criminal proceeding that could’ve easily been avoided with some simple precautions,” Leyton said. “I have had to charge a mother with second-degree child abuse because she left her edibles … within reach of her 6-year-old.”
While recreational marijuana use is legal in the state of Michigan, he said, “what’s not legal is to store those edibles in a pouch like this,” while pointing to a Life Savers candy package.
“If you’re gonna do edibles … you gotta safekeep them. It’s just like a gun in your house,” said Leyton.
Three of the students were released from the hospital on Saturday, while the fourth student went home Sunday.
Prosecutors will press charges on a woman for not securing her meds but let career criminals go with little punishment. Not saying she shouldn’t have some consequences but law enforcement priorities are totally screwed up.