Mom says teen daughter paralyzed after pot brownie

A Brooklyn mom claims her 17-year-old daughter was partially paralyzed after eating a pot brownie last month.

Allison Buchanan told New York’s PIX11 that her daughter Danieel bought a brownie from another student at school, but wasn’t aware it had weed in it.

While a normal reaction might involve some uncomfortable feelings and maybe a nap, the teen’s case took an usual and worrisome turn, according to her mother.

The school called Buchanan at 11 a.m., she says, and informed her Danieel had high blood pressure and that her heart was racing. They took her to the emergency room at Brooklyn Hospital and the teen was then released to her parents.

Her mom said she couldn’t walk and that she was “convulging” (likely meaning she was convulsing, but PIX11 doesn’t clarify), so they took her to another hospital. By 3 a.m., she was still ill and her blood tests only showed marijuana in her system, according to her mother.

“She’s not able to walk. She can’t stand. She can’t sit up,” Buchanan told PIX11. “They have never seen anything like this before.”

Buchanan says her daughter had no pre-existing conditions and didn’t use drugs or abuse alcohol. The hospital recommended rehab therapy, but the family’s insurance — Empire Blue Cross, Blue Shield — reportedly denied the claim.

D.C. marijuana activists plan seed giveaway

Marijuana is legal in Washington, D.C., but there’s one big problem: where do you get it?

Congress blocked the District from setting up regulations that would allow the drug to be sold and taxed, but growing at home is permitted under the existing law.

Faced with the regulatory restrictions, activists want to inspire some urban horticulturalists with seed sharing events on March 26 and 28.

Both events (one at a bar and the other at an activist campaign headquarters) will be free and open to the public, so long as you’re over 21, present a government ID, and follow the guidelines.

The main rule: you can’t exchange money or goods for seeds, you can only share. As you might imagine, activists expect a more seed seekers than sharers, so they’ve invited some ringers to make sure there’s plenty to go around, the Washington City Paper reports.

Missouri bill would free prisoners serving life sentences for marijuana crimes

Jeff Mizanskey was arrested in 1993 after he attempted to purchase about five pounds of marijuana. When he was convicted, he received a life sentence since he had two previous cannabis felonies on his record.

Now, Missouri lawmakers are considering a bill that could free Mizanskey and any other prisoners who have gotten life sentences for marijuana (the bill’s author isn’t aware of any other cases, but it’s possible).

While Mizanskey might be the only case in Missouri, there are plenty of comparable stories across the country. A 2013 report by the American Civil Liberties Union found 3,278 people were serving life sentences for nonviolent drug and property crimes.

Ted Hesson was formerly the immigration editor at Fusion, covering the issue from Washington, D.C. He also writes about drug laws and (occasionally) baseball. On the side: guitars, urban biking, and fiction.