Man Kills 4 Children on Freeway – Nickname is “Smokey”
“…four children and the driver of a van died when the van hit a concrete bridge abutment after veering off the freeway. Investigators reported that the children nicknamed the driver “Smokey” because he regularly smoked marijuana. The driver was found at the crash scene with marijuana in his pocket. (COMMERCIAL)
Woman Hits Man, Leaves Lodged in Windshield in Her Garage Two Days Until He Dies
“…after a night of smoking marijuana, drinking and drugs, a former nurse’s aid hit a homeless man with her car. “Jurors saw pictures of the twisted, bruised and bloody body of a homeless man today as a former nurse’s aide went on trial on charges that she hit him with her car, drove home with his body lodged in the windshield and left him to die in her garage.” (NY TIMES)
Man Kills Two in Head-On Collision
George Lynard was convicted of driving with marijuana in his bloodstream, causing a head-on collision that killed a 73 year-old man and a 69 year-old woman. Lynard appealed this conviction because he allegedly had a “valid prescription” for marijuana. Lynard appealed this conviction because he allegedly had a “valid recommendation” for marijuana. A Nevada judge agreed with Lynard and granted him a new trial. The case has been appealed to the Nevada Supreme Court. (DEA)
Mother’s Day Bus Crash Kills 22 People
“Frank Bedell should never have been behind the wheel of a bus on Mother’s Day… He was high on marijuana and dizzy from Benadryl. The Mother’s Day bus crash near City Park that killed 22 passengers is being blamed on driver Frank Bedell, who police say was seriously ill and under the influence of drugs when he got behind the wheel of the motor coach that morning. Safety experts say stricter federal rules governing the inspection of buses and the screening of drivers might have prevented the accident.” (NOLA).
Teenagers Judge Calls “Hyenas” Murder Father of Three
They are not hard to find. Every few days brings a fresh tale of feral youths meting out random acts of violence with unfathomable intensity. Apart from the shocking brutality, the speed with which a seemingly trivial argument or confrontation can assume murderous proportions, the stories have a common theme: the perpetrators of the violence, often in their very young teens, were high on ’skunk’ at the time.
The teenagers who killed Garry Newlove, the 47-year-old father of three in Cheshire? The attack came after they had binged on alcohol and skunk. Three youths were found guilty of kicking to death Mark Witherall, 47, after he found them burgling his house in Whitstable, Kent. The three were intoxicated by a ferocious cocktail of alcopops and cannabis. The judge said the three had ‘acted as hyenas’. (UK GUARDIAN)
Man Paralyzes CHP Officer and Murders Another Driver
A man under the influence of marijuana drifted onto the shoulder of the road hitting a CHP officer and the driver he had stopped, killing the driver. The CHP officer remains paralyzed. “The investigation revealed a large amount of marijuana and marijuana edibles in White’s vehicle. According to search warrants filed in federal court, in his post-arrest statement, White acknowledged being under the influence of marijuana when the accident took place, saying he had purchased the marijuana from a “medical marijuana” dispensary in Compton.” (CHP)
Marijuana Growing Lab Fire Kills Two Firemen
A house blaze that killed two firefighters started in a tangle of wires and lamps that were installed to grow marijuana in a basement closet, authorities said. (AP)
Hunter Kills 14, Injures 104 Firefighters, Burns 422 Square Miles After Setting ‘Accidental’ Fire
The California Cedar fire was the second largest wildfire in the history of California. 14 people lost their lives in that fire. 104 firefighters were injured, one died. Countless wildlife were cremated; 90% of Cuyamaca Rancho State Park was incinerated; 280,278 acres; 422 square miles were ravaged; the fire took a month to put out and cost $27 million. The hunter “admitted that the night before his foray into the forest, he had smoked marijuana by himself and slipped the pipe and lighter in the pocket of his hunting vest. He said he had not smoked marijuana on the day of the trip. Investigators looking into the fire later found Martinez’s glass marijuana pipe about 30 feet from the spot where the fire had started.” (NC TIMES)
Young Man Mauled by Tiger
A 17- year old San Jose teen had recently smoked marijuana and drank alcohol was mauled to death by a San Francisco Zoo tiger on Christmas Day. His attorney “says it’s irrelevant whether the teen was drinking or smoking pot before he was mauled.” (AP)
DEA Agent Tortured and Murdered
DEA agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena was abducted outside the U.S. consulate in Guadalajara, horrifically tortured and murdered. His kidnapper was marijuana kingpin Rafael Caro Quintero, who was able to flee Mexico to Costa Rica with the help of officers in Mexico’s version of the FBI. (WSJ)