Marijuana Use Viewed in a Different Light Following Tragedy

By Landon Harrar

Police say three young people died while high on marijuana due to a crash in Fremont County. 

Lander police say ten years ago they didn’t have many run-ins with marijuana, but now it's found repeatedly.

Lander Police Lt. Alan McComie, “Today however with it being legal in Colorado it’s a one day trip from Lander, there and back to get your marijuana, we’re starting to see a huge increase in the amount of marijuana we’re dealing with either through traffic stops, criminal investigations, DFS investigations we’re starting to see a large uptick.”

Many people see marijuana as harmless, but the deadly car crash last month has everyone looking at marijuana a little differently.

“We need that now with the marijuana we need people to understand that this is not just a little drug that if I do it’s not going to harm somebody else, well we just had a terrible tragedy that guess what it took three lives and probably ruined another person’s life.”

Krista Lobera mother to a Lander high school senior, “I think a lot of people think, ‘oh it’s just marijuana it’s not that big of a deal’ but it is especially for young people and it’s just any drugs or alcohol it can have affects and have you make poor decisions and have some horrible and very sadly tragic things happen.”

Marijuana isn’t just a plant anymore says McComie and everyone, especially cops need to know its forms and how much stronger today’s drugs are than even ten years ago.

“The term everybody is using right now, it’s not your dads or your parents marijuana from back in the seventies is really true I mean four percent back in the 70’s was high quality back then, now you’re looking at 20, 30, 40, 50 percent, if its edibles you’re talking 80, 90 to 100 percent of the THC level so it’s a lot worse now.”

Lobera added, “When there’s these mind altering drugs or alcohol that they’re getting involved in it closes a lot of doors, sports, academics and its just difficult to hear about that sometimes with young people.”

Along with marijuana, the biggest problem drug for Lander is meth.