- Selina Nicholas, 49, would take 30 hits a day of potent cannabis substitute
- The substance was legal in November 2012, when she died
- Exeter coroner said it has not been proved that the legal highs killed her
- But Ms Nicholas's family say they are 'certain' that drugs are to blame
Selina Nicholas, 49, took 30 hits a day of a potent blend of synthetic cannabis called Summer Haze.
The substance was legal at the time but has since been banned because it contains chemicals which mimic genuine marijuana.
Legal highs: Selina Nicholas, pictured, was found dead by one of her sons in 2012
An inquest into Selina's death heard she got her fix from a local shop and from her boyfriend, who liked to mix his own supply to save money.
Her family is now warning of the dangers of legal highs. Her son Adam said he is 'certain' they caused her death, despite the coroner saying it could not yet be proved.
Ms Nicholas died in November 2012, after smoking for an entire weekend. One of her children, Zachary, found her body when he broke into her home in Exeter, Devon.
Potent: Summer Haze, the type of drug Ms Nicholas used, can be 50 times stronger than regular cannabis
She was found next to an array of drug paraphernalia and legal highs, which she had been using regularly for around 18 months.
A post mortem could not establish a cause of death, but toxicology reports tested positive for chemical compounds known as cannabinoids.
The substances are typically sprayed on to herbs then sold and smoked like regular cannabis leaves, producing similar psychoactive effects.
PC Scott Robertson, a drug liaison officer for Devon and Cornwall Police, told the inquest that 75 to 80 new legal highs came to the market in 2013 alone.
He said: 'Because of the influx, toxicology has not caught up yet so we do not know the short-term effects.
'What we do know is synthetic cannabis can be up to 20-50 times more potent than normal cannabis and we are seeing far more adverse reactions.
'We are seeing an increasing number of people ending up in hospital and having an adverse reaction to the legal highs.'
The inquest heard that Ms Nicholas had suffered with drug and alcohol addiction for most of her life.
Her family say she went 'into a shell' after she started using legal highs, which she would either buy from the Hush head shop in Exeter or have them made for her by on-off boyfriend Pete Simmons.
Mr Simmons said he had been a friend for 25 years and he would bring around his homemade stash each weekend for them to smoke.
He told the hearing: 'Rightly or wrongly I believe the family are blaming me for her death.
'We had spent the weekend together and she had a couple of bongs on Friday night and some on Saturday and Sunday morning before I left.
'There was no indication when I left that anything was wrong. Part of the reason I made my own synthetic cannabis was Selina was going into Hush and spending a lot of money on pre-packaged stuff that was essentially the same thing.
'It was about a tenth of the price to do it myself.'
Coroner Elizabeth Earland recorded an open verdict but said she could not establish for certain that legal highs had caused Selina's death.
What went wrong? Ms Nicholas's boyfriend said there was no sign of anything being wrong when he last saw her
She said: 'It is a matter for drug enforcement agencies to analyse the data they have and potential risk and it is extremely difficult for them to come to conclusions with all the new products that keep coming to the market.
'I am satisfied she was a habitual user of cannabis and synthetic cannabis but she also suffered medical and mental health problems.
'I am not satisfied that any drug taking killed her or her medical problems killed her so I have to record an open verdict.
'In time we hope there will be more information but at the moment it appears those who are making it are one step ahead of the drug enforcement agencies. So it is up to individuals to be as aware as possible.'
Early forms of synthetic cannabis, also known as spice, were first outlawed in 2009 when they were reclassified as class B drugs, making it illegal to sell or possess them.
But since then police have had to constantly update the list of banned substances because manufacturers keep tinkering with the chemicals involved to get around the law.
Adam Nicholas, one of Ms Nicholas's sons, said after the inquest that he was certain that legal highs were responsible.
He said: 'Mum had been ill on and off for years. But suddenly she started taking and getting into legal highs.
'She had been on drugs throughout her life but after she started on the legal highs she started having more and more issues.
'She was in a much darker place and was a shell of who she was.
'They can't prove they killed her as the medical evidence and research is currently not available. But a 49-year-old woman's heart does not stop for no reason.
'Directly or indirectly, we all believe legal highs were responsible for her death. People don't realise the dangers and think that because they are legal they are OK.'
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