DA, Doctor Advocate Against Legal Marijuana at United Way Forum

By Andy McKeever

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Dr. Jennifer Michaels says every patient she sees struggling with serious addiction began by smoking marijuana at a young age. 

Michaels, the medical director at the Brien Center, joined District Attorney David Capeless on Tuesday in a forum at Berkshire Community College urging a no vote on the referendum to legalize marijuana, which will be on the ballot in November.

Michaels outlined her belief that the legalization will lead to more issues with addictions while Capeless said public safety would be put at risk with little authorities could do to mitigate impacts.

"The devil's in the details about this. It isn't just about marijuana legalization," Capeless said.

Capeless compared the Massachusetts question to that in Colorado or Washington, both of which legalized the drug for recreational use, saying Massachusetts is limiting the tax on it to 11.75 percent, which is lower than Colorado's maximum of 40 percent or Washington's 37 percent, so the influx of money into the economy won't be there. He said the money gained would only go toward the administration of the new law and elsewhere in the budget such as education.

Further, he says the drug will be held to lesser standards than alcohol. For a store selling to a minor for alcohol, there is a $300 fine and possible 90-day loss of license whereas with marijuana it would only be a $100 fine. For people selling to a minor, alcohol is punishable for up to a year in jail whereas with marijuana, as long as the person appears to be 21, there is no arrest or charge.

"I am well aware there is a burgeoning black market among college students like yourselves for fake IDs. This is just giving dispensaries a carte blanche to sell to all of the college students in Massachusetts," Capeless told a full auditorium at BCC.

He said there is no medical use of alcohol with minors but there could be with marijuana.

In Colorado, he says while the number of fatal crashes has decreased since legalization, the number of fatals with drivers testing positive for marijuana has nearly tripled. In Washington, that number doubled.

He said when marijuana is coupled with alcohol, the likelihood of an accident is 24 times higher.

"Overall fatality rates were down. But fatalities with drivers testing positive for marijuana increased by over 100 percent," Capeless said.

But, the opinions among youth aren't in line with those figures, he said. Surveys show a quarter of teens say they've driven while high and three-quarters say they don't believe it is an issue. Capeless says car accidents are twice as likely if the driver has been smoking marijuana.

While recognizing marijuana impacts the ability to operate a motor vehicle is one thing, Capeless said local authorities are woefully underprepared to be able to enforce laws restricting driving while high.

"We have scientific devices that we can use to stop people from speeding. We have testing we can use for people who are under the influence of alcohol. We do not have that available to test people for use of marijuana," Capeless said.

Capeless said there was only one certified expert in the county who could identify operating under the influence of drugs, but that person has since moved on. Recent court rulings say that even the smell of burnt marijuana isn't enough to stop and search a vehicle, making it even more difficult for authorities, he said.

It isn't just about driving for Capeless but those other crimes that he feels comes with marijuana.

"Overall crime [in Colorado] is up by almost a third, crimes against a person by a quarter, simple assault almost two-thirds, and domestic assault almost 100 percent increase," Capeless said.

FBI data does support Capeless' claim that crime has risen in Denver, showing an increase of 3.5 percent. However, city officials there have been tracking crimes relating to marijuana, which shows less than 1 percent growth there — so the likelihood is that the two are unrelated.

In 2015, the Berkshire County Law Enforcement Task Force made just 127 marijuana-related arrests, said Capeless, despite it being a popular drug in the county. And he said in 95 percent of the searches the force does, mostly looking for cocaine, heroin, and illegal prescription drugs, marijuana is also found. Of the 18 people charged with marijuana crimes in 2015, courts fined just one individual.

Twelve cases were continued without a finding and five cases were dismissed, he said.

Pulling up headlines from local media, he showed that selling marijuana locally has led to armed robberies, shootings, kidnapping, and home invasions.

Capeless also suggested that marijuana use among teens has "considerably gone up" but other recent surveys have shown that usage among teens has mostly remained level since legalization and that Colorado has a lower rate of teen usage than the nationwide average.

From the audience, one man said teen usage in Colorado has actually decreased, with the reasoning being that teens could get it without having to show ID and now they do. A student added that marijuana sales are often coupled with gangs and that by legalizing marijuana, it would deflate that market while at the same time allow authorities to focus more energy on opioids and gang violence.

Capeless said there is no reason to believe a black market would be eliminated with the legalization because of the restrictions and requirements surrounding the potency.

"It will not get rid of it at all. It may well thrive. In Colorado, it has thrived and crime has gone up," Capeless said.

The use among teens is really the key point of opposition from Michaels, who says the drug has significant impacts on the developing brain.

"The more you use regularly, the more your IQ went down," Michaels said.

Michaels cited a study out of New Zealand that tested children from age 13 on and found the more one uses marijuana, the more the IQ has dropped. Again, her statistics are countered by other studies that show there is no link between IQ and marijuana usage.

Michaels focused her presentation more on the science behind marijuana usage — specifically focusing on the drug's compensation, addictiveness, medical impacts, public danger, and its ability to be a gateway drug.

"Virtually everyone who gets to those more serious drugs started with marijuana and alcohol," Michaels said.

She began by saying that while marijuana is natural, that doesn't mean it is good.

"Of course it is natural. It is a plant, it grows in the earth. It comes from two different plants cannabis sativa or indica so it is natural like other plants," Michaels said. "But over time we have altered how natural it is because we have cultivated it to maximize the tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content.

That's the thing that gets you high, the psychoactive component. It is less natural than it used to be."

She said cocaine and alcohol both derive from natural sources but that doesn't mean the drugs are safe.

"Natural is not good or bad, it just is. The opium poppy plant is natural. The coca plant we get cocaine from is natural. The alcohol we drink is probably the most natural thing we are consuming," Michaels said.

Marijuana's THC acts like the body's natural anandamide chemical transmitter and attaches to parts of the brain that impacts movement, coordination, judgment, and memory. In hijacking those transmitters, it causes the brain to release high levels of dopamine.

"All drugs of abuse including marijuana does something unhealthy, unnatural with dopamine in your brain," Michaels said. "Our brains aren't wired for that type of dopamine."

The good news, she said, is that the drug does not attach to the brain stem, which regulates breathing and arousal so overdoses are unlikely.

"In some ways, it is much safer than other drugs like opioid which does bind there or alcohol which does bind there. With high doses of those two substances, you stop breathing and overdose and die.

So in some ways marijuana is safer than those other substances," Michaels said. "However, if you look at the binding the effects, the judgment, and coordination, that is not safe behavior if you are intoxicated."

She said while overdoses may not be a threat, it is the fatal car accidents and possible hallucinations. She told the story of 19-year-old Levy Thamba, who earlier this year jumped to his death from a hotel window after ingesting marijuana in Colorado.

"He began to hallucinate. He became delusional. He was talking to the lampshade. He was really out of it, not himself. He never had a psychotic experience before. He was with friends who tried to talk him down. He ended up jumping out of the window and killing himself," Michaels said.

"This is an example of how someone died, not because of decreased respiration but because people can become psychotic and lose judgment. Is that common, no. But we are starting to see it and we are starting to see it in youth people."

She, too, cited statistics showing that marijuana use will double the risk of a motor vehicle accident. But even more frightening for Michaels, is when marijuana is mixed with alcohol.

"The problem is when people drink or smoke, they often aren't thinking at their best and do both.

Then you multiply the risk for all accidents. We know when people smoke, performance is impaired," Michaels said.

Further, she believes drug abuse will increase with marijuana. She said the drug creates a euphoric feeling because of the dramatic increase in dopamine, but once it wears off, the levels drop to lower than before — thus leading to anxiety and a desire for more marijuana.

"We know that for some people, they get addicted to marijuana," Michaels said.

She said there are symptoms of marijuana withdrawals from irritability to nervousness, to difficulty sleeping, and depression. Those withdrawals create the compulsion for users to smoke more.

Michaels said people who smoke marijuana are more likely to have mental health issues such as depression or mood disorders. But again, Michael's concern is addiction and she said children who smoke at a younger age are more likely to have addiction struggles.

"It is really about the kids, the decisions we make will impact them the most. If you have a fully grown brain and you had engaged in healthy activities, you've wired your brain with joy and happiness, you are not going to be as vulnerable to marijuana addiction. The chance of getting addicted is pretty low. However, if you are a young person and your brain is still forming, you haven't formed all of the connections, if you smoke if you are 12 or 13, your chances are really high, 17 percent," Michaels said.

She said 74.6 percent of teens entering substance abuse programs are entering for marijuana, she said.

"As we perceive marijuana to be a less risky substance, young people use marijuana more. As we make these decisions as adults, we must consider the impact on our young people," Michaels said.

As for marijuana's use in medicine, Michaels says there hasn't been enough evidence to suggest that medical marijuana is effective. She said most studies only test certain of the 480 chemicals in marijuana and not the drug as a whole.

"Most of the studies do not actually have patients smoking marijuana," Michaels said. "We are not ready for prime time because most of the studies have studied only specific chemicals but not marijuana."

She conceded that there is evidence that marijuana does help with muscle spasms and HIV and pain related to chemotherapy. But she rejects the common notion that glaucoma should be treated with marijuana.

She said marijuana relieves pressure in eyes of glaucoma patients but not in a sustainable way. At the same time, marijuana restricts the blood flow to the eyes, causing more damage over time.

The forum was sponsored by the Berkshire United Ways' Pittsfield Prevention Partnership, which focuses its work on reducing substance abuse among the city's youth.