(Riverton, Wyo.) – As a follow-up to our post on Tuesday citing a report that Cannabis-related deaths have moved into the second most non-natural cause of death in Fremont County, Coroner Mark Stratmoen has responded. He posted the following comment on County10’s Facebook page and gave County10.com additional comments this morning.
Here is the text of Stratmoen’s posted response:
“As an explanation for those who asked legitimate questions – a drug ‘related’ death means that the substance was a factor in the death, not that it necessarily directly ’caused’ the death. Forensic toxicology these days gives us results by quantities of specific metabolites of THC: those that are the most psychoactive and disappear from the body in one to two hours, versus the intermediate that are not as psychoactive but present longer, versus those that are not psychoactive and can be present in the body for a long term. If all that shows is the latter, it is not related to the death. If the first one is so high it is off the charts, obviously it is relevant, especially in operation of complex tasks like operating a vehicle. The percentage of usage we see is much higher than what the ‘related’ statistics present, but we do not report it if not relevant.
“As I have stated before, for example, if driving under the influence kills you and other people, that is a drug related death, regardless of whether the substance is alcohol, cannabis, or something else. Cannabis products have some valued medical use, and previous government programs and scare tactics going back to the 1920s (the film “Reefer Madness” is hilariously stupid example) have been counter productive. However, that is not any excuse for a lack of personal responsibility in the use of a substance and killing other people on the roadways.
“There are no recorded deaths I am aware of where THC products have caused a death directly, other than DUI, but that is no excuse for DUI. The stronger and more refined a product gets, however, the higher the odds that it will happen eventually – that has been the pattern historically for every drug ever marketed in these categories. If everyone was a responsible user of alcohol, THC or prescription drugs, I would be a happy camper and a lot less busy. I do not care if legal or not, irresponsible use kills people, directly, or indirectly and either way, you’re still dead, and families suffer.
“Yes, big pharma, tobacco and alcohol companies are partially responsible for the problem through their promotion of their products, but stop using that as an excuse for irresponsible personal behavior.”
In a follow-up telephone interview this morning, Stratmoen said the fact that Cannabis use is becoming a trend in related deaths, he said it his statutory requirement to bring that to the attention of the public. “What they do with that information is their personal decision,” he said. “We’ve been talking about alcohol and driving for decades, but people are still driving and drinking. People not wearing seat belts is a factor, as is people not wearing helmets when operating a motorcycle. It is a personal responsibility.”
The coroner said he doesn’t care what the substance is, “If you’re driving impaired that is a problem. That is what we are trying to emphasize. I don’t care if people smoke pot, but don’t drive under the influence. Pharmaceuticals need to be used responsibly, when they are not then it’s a factor. The fact is that we’re seeing Cannabis products as a larger factor, it has taken over the number two position over prescription drugs as a related factor, and that is for the first time since we began keeping specific track in 2005.”
credit:county10.com