Virginia Mother Charged with felony murder of her 4 year old

With heavy hearts, we bring your attention to Dorothy Annette Clements and her late 4 year old son, Tanner.

In May of this year, Ms. Clement’s four-year-old son ate some edibles. After noticing her son having difficulty breathing, she called Poison Control and indicated her son had eaten "half" a CBD gummy. In turn, Poison Control indicated that such a low dose of CBD would not be detrimental, and to keep an eye on him and his breathing.

Sadly for all involved, days later Tanner was admitted to the hospital, and succumb to a “cardiac episode”. In the police investigation that followed, officers found edible containers indicating the presence of THC. Doctors found the level of THC in Tanner’s blood was ‘extremely high’.

THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, is the psychoactive ingredient in modern cannabis. For adults with fully matured organs, high THC cannabis poses little or no threat to their health. For children and adolescents, THC can be detrimental to their development and health, affecting neurological development, cognitive function, respiration and a slew of other potential harms.

Ms. Clement reported that the edibles she had purchased contained only CBD, but she was mistaken, and the police investigation showed that, noting her statement could not be corroborated based on the evidence found.

On Thursday, October 20^th, Ms. Clement was taken into custody and indicted on charges of felony murder and felony child neglect. In a dark twist of fate, doctors note that had Ms. Clement provided accurate information on her son’s ingestion of cannabis products, or sought appropriate emergency care for her son sooner, they would likely have been able to counteract the THC and mitigate any long-term risks and save his life.

With edible cannabis products available from coast to coast, we implore you to store any and all cannabis based products in safe and secure places away from children. Responsible home storage can prevent future events like this.

KookiJar offers concerned parents secure storage for their cannabis products. Help keep your kids safe with a lockable On-The-Go Pouch or a Child-Resistant glass jar.

If your child does consume cannabis products, contact Poison Control (1-800-222-1222) immediately.