A study published in the June 20 issue of American Journal of Public Health, looked at U.S. federal health data for more than 200,000 high school students between 1991-2017. The results show marijuana use among teens within that time frame, has increased tenfold.

Study author, Hongying Dai, of University of Nebraska’s College of Public Health in Omaha, noted the “surge” in teens using marijuana is troubling, and “highlights the importance of marijuana prevention among youths.”

To date, a plethora of studies have investigated the long-term effects of marijuana use in teens. Concern often centers around effects of the drug on the prefrontal cortex areas of the brain, which control judgment and decision-making, and continue to develop well into a person’s early 20’s. Marijuana use in such studies, has also been linked to an increased incidence of mental health disorders, including depression, psychosis and other long-term psychiatric effects.

Common Side Effects of Cannabis Use in Teens The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), for example, warns of the following common side effects found among teens using marijuana:

• Disjointed thinking and difficulty problem solving;
• Decreased memory function and challenges learning;
• Impaired co-ordination;
• Difficulty maintaining attention;
• Decline in academic performance and higher drop-out rates;
• Increased risk of mental health issues (depression, anxiety and psychosis);
• Impaired driving ability and increased danger on the road (decreased co-ordination, reaction time and concentration); and
• Potential for addiction.

Despite the associated health risks, as opinions towards and regulation surrounding marijuana use are relaxed, teens nationwide are increasingly using the drug.

Interestingly, in her analysis of the data, Dai also noted “the percentage of high school seniors perceiving regular marijuana use as harmful, fell from 78.6 percent in 1991 to 29 percent in 2017.”

National Incidence Data on Teens and Marijuana Other key findings from Dai’s study of the U.S. federal health data show:

• Teens admitting to using marijuana within the last 30 days has increased from 0.6 percent in 1991 to 6.3 percent in 2017
• More than double the number of young people are using both marijuana and alcohol (7.6 percent in 2017 vs. 3.6 percent in 1991)
• Between 1991-2017, marijuana usage rates increased more significantly among teens within minority populations
  • Use among black teens is up from 2 percent to 13.5 percent
  • Use among Hispanic teens rose from less than 1 percent to 9 percent
  • Use among white teens increased least from 0.3 percent to 3.7 percent

Changes in public opinion toward marijuana, as well as the relaxing of restrictions surrounding marijuana use, have likely contributed to the uptick in teenagers using the drug, said Dai. It appears there is more work yet to do, in educating teens on the dangers they face if using marijuana before reaching adulthood.

Marijuana Use by California Teens For a snapshot of marijuana use specifically among Californian teens, a separate study by the Californian Department of Health Care Services and the California Department of Education showed differing results. In its independent California Healthy Kids Survey, the 2015-17 study surveyed 45,264 students, comprised of randomly selected seventh, ninth and eleventh graders. Key takeaways included:

• A 47 percent decrease in cannabis use among seventh graders from 2013 to 2017;
• Pot use among ninth graders dropped 25 percent within the study period;
• Eleventh grade cannabis use dipped 16 percent during the same time frame; and
• Teens reportedly using cannabis multiple times within the last 30 days, fell across all grade levels.

These findings were gathered within the sixteenth biennial, statewide, nonpartisan Californian student survey, which was funded by state taxes.

The obvious question then, is in a state that has regulated and legalized the use of marijuana among adults since 2016, why are Californian teens apparently using pot less than their counterparts across the country? One reason may be that deregulation removes the lure of rebelling with marijuana use during adolescence. Another points to California’s continued advertising budget allocation, to educate its young people on the side effects associated with cannabis use, and to discourage pot use among its youth.

It will be interesting to observe whether the 2017-19 CHKS survey results show a continued trend of declining pot use among teens across California, or if an uptick matches the national data analyzed by Dai. Keep an eye out for those 2017-19 CHKS survey results, which are expected to be released sometime next year.

Need Legal Help For Cannabis Possession? Our Southern California marijuana defense lawyers can help answer any questions you may have.

The Los Angeles CANNABIS LAW Group represents growers dispensaries, ancillary companies, patients and those facing criminal marijuana charges. Call us at 949-375-4734. Additional Resources: The Center for Disease Prevention and Control-Marijuana Fact Sheet California Healthy Kids Survey 2015-2017

When California legalized cannabis for recreational purposes with Prop. 64, broadly opening the market for adult consumers earlier this year, it did not legalize all cultivation, production, sale and possession of the drug. Instead, marijuana legalization was inducted into a highly-regulated market. And while criminal arrests for cannabis possession are down, there is still a risk of running afoul of state regulations and criminal codes.

This summer, a crime report issued by the state revealed that while marijuana-related arrests in mid-2018 saw a significant drop this year compared to last (56 percent overall, with felony marijuana arrests down 74 percent), there is still a risk that Californians and visitors could face substantial jail or prison terms, hefty fines and criminal records. Still, the number facing those risks fell by 8,000 from 2016 to 2017.

Los Angeles marijuana criminal defense attorneys as well as those with the Drug Policy Alliance and other supporters who have long-backed marijuana legalization efforts, overall this is good news, as it means less taxpayer-funded law enforcement resources are being dedicated to non-violent drug-related offenses, and the focus now can rightly shift to more serious crimes.

Still, the laws for cannabis cultivation, production and possession still leave the door wide open for adverse contact with local law enforcement agencies – and a potential criminal record. In October, the California Attorney General initiated a widespread crackdown on unlawful cultivation of marijuana, arresting 52 people statewide, eradicating more than 614,000 plants at more than 250 cannabis farms that were allegedly operating illegally. Officials also seized some 110 firearms over the course of the 12-week operation, which targeted cannabis cultivation the counties of Los Angeles, San Diego, San Bernardino and Riverside, according to the California Department of Justice press release. A particular focus of the enforcement effort were drug traffickers diverting public water and land resources and using unlawful pesticides, including one called carbofuran, which can be extremely dangerous.

Still, most people arrested for marijuana in Los Angeles and across the state are nabbed for misdemeanors. The San Jose Mercury News reported in July that of all marijuana-related arrests in California in 2017, roughly 2,100 were for felony offenses while another 4,000 were for misdemeanor marijuana offenses. Unfortunately (though not surprisingly, given the long history of drug enforcement), people of color are disproportionately targeted – to a significant degree. White, non-Hispanic defendants accounted for 24 percent of the total felony arrests last year. Those identified as Hispanic accounted for 40 percent and black people accounted for 21 percent. This is despite the fact that research has time and again shown all three to consume marijuana at largely the same rates.

While Proposition 64 did significantly reduce penalties for just about every marijuana crime in California (possession with intent to sell was downgraded from felony to misdemeanor, transporting up to one ounce went from being a misdemeanor to lawful for anyone over the age of 21), it’s still a felony crime to employ minors to sell marijuana or to grow substantial amounts of the plant absent a license. Most legal marijuana advocates never expected that marijuana crimes would be entirely eradicated by California’s new law, nor was there an expectation that these laws would root out the underlying racism that apparently exists in drug law enforcement.

Still, it does seem to our marijuana criminal defense attorneys in Los Angeles that law enforcement agencies in California are starting to get the message, recognizing that if the penalty for a crime has been reduced from five years to six months, their resources are better spent elsewhere.

The biggest issue – one many law enforcement agencies say has become more problematic since legalization – is driving under the influence of marijuana. It’s not as easy to identify as drunk driving because marijuana is not processed as quickly through the human body as alcohol, but police agencies are investing in more drug recognition experts (DREs) to try to secure more convictions. California Vehicle Code 23152(f) allows up to 6 months in jail, a $1,000 fine, 3-9 months of DUI school and up to 10 months of a suspended license (or restricted license) for conviction on just the first offense.

The Los Angeles CANNABIS LAW Group represents growers, dispensaries, collectives, patients and those facing marijuana charges. Call us at 949-375-4734.

Additional Resources:

Prop. 64 didn’t legalize every cannabis crime, but arrests are falling fast, July 11, 2018, By Brooke Staggs, San Jose Mercury News

More Blog Entries:

California Cannabis Insurance: Risks and Regulations, Dec. 5, 2018, Los Angeles Criminal Defense Lawyer Blog