Want to ensure that #marijuana is safe? Legalize and regulate it. By Paul Armentano
Rarely a week goes by without police or other public officials warning about so-called “fentanyl-laced” weed. Upon closer inspection, there’s little if any truth behind these sensational claims.
A case in point: Police in Brattleboro, Vermont recently generated headlines when they, along with agents from the federal Drug Enforcement Administration and Department of Homeland Security, arrested multiple people on charges of distributing fentanyl-tainted cannabis.
Days later, however, lab tests confirmed that no fentanyl was present in any of the marijuana samples that had been seized in the raid.
A similar scenario recently unfolded in Connecticut, where officials alleged that marijuana laced with fentanyl was responsible for over three dozen overdose incidents. Forensic analyses later determined that only one of these cases actually involved the ingestion of fentanyl. That case, health officials said, was probably the result of accidental contamination.
Such sensational pronouncements, followed by far less publicized refutations, are nothing new.
For What It's Worth 