CDC Releases Report On Danger Of Edible Marijuana, Points Out Lethal Colorado Case

DENVER (CBS4) - The legalization of recreational marijuana in Colorado has gotten the attention of national government health experts. A new report by the Centers for Disease Control focuses on a Denver incident to highlight the danger of edible marijuana.

Levi Pongi jumped to his death from the fourth floor balcony of a Denver hotel over a year ago. The coroner ruled marijuana intoxication as a significant contributing factor to his death.

The case is now the focus of the CDC's report highlighting the dangers of ingesting edible marijuana.

"It's not new news to Coloradans," said Jessica Hancock-Allen, an epidemic intelligence officer with the CDC.

Hancock-Allen co-authored the report and spoke about the findings.

"If you ingest a large quantity of edible marijuana in a short amount of time, you risk over-consumption, and in increased risk of mental health effects," she said.

It's something doctors in Colorado have already reported seeing.

Chief of Emergency Medicine at Denver Health, Dr. Christopher Colwell spoke about the issue with CBS4  early on.

"They're very altered, they're very different during that period of time when they are under the influence," he said of people he sees who have ingested edibles.

As several other states consider legalization, the hope is that the CDC report will draw attention before it's too late.

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"Colorado really wanted to get this out in the medical literature so that folks could learn from what's happened here, and then the steps that Colorado has taken to hopefully cut down on over-consumption in the future," said Hancock-Allen

Since the Pongi case, and several other incidents, Colorado has implemented additional regulations, made changes to labeling, and set a limit to the amount of THC allowed in a single edible.

To see the full CDC report, click here.