Ohio man nearly suffocates after swallowing a bag of weed during the police traffic stop

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Pretty much every stoner has had a stoned run-in with the police. But in Ohio, a man nearly died trying not to be arrested for property.

Last month, Ohio State Trooper Charles Hoskin stopped a man for a routine traffic stop. As he approached the vehicle, the policeman saw that the shirtless driver seemed to be choking on something. The dash cam video released by the Ohio State High Patrol (OSHP) shows Hoskin asking the man if he can breathe when he leaves the vehicle.

Moving a safe distance behind the car, Hoskin performed the Heimlich maneuver on the driver, removing a small bag from his throat. The video shows the police officer asking the suspect what he swallowed, whereupon the suspect admitted that he had an ounce of weed on him. The driver apparently swallowed the grass with the bag intact so as not to be arrested for possession.

The police couldn’t resist the urge to spread the word about this bizarre story and posted the dashcam footage on Twitter along with a warning against smuggling drugs. “Do not try to swallow a bag of drugs before you are stopped to prevent a soldier from finding you,” the OSHP wrote. “Fortunately, Tpr. Hoskin from our Ravenna Post was attentive and was able to help the man who choked on a bag of illegal marijuana. “

Ohio definitely has its share of weird weed and cop stories. In 2019, a man even called his local police force to complain that police officers stole 4 grams of “prestigious damn weed” from his wife. Apparently, the man heard that the nearby city of Cincinnati recently decriminalized up to 100 grams of cannabis and mistakenly believed that this decriminalization law also applied to his county. It didn’t.

Of course, there is a simple solution to preventing weird situations like this: completely legalizing cannabis. Last month the state legislature tabled a bill that would do just that. This bill, which is the first full legalization bill ever introduced into state law, would create a taxed and regulated adult retail market and give ex-offenders an opportunity to clear their criminal records.

The 180-page bill would allow adults 21 and older to own up to 5 ounces of weed and grow up to 12 plants at home. Legal sales would be taxed at a relatively low 10 percent, and that proceeds would be used to fund K-12 education, infrastructure, and communities or counties that choose to approve legal cannabis businesses.

“This law is badly needed in Ohio, and it is time for Ohio to become a national leader in decriminalizing and legalizing marijuana,” Rep Terrence Upchurch, D, said Rep. Terrence Upchurch, reports from Marijuana Moment. “This draft law is not just about legalization, but also about economic and personnel development, about decriminalization and about health care! It is now time and I look forward to doing this across party lines. “

Buckeye State already has a thriving medical marijuana industry, and several local communities have decriminalized weed, but it remains to be seen whether state lawmakers are ready to accept full legalization.