PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — District attorneys from Bucks, Chester and Montgomery counties are calling on the state legislature to take action on what they call “unregulated, unsafe and illegal” THC products being sold over-the-counter in gas stations and vape shops across Pennsylvania.
Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele said a 10-month Grand Jury investigation looked into unregulated THC products sold over-the-counter in gas stations and vape shops across Pennsylvania.
“We bought from these stores, you know, go in, make a purchase, like any person coming down the street could do, including children,” he said. Steel said they purchased 144 products from various smoke shops, and all of them were mislabeled.
“The results make it clear that these smoke shops are acting as our neighborhood marijuana dealers.”
Pennsylvania’s 2018 Farm Bill excludes all hemp products as long as the amount of THC is under a certain amount (0.3% of dry weight), but Steele says 135 of those products had levels above the legal threshold. Four were within the legal limit, but had a different kind of THC, and four had no detectable THC despite claiming they did.
Under state law, there are no age restrictions on who can buy the products.
Bucks County District Attorney Jen Schorn says the state legislature needs to take action.
“We need explicit permission for a school nurse to give Tylenol to our children, but our children can go into these shops and literally purchase and ingest an illegal substance with grave consequences, and we have to do better,” Schorn said.
“It doesn’t matter what your party is. Everybody should be concerned about child welfare, and if that doesn’t ring a bell, I don’t know what will.”
A bill that cleared committee in the State Senate would create a Cannabis Oversight Board, similar to the Liquor Control Board.