PONTIAC (WWJ) - The Oakland County Sheriff's Office is investigating a substitute teacher at Pontiac High School after edibles wound up in the hands of a student last month.
Sheriff Michael Bouchard said details surrounding the case are limited due to their ongoing investigation, but confirmed authorities became aware of the incident after a student brought pot gummies to school in March.
Pontiac School District officials said a teacher noticed the student had something suspicious and called authorities immediately.
According to the sheriff, the student had gotten the candy from a substitute teacher and intended to give them to fellow classmates.
"We've got to work through some of the evidentiary things. Some of the people we are talking to are not cooperating, so we are using investigative tools and working through the process," Bouchard told WXYZ.
Reports of children getting ahold of cannabis-infused candy are not unheard of, Bouchard added, with the incident at Pontiac High School the latest case in a growing, but alarming trend.
"It's a new kind of adjustment in both how this is playing out in schools and how we have to deal with it as a society," Bouchard said.
District officials added that they were working closely with the sheriff's office, but did not comment further because of the investigation.
According to a study that compared exposures to edible cannabis products in children from 2017 to 2021, as seen in The Journal of Pediatrics, the authors concluded there was a “consistent increase in pediatric edible cannabis exposures over the past five years."
The authors stressed that it was important to educate and prevent the incidents from happening.
In February, four students at Carter Middle School were sickened after eating THC cookies and gummies, prompting staff to call medics.
"This is an important reminder for all of us to be aware of what our children may have access to at home, such as alcohol, tobacco, vape, or marijuana, all of which are illegal for them to use," Warren Community Schools Superintendent Dr. Robert D. Livernois said at the time. "Since marijuana became legal in Michigan, we have seen an increase in students vaping and eating edibles containing THC."
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