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veggie
Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 17,504
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[IE] Widow challenges coroner's finding over cannabis
#12062072 - 02/19/10 08:11 PM (14 years, 1 month ago) |
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Widow challenges coroner's finding over cannabis February 20, 2010 - IrishTimes.com
A WIDOWED mother of six has brought a High Court challenge to a coroner’s finding that cannabis smoking contributed to the death of her husband by a heart attack.
Fiona Byrne, widow of Paul Byrne (37), who died in November 2005, has described as “perverse and irrational” a finding by Dublin county coroner Dr Kieran Geraghty that her husband died by misadventure by reason of, and/or significantly contributed to, the fact that traces of cannabis resin were found in his system.
Ms Byrne said her husband was not a chronic user of cannabis, but did smoke it to alleviate the constant pain from which he suffered.
In her action, Ms Byrne, of Glenshane Grove, Tallaght, Dublin, claims Dr Geraghty, when considering his findings, failed to consider several matters, including research rejecting links between smoking cannabis and heart attacks.
She also claims he failed to properly take into account Mr Byrne’s medical history, including that he was being treated for high cholesterol and had been waiting for about a month for an “urgent” appointment for an MRI scan following the discovery of a blood clot in his leg.
She has asked the High Court to review Dr Geraghty’s finding, based on a pathologist’s report, that traces of cannabis found in Mr Byrne’s system were sufficient to have induced and/or contributed to the onset of the heart attack.
She also claimed the coroner had not taken into account the possible effect on Mr Byrne of having to wait some 40 minutes for an ambulance to bring him from his home to Tallaght hospital on the day of his death – November 9th, 2005.
Dr Geraghty has denied the claims, and said the “opinion” about cannabis use was not put before him at the inquest and he did not have an opportunity to consider it. Ms Byrne failed to put before the inquest sufficient evidence his decision as to cannabis being a secondary cause of death was at variance with reason and common sense, it was argued.
The case concluded yesterday before Mr Justice John Hedigan, who reserved judgment.
Yesterday, Alan Toal, for Ms Byrne, argued the coroner’s findings flew in the face of modern scientific research. People can overdose on cocaine, heroin and alcohol, but there was no evidence they can do so on cannabis.
He said by including cannabis as a contributory cause of death, it was being suggested Mr Byrne in some way acted “by his own hand” in causing his death. This was something Mr Byrne’s family could not accept.
Mr Toal said a report from Dr Bill Tormey, a consultant chemical pathologist at Beaumont Hospital, said the coroner’s finding that the cannabis traces induced or contributed to the heart attack was incompatible with scientific evidence suggesting cannabis can have a “protective role” against heart attack. Dr Tormey said it was “fanciful in the extreme” to call this a misadventure, counsel said.
Ms Byrne has also complained the coroner did not pay any deference to her during the inquest and had addressed her father-in-law on the day rather than herself. She attended the inquest in the hope of getting answers as to her husband’s untimely death but Dr Geraghty failed to ask her whether she wished to be heard or represented.
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SEE
dislexsic
Registered: 02/05/10
Posts: 132
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Re: [IE] Widow challenges coroner's finding over cannabis [Re: veggie]
#12062191 - 02/19/10 08:29 PM (14 years, 1 month ago) |
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I was almost worried there for a second...
-------------------- I Before E Except after ME, SEE, what happened was....but don't worry i have it covered...I'll just tell God they died.
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dill705
Amazed
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Posts: 3,779
Loc: The Cat's Cradle
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Re: [IE] Widow challenges coroner's finding over cannabis [Re: SEE]
#12062629 - 02/19/10 09:41 PM (14 years, 1 month ago) |
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The court reserved judgement, it's not a clear cut victory either way, but I'm so proud of that Irish woman to take on bad science.
-------------------- My advice is to find those things that give pleasure and do them often without too much attachment and relax and wait for the show to end. -Icelander- I like free markets and all. Truly I do, at least in general, but there needs to be some kind of oversight in recognition of sustainability. Life works the same way, on a bunch of sustainable systems. Why not honor what made us what we are and take some lessons? Nature FTW! ~dill705~
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oxalic32
Registered: 01/27/08
Posts: 3,615
Loc: .
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Re: [IE] Widow challenges coroner's finding over cannabis [Re: dill705]
#12063757 - 02/20/10 02:20 AM (14 years, 1 month ago) |
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I'm so sure weed could kill someone. Lies get more and more creative.
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SethAsylum
Person
Registered: 02/04/10
Posts: 11
Loc: Alabama.
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Re: [IE] Widow challenges coroner's finding over cannabis [Re: veggie]
#12064443 - 02/20/10 10:02 AM (14 years, 1 month ago) |
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That woman is a dumbass
-------------------- hi.
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Riboflavin
Registered: 03/05/05
Posts: 1,388
Loc: Midwestish
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Re: [IE] Widow challenges coroner's finding over cannabis [Re: SethAsylum]
#12064602 - 02/20/10 10:49 AM (14 years, 1 month ago) |
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Quote:
SethAsylum said: That woman is a dumbass
Heh?
-------------------- All that groks is God.
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dill705
Amazed
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Posts: 3,779
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Re: [IE] Widow challenges coroner's finding over cannabis [Re: SethAsylum]
#12064624 - 02/20/10 10:55 AM (14 years, 1 month ago) |
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-------------------- My advice is to find those things that give pleasure and do them often without too much attachment and relax and wait for the show to end. -Icelander- I like free markets and all. Truly I do, at least in general, but there needs to be some kind of oversight in recognition of sustainability. Life works the same way, on a bunch of sustainable systems. Why not honor what made us what we are and take some lessons? Nature FTW! ~dill705~
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beandip
mycelium
Registered: 04/20/08
Posts: 425
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Re: [IE] Widow challenges coroner's finding over cannabis [Re: dill705]
#12066595 - 02/20/10 04:55 PM (14 years, 1 month ago) |
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Damn if that coroner came to that conclusion he must be some medical fucking genius because he would have discovered the first cannabis induced death in medical history?
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LSDreamer
Materialist
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Re: [IE] Widow challenges coroner's finding over cannabis [Re: oxalic32]
#12067427 - 02/20/10 07:26 PM (14 years, 1 month ago) |
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Quote:
oxalic32 said: I'm so sure weed could kill someone. Lies get more and more creative.
Might want to talk to Wiccan_Seeker about that assumption that weed couldn't give someone a heart attack.
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elaspeinreason
psychonaut
Registered: 07/31/05
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Loc: fairfax virginia
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Re: [IE] Widow challenges coroner's finding over cannabis [Re: SethAsylum]
#12067844 - 02/20/10 08:50 PM (14 years, 1 month ago) |
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that woman sethasylum is a dumbass.
-------------------- Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one Diploid said: What's with proclaiming freedom by abridging freedom? That makes no sense.
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golden1
Registered: 06/18/08
Posts: 1,707
Loc: north korea
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Re: [IE] Widow challenges coroner's finding over cannabis [Re: elaspeinreason]
#12068223 - 02/20/10 09:50 PM (14 years, 1 month ago) |
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hmm while weed raises heart rate, it also lowers blood pressure. I guess it could still be considered a risk factor though, I mean it does clearly effect the cardiovascular system..
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bbl337
genetic material is Ar based
Registered: 02/12/09
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Re: [IE] Widow challenges coroner's finding over cannabis [Re: LSDreamer]
#12068524 - 02/20/10 10:51 PM (14 years, 1 month ago) |
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Quote:
golden1 said: hmm while weed raises heart rate, it also lowers blood pressure. I guess it could still be considered a risk factor though, I mean it does clearly effect the cardiovascular system..
It actually raises blood pressure in most people. Cannabis reacts far from consistently in populations.
Quote:
LSDreamer said:
Quote:
oxalic32 said: I'm so sure weed could kill someone. Lies get more and more creative.
Might want to talk to Wiccan_Seeker about that assumption that weed couldn't give someone a heart attack.
exactly. It might not happen often, at all, but it sure as fuck can.
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veggie
Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 17,504
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Re: [IE] Widow challenges coroner's finding over cannabis [Re: bbl337]
#12068703 - 02/20/10 11:20 PM (14 years, 1 month ago) |
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From drugwarfacts.org:
Quote:
Drugs used in medicine are routinely given what is called an LD-50. The LD-50 rating indicates at what dosage fifty percent of test animals receiving a drug will die as a result of drug induced toxicity. A number of researchers have attempted to determine marijuana's LD-50 rating in test animals, without success. Simply stated, researchers have been unable to give animals enough marijuana to induce death.
At present it is estimated that marijuana's LD-50 is around 1:20,000 or 1:40,000. In layman terms this means that in order to induce death a marijuana smoker would have to consume 20,000 to 40,000 times as much marijuana as is contained in one marijuana cigarette. NIDA-supplied marijuana cigarettes weigh approximately .9 grams. A smoker would theoretically have to consume nearly 1,500 pounds of marijuana within about fifteen minutes to induce a lethal response.
I have in my files a reference to José Alberto De Los Parlotes Arroyo, a Mexican truck driver. Ill see if I can dig up the article. In September, 1978 after transporting a truckload of marijuana across the border, he stopped to check the cargo. The load shifted and crushed him causing a fractured skull and internal injuries. He was in a coma for three days before he passed away. As far as I know, that is the only confirmed death from marijuana.
But in 5,000 years, there may have been one or two more.
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beandip
mycelium
Registered: 04/20/08
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Re: [IE] Widow challenges coroner's finding over cannabis [Re: veggie]
#12069873 - 02/21/10 08:36 AM (14 years, 1 month ago) |
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lol Veggie
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Rabid Jelly Bean
Stranger
Registered: 01/25/10
Posts: 411
Loc: TX
Last seen: 10 years, 10 months
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Re: [IE] Widow challenges coroner's finding over cannabis [Re: golden1]
#12070071 - 02/21/10 09:45 AM (14 years, 1 month ago) |
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Quote:
golden1 said: hmm while weed raises heart rate, it also lowers blood pressure. I guess it could still be considered a risk factor though, I mean it does clearly effect the cardiovascular system..
So the pot probably did indirectly kill him. Probably dislodged the blood clot and caused a heart attack. You can't blame pot though. Then again, old people had plenty of blame to throw at Viagra when it gave them heart attacks hence the new disclaimer "make sure you are healthy enough for sexual activity".
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