The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department entered into the  Halloween spirit yesterday by trying to scare parents with the extremely remote possibility that some tricksters would give marijuana infused treats to children. They have issued a warning that parents need to look closely at treats their children collect tomorrow.  According to the Associated Press,

Narcotics detectives said Friday that edible marijuana products contain several threats, including concentrated amounts of THC, the psychoactive ingredient in pot, chemical solvents used to extract THC from the marijuana plant, and unsanitary conditions in which the products are prepared.

That a child might find a marijuana edible that parents bring into their own home and don’t put away safely is a possibility (roughly equivalent to a child picking up a parent’s beer under the impression that it is a Henry Weinhart’s soda) but the idea that someone would pass out $5 to $10 brownies and lollipops to a collection of children is ridiculous! Remember, this is  the same Sheriff’s department that declared  no matter how California votes on Prop. 19 “We will continue as we are today regardless of whether it passes or doesn’t pass.“  Somehow this feels like a scare tactic designed to reach the middle class moms that both sides agree could be the swing votes needed to pass the initiative to legalize marijuana.