This new class of marijuana will stick you with a felony

I’d bet $100 that if I asked 100 dope smokers what’s the difference between oldschool Mexican weed or even Hydroponic Marijuana (hydro) that you can grow at home with grow lights vs. the liquid THC affixed to a vape, or even a THC edible, for that matter, the only answer I’d get is: “The new stuff is way stronger, man, and I get a bigger buzz from it. At least I think. What was the question again?”

As far as stoners are concerned, there is more to this story, and they should pay serious attention to it.

Think misdemeanor vs. a felony conviction on your rap sheet.

The new stuff, the liquid vape THC and/or the edibles, all classified as “concentrates,” is indeed a state jail felony for starters, no matter how small the amount you may have on you when busted.

Who would have known it, because the state of Texas sure isn’t publicizing this serious bit of news that has the potential to ruin a young life, any life. As opposed to a misdemeanor, being a convicted felon can carry serious consequences for life. Good luck with the next job app.

Generally speaking, in Texas, possession of less than four ounces of pot is a misdemeanor. “Pot” meaning the stuff with the colorful buds and the strong scent.

Think Cheech and Chong, Zig Zag rolling papers, and roaches. Old school.

The new stuff, though, the liquid THC that one can vape, or the edibles that one can chew and swallow, all classified as “marijuana concentrates,” well, then you are talking about a completely different animal, none of it good, amigo.

Whether the TCH product is known as wax, honey oil, budder, or dabs, the Texas drug laws place all of these concentrates in the same serious drug category as PCP, Ecstasy. Meaning, possession of less than one gram of it (an ounce has 28.34 grams), if convicted, will hang a state jail felony around your neck, just the same as if you were in possession of meth, coke, or heroin.

For pot? No, for a marijuana concentrate, which is flowing through most colleges and high schools these days, some middle schools, and sadly, even a very few elementary schools, like ham on rye.

What’s a state jail felony? It’s a felony with no parole that can land your (delete) in a state jail for up to 24 months, hit you with a fine of up to $10,000, and suspend your driver’s license.

“That’s not fair.” Hey, I don’t write the laws. The big problem is, hardly anyone knows about this from what I can gather. The college kid driving from Hidalgo County up to UT-Austin or A&M who is carrying four vape cartridges and doesn’t think the drug-sniffing dog south of Falfurrias at the border checkpoint can pick up the scent, well, that may or may not be true; but if the college kid gets busted, say, hello, state jail felony if convicted.

Goodbye, law school. Goodbye, that teaching gig. Goodbye, a lot of career opportunities. That’s what a felony conviction offers.

By the way, for some unknown reason, pot brownies also fall under this category.

From there, for pot drug offenders, it only gets worse. If you’re busted with an edible, some cute little THC gummy bear that reads hug me, for example, that weighs over 1 gram, but less than four grams, if convicted, you’re now looking at a third-degree felony, which carries a possible sentence of two-to-10 years in state prison.

You just thought the state jail felony was bad, now you’re really moving up or down in the world, as the case may be, with a third-degree felony on your rap sheet.

Not all of Texas’s 254 counties are the same, however, so a lot of it depends on where one gets busted. The rural counties tend to stick it to you, while other county prosecutors may agree to reduce the charge to a misdemeanor or offer you some sort of pre-trial diversion.

Section 481.002(26) of the Texas Penal Code categorizes THC extract (oils that one vapes and edibles that one eats) as a penalty group 2 drug, which already sounds ominous. Remember that possible criminal charge mentioned previously in this column for possession of between 1 and 4 grams of these concentrates, a third-degree felony, well, if you’re carrying a bag of edibles, or eight vape cartridges, between 4 to 400 grams, you’re now in second-degree felony territory, with a possible prison sentence of 20 years and a penalty of $10,000.

“Hey, dad, I got a problem up here at the checkpoint.”

If you’re caught with more than 400 grams of any THC concentrate, you’re now in the realm of first-degree felony territory, for which you can be sentenced from five to 99 years and a penalty of $50,000.

Of course, you can instead load 24 cases of beer in the back of your truck and have no worries if you really want to catch a buzz. Drive through the Falfurrias checkpoint, no problemo.

Point is, based on the reading I’ve done, the people I’ve spoken with, hardly anyone in Texas outside law enforcement knows the difference when it comes to getting busted with the plant-type pot vs. these THC concentrates, which can either be vaped or chewed and swallowed.

Personally, I think the state should run a public campaign to alert people, especially the young people just starting out, that indeed there is a big difference between the two classes of marijuana. You can live life much simpler with a misdemeanor conviction than you can with a felony conviction.