A former champion college athlete and aspiring Olympian known for his prowess in track and field events has advanced his lawsuit that blames cannabis retailers for his cannabis-induced psychosis that led to a suicide attempt.
A New Jersey state judge has permitted Andrew Liskowitz to amend his complaint after finding that his allegations that the retailers sold unsafe hemp products and failed to provide adequate warnings about their dangers in violation of the New Jersey Products Liability Act (PLA) can proceed.
At the same time, Monmouth County Superior Court Judge Chad N. Cagan agreed to the retailers’ motion to dismiss claims that they also violated the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act.
Regarding the product liability allegations, the retailers maintain that they are entitled to immunity as sellers under the state law and that Liskowitz cannot identify a product design or warning defect as a proximate cause his condition.
Plaintiff Liskowitz argues that the sellers are not entitled to immunity and that the hemp products they sold to him were inherently defective. He also claims he can prove they were the proximate cause of his psychosis.
The defendants include 732 Vape, The Green Room, Dynasty Smokes, Lang’s Liquor, Kali Bloom, Galaxy Treats, Apollo Sciences, Xite Edibles, and Delta Technologies.
Liskowitz Experience
Liskowitz holds a number of college records for the shot put. He is a three-time Big 10 champion, six-time All-American and a sixth place finisher in the 2021 Olympic trials. At one point he was ranked among the top 25 in the world.
Starting in July of 2022, and for a few months, Liskowitz bought various hemp products such as consumable edibles as well as disposable vapes from the retailers in his home state of New Jersey. He then followed his college track and field coach to Louisiana to continue his professional career on September 20, 2022. He brought the New Jersey products to Louisiana and purchased and consumed similar products in Louisiana for a few weeks.
According to his complaint, on October 30, 2022, his roommates took him to a hospital in Baton Rouge because they said he was acting in alarming manner. He was diagnosed with “substance-induced psychosis: generalized anxiety; cannabis use.” This was his first notice that his cannabis hemp use was the source of his problem. The plan upon discharge was to return home to New Jersey and attend a rehabilitation facility. Liskowitz and his parents took a car service from the airport. At this time he believed that he had made a plan to turn himself in to the FBI to be taken away to jail. Not wanting to go to prison himself or have his family suffer because of him, while going over the Driscoll Bridge he jumped out of the window of the car, then jumped off the 135-foot bridge, landing headfirst in the Raritan River, trying to end his life. He survived, but he suffered knee and shoulder injuries and extensive road rash. A hospital treated him for “recent acute psychosis following synthetic cannabinoid use” and he was then admitted to a psychiatric facility due to continued psychosis. He is now out of the psychosis but still needs to recover physically and mentally.
Hemp Products
After the federal 2018 Farm Bill legalized the cultivation of hemp and hemp derivatives, the New Jersey Department of Agriculture established a hemp licensing program to promote the cultivation and processing of hemp. Liskowitz argues that the intent of the 2018 Farm Bill was never to legalize intoxicating cannabis products. However, a number of businesses “have been exploiting gaps in legal language and prioritizing personal profit over public health and safety” with the creation and sale of new types of potent cannabinoids. “As a result, intoxicating and possibly impure hemp derived cannabinoids have proliferated in communities across the country and are sold in gas stations, convenience stores, smoke shops and online, often in ways that are made both accessible and attractive. By producing and selling these products the defendants caused plaintiff to suffer cannabis-induced psychosis (CIP),” he alleges in his complaint.
According to sources cited in the complaint, CIP is an acute psychological event that can require years of treatment. It appears to be caused by THC (the tetrahydrocannabinol compound in cannabis) exposures or impurities, which can damage the portions of the brain that allow a person to distinguish reality from delusion. Even people who recover from CIP may incur lasting brain damage and have mental health issues for the rest of their life.
Liskowitz alleges that the hemp products he bought are not safe and are defective. The only warnings on the product labels were about pregnancy or operating heavy machinery; no labels contained any information about causing hallucinations or psychosis, according to his lawsuit.
Retailers’ Defense
The retailers argue that they did not design, manufacture, assemble, inspect, package, label or market the products. The only thing they did is sell them, for which they insist the New Jersey PLA confers an immunity.
They also argue that the products they sold are entirely legal and in compliance with all regulations, noting that the state deemed these products safe and determined the specific warnings and regulations required to appear upon them.
“To the extent Plaintiff alleges the products were incorrectly deemed safe or contained improper warnings, these are claims properly against the New Jersey agencies making such determinations, not against the mom-and-pop businesses selling items compliant products,” the defendants argue.
The defendants contend that Liskowitz “obviously has gripes and an axe to grind” with the marijuana/cannabis/hemp industry. However, they add, the claims he raises concern issues the federal and state governments must address, and with which they, as convenience stores, have no connection.
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