It’s stories like these that makes the team here at MARY fight harder with what we’re doing as a lifestyle platform focused on cannabis culture where the positive and progressive in our culture needs to be brought to the forefront in order to shift and change the mindsets that have negative remarks to mention about those who are interested and use cannabis.

16 year old Ohio teenager, Hayden Long took his own life after school officials and police “verbally attacked” him for smelling like marijuana when he and friends arrived at their homecoming dance. Long, a sophomore quarterback, was found dead Monday at his home in Geneva, and his friend wrote a letter blaming the high school quarterback’s suicide on school administrators and police officers who repeatedly said his life was ruined over the infraction.

He was among six teens, who he described as athletes and honor students, accused of smoking marijuana before the dance and questioned by two Geneva High School administrators and an off-duty police officer.

“I was exposed to some things that I would never want to see again when I was in the room where we were taken,” Siegel said in the letter. “We were questioned without our parents, and they forcibly took my keys and searched my car. When I stood up for myself and asked if they had the right to do this, I was told, ‘It’s cute you think you know your rights.’”

Sheriff William Johnson said Ohio law does not require parents to be present when questioning juveniles, and he pointed out that the school principal and an athletic coach were present.

Siegel said the students faced a two-week suspension from school, possible criminal charges, suspension from all sports and a loss of drivers’ licenses.

“He was directly told that he had ruined his life by our school administrators, Sigel said. “The students were told that they would fail their classes, had ruined their academic careers and had made the biggest mistake of their lives. A minor event was turned into a life-changing catastrophe by these negligent and vicious men.”

Sigel called for the administrators to be fired, saying “these are repeat offenders, and have been antagonizing and trying to bring our students down for years.”

Though the family reportedly issued their own statement through Geneva High saying they did not blame school officials for their son’s suicide.