Dad pleads no contest after UA kids sickened by THC gummies

The Upper Arlington dad whose 10year-old daughter brought edible marijuana gummies to an elementary school has pleaded no contest to three charges.

Scott Macre, 43, pleaded no contest Friday to one count each of endangering children, obstructing business and misdemeanor possession of a controlled substance, according to the Franklin County Municipal Court Clerk's Office. All the charges are misdemeanors.

Four other counts of endangering children were dropped.

Macre, of Pinebrook Road, is scheduled to be sentenced in court on June 14.

Macre's daughter, who is a fourthgrade student at Windermere Elementary School, saw the 50mg THC gummies in a glass jar in a kitchen cabinet and took five of them to school on April 22,according to court documents filed by Upper Arlington police. THC stands for tetrahydrocannabinol, the compound that gives marijuana its high.

The girl apparently thought the gummies were leftover candy from Easter, police said, so she put them in her lunchbox and shared them with some friends during lunch.

The daughter and four other fourthgrade students, all of whom were 11 or younger, ate the gummies at lunch time, which were described in court records as being rectangular and red, blue and purple in color, police said.

The five students became nauseous, showed signs of impairment, experienced hallucinations and had elevated heart rates. All five students were taken to Nationwide Children's Hospital for treatment.

When Upper Arlington police went to Macre's home, he asked detectives to wait outside, according to court records, and put the remaining gummies down the kitchen's garbage disposal.

Macre reportedly told police he used the THC gummies for a medical condition and typically kept them in his room, according to court records.

The night before his daughter brought the edibles to school, Macre told police he fell asleep after using the gummies in a downstairs living room. When he woke up, he said he put them in a kitchen cabinet where his daughter had access to them, court records state. mhenry@dispatch.com @megankhenry