Distraught mother shares heartbreaking tragedy that unfolded after son, 17, took just 'a few puffs' of a weed vape

Nico Nuño-Kelley was a consecutive A student pinch a winning smile.

'A small burst of sunshine,' his mother, Kathleen Kelley, called him.

Then, connected a rainy time successful Manhattan past May, he took a puff of a weed vape - and his life evaporated.

The 17-year-old climbed to nan tile of his family's Gramercy Park apartment, earlier plunging six stories to his death.

Nico's autumn remains shrouded successful mystery. But his grieving mother is convinced a high-potency vape - obtained by a friend from 1 of New York's countless forbidden weed shops - sparked a psychotic episode.

Kathleen, 58, a commodities adviser, is now wished that her son's tragic decease yet jolts lackadaisical lawmakers into action and puts an extremity to their laid backmost attack to drugs.

'I'm hoping that nary different genitor ever has to spell done this,' she told DailyMail.com. 'The city, nan state, nan state is doing thing to extremity it. We want to do thing to extremity it.'

Anatomy of a fall 

In nan hours earlier his death, Nico had been astatine location pinch 2 friends. A woman he had known since puerility and her boyfriend.

Nico had taken a 'big hit' from a weed vape that nan fellow had fixed him, according to a study by a backstage investigator, which is based connected interviews pinch Nico's friends and matter messages they sent each different connected that fateful day.

Nico had smoked marijuana connected juncture before, but was not a habitual user, friends said.

Perhaps his tolerance was low. But nary 1 could person expected nan devastating move he was astir to take.

At first, he sat backmost connected a couch, laughing, his friends said. Then, he 'freaked out'.  

Nico started to outcry out. 'No, I don't for illustration this; I don't for illustration this!' he wailed.

He began clawing astatine nan walls and fell to nan level successful nan fetal position, nan study said.

'Oh f***, ohio f***!,' he yelled - astatine 1 constituent saying that he felt 'autistic'.

He ran toward his room, while his 2 friends stayed successful nan kitchen.

A infinitesimal aliases 2 later, 1 of nan friends went to his room to look for him, but recovered it empty. The adjacent point they heard was nan tile alarm.

Around 10 minutes later, a neighbour from nan adjacent building rushed into nan lobby pinch news of a horrifying discovery.

Nico had landed look first connected a 50-gallon drum that was being utilized to support a shrub, earlier flipping backwards and landing connected nan tile adjacent door, information footage later showed.

Kathleen was driving to a friend's successful Connecticut erstwhile she received nan heartbreaking call.

At first, she did not judge nan constabulary detective.

'He said location had been an mishap and Nico had died. It didn't make immoderate consciousness to me,' she recalls.

She asked to speak to his supervisor and was fixed a number.

As she was dialing from a roadside parking lot, her friend called. She told Kathleen that her older son, Alejandro Nuño-Kelley, 26, who was connected vacation successful Peru, had been trying to scope her.

He had besides been contacted by detectives.

Kathleen's friend asked her wherever she was. 'I'm truthful sorry,' she added.

That was erstwhile Kathleen knew her boy was dead.

She sewage retired of nan car, walked done nan pouring rainfall into nan woods and laic successful nan mud.

Her friend picked her up and drove her to nan morgue successful Manhattan.

'It was nan vape' 

There is nary formed robust grounds that proves Nico died arsenic a consequence of smoking nan weed pen.

The fellow has refused to cooperate pinch nan police. The vape has ne'er been recovered.

It is not clear whether he jumped aliases slipped, but his friends judge he apt slid disconnected nan bedewed roof, according to nan backstage investigator's report.

Nico had not shown immoderate signs of depression, his friends and family said. 

The aesculapian examiner's agency ruled nan decease an accident, caused by aggregate blunt effect injuries.

A toxicology study did, however, uncover precocious levels of THC - nan psychoactive constituent successful marijuana - successful Nico's system.

No different supplier traces were found.

An NYPD detective astatine nan segment told nan backstage interrogator that he believed 'the guidance Nico had to nan weed pen contributed to nan origin of death', according to his report.

Kathleen is convinced. 'It [the vape] was 100 per cent responsible for his death,' she said.

High doses of THC tin origin terrible panic aliases stress, but triggering nan benignant of reckless impulses that led to Nico's decease would beryllium highly unusual, according to Dr. Benjamin Caplan, main aesculapian serviceman astatine nan CED Clinic successful Needham, Mass., which helps group seeking cannabis treatment.

'Cannabis-associated psychotic episodes' are rare. But not unheard of.

A 19-year-old man successful Colorado died aft eating a cooky pinch precocious levels of THC and jumping from a fourth-floor balcony, according to a 2015 study by nan Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In 2021, a 19-year-old Penn State student plunged 11 stories down a trash chute aft consuming intoxicant and marijuana.

Young group pinch intelligence wellness conditions are astatine greater risk, but Nico had nary history of intelligence illness, his mother said.

Dr. Caplan, who has reviewed Nico's aesculapian reports, told DailyMail.com that nan level of THC successful his strategy was 'significant and could so induce psychoactive effects'.

But he added: 'The behaviour starring to a high-risk business for illustration climbing a building is analyzable and mightiness not solely beryllium explained by cannabis use...Without definitive evidence, these stay hypotheses that would request further investigation.'

Hoping for change

It is difficult to cognize precisely really overmuch THC was successful Nico's strategy because it disappears from nan bloodstream much quickly than different substances.

Kathleen, however, said detectives had told her that nan weed vape must person been highly precocious strength.

Anything supra 20 per cent THC is considered potent, but immoderate vape oils tin deed up to 90 per cent.

In interviews pinch nan backstage investigator, Nico's friends said he had smoked a 'laced' cartridge and that nan vape shaper was known to beryllium 'sketchy'. 

The easy readiness of specified products is precisely what legalization was expected to eradicate.

Instead, nan other has happened.

There are 140 recreational dispensaries operating statewide, yet anyplace from 2,000 to 8,000 forbidden shops operating successful New York City alone.

Recent crackdowns person temporarily shuttered conscionable complete 400 - a driblet successful nan bucket.

These shops are capable to undercut nan ineligible stores because they are not weighed down by costly regulations and taxation.

They connection nan aforesaid precocious - aliases an moreover greater 1 - astatine a fraction of nan price.

They besides waste to teenagers.

Dr. Caplan said forbidden fume shops often mismarket their products, incorrectly labelling their THC content.

He said it was imaginable that whoever bought nan vape 'didn't cognize what they were buying'. 

The state's main regulator, nan Office of Cannabis Management, was fixed almost nary enforcement powerfulness erstwhile legalization first came into effect, and its powers stay excessively weak, its executive director, Chris Alexander, told a State Senate subcommittee earlier resigning successful June.

It took until May of this twelvemonth for nan metropolis to motorboat a multi-agency taskforce aimed astatine shutting down unlicensed stores.

Kathleen has accused officials of 'looking nan different way' erstwhile it comes to forbidden weed.

She is moving pinch different parents who opportunity their children person besides suffered cannabis-associated psychotic episodes pinch nan volition of taking nan rumor to nan mayor, politician and, ultimately, Congress.

Her aim: to combine grounds that forbidden fume shops are trading marijuana to minors and unopen them down. 

She has started by hiring a lawyer to effort to build a lawsuit against whoever sold nan vape that Nico used, though this is already proving tricky without practice from nan boyfriend.

The Manhattan District Attorney's agency recovered nary grounds of criminality successful Nico's case.

Kathleen, who is separated from Nico's father, Hilario Nuño, accepts that nary charges are ever apt to beryllium brought. Instead, she hopes that 'something good' tin travel from his death.

As good arsenic enforcement, she wants to raise consciousness complete nan dangers of forbidden weed. 

She says legalization has encouraged a pro-cannabis culture, alternatively than 1 that exercises caution.

'We want parents to person these conversations pinch their children - that marijuana tin beryllium dangerous,' she said.

'They stole his future'

Tara Nuño-Kelley, 24, remembers her younger relative arsenic nan 'glue' betwixt nan 3 siblings.

A characteristic beyond his years.

Kathleen recalled his 'great smile', which he ever wore 'no matter what'.

'We'd beryllium going immoderate spot and he'd return my manus and locomotion down nan thoroughfare holding my hand,' she added.

'Not galore 17-year-old boys would do that successful beforehand of nan full world.'

Nico died connected Saturday, May 20, 2023. He had been owed to be his schoolhouse awards ceremonial connected Tuesday. His prom was connected Wednesday, graduation Thursday, and driving trial Friday.

He had a spot astatine Notre Dame University successful Indiana.

'Nico was a 17-year-old boy who had turned into a young man,' Kathleen said, choking backmost tears arsenic she said from nan aforesaid flat wherever her boy had spent his last moments.

'A stupid puff of a vape pen and past his life is over. How tin that happen?

'He had each nan plans successful nan world and they stole his early from him. They stole his early from us.'