TYNDALL, S.D. (AP) — A South Dakota man has been ordered to spend 60 days in jail for providing the marijuana in the brownies his mother unknowingly served to seniors at a card game.
Michael Koranda, 46, had earlier pleaded guilty to a felony drug charge. A judge in Bon Homme County Tuesday also sentenced the Tabor man to two years of probation and ordered him to pay more than $3,400 in court costs and restitution. He must also write an apology letter to the seniors who ate the marijuana brownies.
Koranda resigned his position with the Bon Homme school district as its vocal music teacher as a result of his court case.
At his sentencing, Koranda expressed regret for his actions and its impact on others, including those who sought medical attention.
“I’m really sorry. This impacted so many in the community, and I’m sorry for that,” he said. “So many people got sick, and that wasn’t my intention for that to happen.”
Judge Cheryle Gering told Kornada she realizes he didn’t intend for the brownies to be served at the community center card game, but his actions — including transporting THC-laced butter from Colorado — harmed the unsuspecting victims.
A report from Bon Homme County Sheriff’s Office says dispatchers received several calls about possible poisonings on Jan. 4. All the calls involved seniors who had earlier been at a community center card game in Tabor.
An investigation into the incident led authorities to believe the patients were all under the influence of THC, the compound in cannabis that produces the high sensation and that the THC came from a batch of brownies brought by a woman to the community center.