How Teen Facing Life Over Pot Brownies Got Caught

The Texas teenager who is looking at a possible life sentence for whipping up a batch of pot- and hash-laced brownies got busted because his pregnant neighbor smelled smoke, reports KHOU-TV. The woman explains that she is five months' along, and she called police because the smell from the neighboring apartment was making her both worried and sick. That's when an officer arrived at Jason Lavoro's apartment, confiscated the drugs, brownies, and an alleged client list, and then charged with him with felony drug possession.

"It's really frightening, it really is," says the 19-year-old Lavoro, who could get up to 99 years on the charge. "It's putting me in a really scary situation and, honestly, I can't stop crying about it." In a point sure to come up in court, the teen says he did not give the officer consent to enter his apartment, contrary to what police say. The sentence is potentially so severe because police are counting the total weight of the baked goods, 1.5 pounds, and because Lavoro used hash oil, which has a higher THC level than pot and is prosecuted more harshly, explains Forbes. It adds a potential bright spot for the teen: Despite the headline-inducing felony charge, he could end up with probation instead of jail time. (More Jacob Lavoro stories.)