Marijuana And Child Custody: Can I Use CBD Oils And Hemp Products?
Shutterstock
Recently, Texas legalized hemp products and CBD oils. This means it is legal to use hemp products and CBD oils in Texas. Therefore, using a legal product should not affect your child custody unlike the consumption of marijuana, which is illegal. Using hemp products and CBD oils would be legal and therefore would not adversely impact child custody, right? The answer is it depends. The issues lie in the testing methods for marijuana.
The three testing methods for marijuana are urine, hair and nails drug screens. These three tests look at THC levels in the body with a cut off amount. This means if your THC levels in your body are above the cut off amount, then the test deem that you have THC in your body and therefore have been using marijuana. However, if your THC is below the cut off amount, then the test says it’s too low and you have not been using marijuana. Therefore, if your CBD oils and hemp products don’t contain THC, you should not test positive for marijuana in a drug test. However, if your CBD oils or hemp products do have THC in them, you will likely test positive for marijuana. If you place something with THC on your skin or ingest it in your body, it will get into your blood stream and you will likely produce THC in your urine, nails and hair. Keep in mind that the urine, nails and hair THC cut off amount is approximately nanograms per milliliter.
What does 15 nanograms per milliliter mean, can I have four puffs of marijuana but not five every week?
Everybody’s body process foods, oils and drugs differently. Therefore, there is not an exact science to how much marijuana you can use before you will be above the cut off. However, 15 nanograms per milliliter would be approximately the same as one dot of a pen on one piece of paper. Therefore, it is likely even if you have one puff of marijuana or use THC oil, you will like test positive for THC.
Therefore, if you use CBD oils or hemp products, make sure that they do not have THC in them as those can cause a positive test for marijuana.
If you are currently using marijuana and are in the middle of a child custody case, what can you do?
First and foremost, if you are in a child custody battle or know a child custody battle could be looming, please do not consume marijuana. If you are already using, we recommend that you stop immediately. The idea that “it is only marijuana” can seriously weaken your case and limit your time with your children.
Additionally, please make sure your attorney knows that you are using marijuana. Also, please make sure you are truthful with your attorney about the last time you used and how much you used as each of the three-test focus on different timelines for drug testing. If you don’t have an attorney, make sure you hire one as they can help minimize the damage marijuana can have on your case.
Lastly, Texas Courts look at marijuana in the terms of priorities. If you continue to use marijuana during a child custody battle when you are not supposed to, you are placing marijuana above your children. Texas Courts place children first and believe that the parents need to as well.
