Dana and John Pope had never heard of the drug before their son died of a drug overdose.
The leaves of a tropical tree native to Southeast Asia are used to make kratom, a drug used for pain, anxiety and drug dependence. It is usually sold at gas stations and smoke shops in Georgia.
An autopsy by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation showed that Pope had no illegal drugs or alcohol in his system. According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, there's a compound in the drug that makes it hard to sleep.
A wrongful death lawsuit has been filed by Dana and John Pope against a number of people and companies.
Dana Pope said at the news conference that they don't know how long their son had been using the drug. They found a to-do list in his apartment that asked them to stop taking the drug.
There were bags of pills, cash and guns found in two search warrants at gas stations.
An expanded version of the original lawsuit was filed this week. According to the lawyers who filed the suit, they want to send a message that kratom is not safe for humans to consume.
Lawyer Matt Wetherington said that the industry claims that the substance can lead to better health and well-being. Even if that were true, the kratom that is sold in the U.S. is more similar to heroin or other opiate drugs.
Proponents of the herbal supplement say it can help manage pain and ease the effects of opiate withdrawal.
There were bottles of O.P.M.S. Liquid Kratom in his possession. Liquid kratom shots are particularly dangerous because they are intended to increase the risk of overdose and death.
According to the lawsuit, producers of kratom have begun producing, marketing and selling concentrated forms of the drug, which is illegal.
It acts as a sedative and a stimulus in low and high amounts. According to the U.S Drug Enforcement Administration, it can be addictive.
The FDA warns consumers not to use any products labeled as containing kratom. The import alert allowed the seizure of a drug that was not approved for use in the United States.
In 27 states, the U.S. health officials said that the drug was a factor in overdose deaths. Most of the people who died had taken drugs, but only one substance was found in seven of them.
The lawsuit states that the defendants were negligent in their duty to prevent foreseeable injuries. Ensuring that the product is consistent in its purity and potency is one of the responsibilities of that duty.
The defendants did not provide adequate warnings and instructions that an ordinary consumer would expect, and the inadequate warnings made the products more dangerous than an ordinary consumer would expect.
The lawsuit says that O.P.M.S. manufactured the substance that Pope used. The company did not reply to the request for comment immediately.
The American Kratom Association is accused of encouraging consumers to rely on false, misleading, and incomplete medical claims. Drew Ashby, a lawyer for the Popes, said that it has pushed legislation in numerous states that it says is meant to protect consumers but that actually facilitates the sale of unpredictable and dangerous drugs.
Georgia is one of the few states in the country that allows this to be sold legally with actual legislation.
The association's lawyer denied the claims.
The American Kratom Association is devoted to education and responsible use of the drug. He said in an email that they will fight the spurious claims against it.
A jury trial is sought in the lawsuit.
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