HERNANDO COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) — A teacher and football coach was arrested in Florida last week after police say he gave a student kratom.
Kratom is a drug that, in low doses, produces stimulant-like effects like high energy and increased alertness. In high doses, it can act as a sedative.
Local authorities said on May 9, a school resource deputy responded to Hernando High School, where a 17-year-old student was having a medical emergency.
The student was unresponsive, had a rapid pulse, shallow breathing and was hot to the touch, the deputy said. He performed a sternum rub on the student, who then sat up and said he was hot.
The Hernando County Sheriff’s Office said the student’s heart rate and blood pressure were elevated when they took his vitals at the school.
The student later said a teacher at the school, identified as 47-year-old Terry Kennedy, gave him two packets of a kratom-based supplement that he took with a soda.
He said he had seen Kennedy, who also coaches football, use the supplement as an energy booster and asked if he could have some.
The student began experiencing symptoms shortly after and was transported to a local hospital for treatment and observation.
Kratom, while not covered under the Controlled Substances Act, is illegal for juveniles to possess or consume in Florida. Kennedy said to police during questioning that he knew the supplement had kratom in it.
A warrant for Kennedy’s arrest was issued on a misdemeanor charge of furnishing a kratom product to a juvenile. He turned himself in to the authorities on Saturday, and his bond was set at $500.