LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) – Lubbock County Judge Curtis Parrish is overseeing double the number of mental health cases compared to 2023, a dramatic increase he attributes largely to THC products.<\/p>\n
County records show 180 mental health applications were filed in 2023, and skyrocketed to 353 in 2025.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is becoming almost a daily thing. We\u2019re having two and three of these a day,\u201d Parrish said.<\/p>\n
Judge Parrish says while not all cases stem from THC, he believes it is playing a big part in the spike.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not that they\u2019re getting high and then getting sober over the weekend and going to work on Monday,\u201d Parrish said. \u201cThis is actually flipping people, it\u2019s flipping [a switch] in their brains and they\u2019re turning manic.\u201d<\/p>\n
When an emergency application is filed in a mental health case, Judge Parrish must decide whether the person is a threat to themselves or others. If the answer is yes, they are sent to a hospital or psychiatric facility like Sunrise Canyon or Oceans Behavioral Hospital.<\/p>\n
The judge says that\u2019s not an easy decision to make, which underscores the gravity of what THC is doing to people in our area.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat we\u2019re doing is taking away their constitutional rights, we\u2019re taking away their liberty and forcing them into mental health care,\u201d Parrish said. \u201cIdeally it\u2019s for their safety and the safety of our community, but we don\u2019t take that lightly.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lubbock State Senator Charles Perry says he\u2019s also heard of THC-induced psychosis ruining lives.<\/p>\n
Perry led the charge to ban consumable THC products during the last legislative session, saying allowing hemp products to legally sell led to an involuntary recreational market across the state.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt has been exactly what we feared it would be. It\u2019s not good for you, it\u2019s addicting and a gateway drug,\u201d Perry said.<\/p>\n
Parrish says the increase in THC-induced mental health issues and subsequent increase in facility admissions is stretching Lubbock County\u2019s resources thin.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt has just been almost overwhelming and overtaxing us here at the court, overtaxing our mental hospitals,\u201d Parrish said. \u201cWe\u2019re in the process of building more bed space but we can\u2019t build it fast enough and we can\u2019t build enough to see the volume of cases in Lubbock County.”<\/p>\n
That strain on resources is another reason Senator Perry pushed for a ban, rather than restrictions.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will be picking up the tab in the fall out on addiction counseling and the mental illness that comes with it: paranoia, schizophrenia, psychosis, all of the factors if we don\u2019t stop it now,\u201d Perry said.<\/p>\n
Governor Abbott vetoed an outright ban on THC consumables last year, instead calling upon TABC and DSHS to create regulations for the industry.<\/p>\n
Even though it was already shot down before, Perry said he plans to file another bill banning the products next session.<\/p>\n
He also plans to focus on other legalized substances, like Kratom and mushrooms.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s just one thing after another, people that are dealing in addiction and benefitting billions of dollars off of finding a new path,\u201d Perry said.<\/p>\n