Santiago Cruz, a junior at Bert Corona Charter High School in Pacoima, hopes to graduate alongside the classmates he grew up with, but worries that some of them may be derailed by nitrous oxide, the odorless gas that is being inhaled by young people and others as an illicit way to get high.
He was among several students, supported by the San Fernando Valley Partnership, who appeared before the Los Angeles City Council last week in support of a city ban on the sale and distribution of nitrous oxide by cannabis and tobacco retailers.
“When products that can be misused are easy to find in our neighborhoods, a classroom lesson can only do so much,” he said. “Reducing access is a responsibility we all need to share as a community.”
The City Council unanimously approved a measure to prohibit the sale and distribution of nitrous oxide by cannabis and tobacco retailers. The state Legislature passed similar legislation this year, but a key difference is that violation of the state law is an infraction punishable by a fine, while a violation of the city ordinance is a criminal misdemeanor charge, punishable by a fine of up to $1,000, six months in jail, or both.
Mayor Karen Bass intends to sign the ordinance, which was spearheaded by Councilmembers Imelda Padilla and Eunisses Hernandez. Once signed, it will take about a month to go into effect.
“This is a public health and public safety issue. Nitrous oxide is dangerous, especially in the hands of kids, and far too accessible,” Bass said in a statement.
The city has wrestled with the challenge of restricting the sale and distribution of nitrous oxide for years, amid a rise in deaths linked to abuse of the gas. Usage can also lead to blood clots, asphyxiation, impaired bowel and bladder function and paralysis.
Los Angeles officials began discussing a ban after the city of Rialto became the first to restrict certain sales of nitrous oxide in 2017. Regulation has been a challenge because it isn’t a controlled substance.
Nitrous oxide, commonly known as laughing gas or whippets, can be sold for culinary and automotive uses. For instance, it can be used as a food propellant for whipped cream dispensers or to boost auto engines, and is sold in canisters and tanks.
In August, state lawmakers passed SB 758, which prohibits retailers selling tobacco or cigarette products from selling nitrous oxide and allows for cities and counties to impose further restrictions. SB 936 restricts the sale of food flavored nitrous oxide, and punishes businesses that violate the law. The bills were signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in September.
Padilla, who spearheaded the ordinance, said she spent the last two years working with students, community members and the city attorney’s office to move the ordinance forward. Authorities have linked nitrous oxide to fatal car-related deaths, including one where an 11-year-old girl was killed.
In December 2023, a 72-year-old man in South L.A. was killed after a violent hit-and-run, where the suspected driver and three others were seen running from the vehicle with a nitrous oxide tank and later, a purple balloon was found in the vehicle, according to the motion.
“To the smoke shops out there advertising and selling NOS, this is a day where we’re asking you to stop, remove these products from your shelves,” Padilla said at last week’s council meeting.
Both the Los Angeles Police Department and city attorney’s office declined to answer questions about how the new ordinance would be enforced.
“It would be premature to comment on enforcement responsibilities, unit assignments, or tracking procedures at this time,” LAPD Lt. Elpidio Orozco said in an email.
At retailers and online, it can be found marketed in flavors. One canister on a sidewalk in Echo Park was labeled “cherry apple.” The canisters are bright and colorful. Some popular brands are known as Galaxy Gas, Cosmic Gas, Baking Bad and Miami Magic.
Dr. Evan Schwarz, a clinical professor of emergency medicine at UCLA, said he has seen an increasing number of young people suffering from complications related to chronic use of nitrous oxide. He said he has treated a minor as young as 15, and recently had a case of a 22-year-old who lost their ability to walk after abusing nitrous oxide.
Because of the way the substance interacts with the body’s nerves, Schwarz said those who chronically use it face nerve injury and numbness.
“This is a well known complication of using nitrous oxide,” Schwarz said.
Currently, there is no medication that can be given to help addiction, Schwarz said, so treatment largely means therapy and counseling. Although nitrous oxide doesn’t have the same addictive quality like opioids, it still offers the euphoric sensation that can lead to addiction, especially among young people.
“Their brain hasn’t developed to the point where they always make great decisions,” he said. “Someone that’s younger may not truly understand the consequences. You kind of think you’re indestructible at that age.”
After the council vote last week, Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson applauded the work to get the ordinance approved, but said that it was a shame “that children have to come to the government and say ‘keep poison away from my school.’”
“For the students that are here,” he said, “remember you can create a world where the next generation of students won’t have to show up to City Council to ask for poison to be taken away from in and around their schools.”
