Carnival Cruise Line slapped a Texas mom with a lifetime ban from their fleet for taking a pack of CBD sleep aid gummies onboard … and the reasoning is wacky.
Melinda Van Veldhuizen, a 42-year-old mom of two, claimed cruise employees and the police treated her like a crook after finding the gummies when searching her backpack at PortMiami over the summer.
She told Miami’s ABC News affiliate WPLG that she was immediately taken aside after a staffer found the gummies in her bag … and was interrogated by Carnival security and the police for 2.5 hours before getting blocked from getting on the ship.
The sale and use of hemp-derived CBD products is legal in 47 of 50 States. Florida is one of the states with restrictions … where any product that contains more than 0.3% THC requires a medical marijuana card.
This lady and her fam planned the trip back in August to celebrate her 21st wedding anniversary and her son’s senior year of high school … and her attorney, Daren Stabinski, told WaPo the family had splashed out roughly $5,586 on their planned vacation.
What’s more, after she was banned from going on the cruise, she received a letter from Carnival informing her that she was banned from all Carnival ships for life — with Captain Rocco Lubrano writing she would “not be permitted to sail onboard any Carnival Cruise Lines vessel in the future.”
Melinda, who had taken over a dozen Carnival cruises, is pursuing an internal claim with Carnival … but has threatened to sue if it isn’t resolved “appropriately.” One thing’s for sure … she’ll put the matter to bed once and for all.
