A California man says what started as occasional nitrous oxide use at a local smoke shop in 2024 spiraled into a daily habit of up to 4,000 grams a day — and left him with nerve damage, spinal degeneration and trouble walking. Austin Bacak has now sued the companies he says sold him the gas, claiming they knew customers were buying it to get high and made it easy to do so.
Lawsuit Names Three Smoke Shops and Several Distributors
According to a lawsuit obtained by the California Post, Bacak is suing three Los Angeles smoke shops, which the suit accuses of negligence, along with distributors Commerce Enterprises, Eavin Gas, Select Distributors, Yichun and Galaxy Gas. The suit claims the retailer defendants knew their customers were purchasing nitrous oxide intending to use it as a recreational drug, not for its intended purposes of making whipped cream or providing pain relief at the dentist. Bacak is seeking a jury trial and compensatory damages, including medical expenses and lost wages, per the outlet's reporting.
Per the lawsuit, Bacak began using nitrous oxide gradually in 2024 after buying it at a local smoke shop, eventually using products daily under brand names including Galaxy Gas, Miami Magic and Massive Whip. The suit claims his daily intake grew to between 2,000 and 4,000 grams — a staggering figure next to the standard food-purpose canister, which the suit says contains just 8 grams. Bacak claims he has suffered B-12 deficiency, numbness, neuropathy, demyelination, spinal degeneration and trouble walking as a result.
Suit Says Distributors Supersized Containers Starting in 2015
The lawsuit alleges that nitrous oxide distributors began packaging the gas in colorful, eye-catching containers in 2015, with some containers growing to 375 times larger than standard culinary canisters, according to the suit. Those containers sometimes included a nozzle, the lawsuit states, and were made readily available at what the suit describes as establishments catering to vices. The suit characterizes the smoke-shop product as inviting recreational use as an inhalant — a sharp contrast with the brief, seconds-long paralyzing high the gas can produce, one that the suit says makes functioning difficult.
The lawsuit also cites a claimed 100 percent increase in nitrous oxide deaths from 2019 to 2023, and references Americans aged 12 and older who have misused the gas, according to the suit's allegations.
California and Los Angeles Have Moved to Restrict Sales
Bacak's case lands amid a broader regulatory crackdown. In August, state lawmakers passed SB 758, which prohibits retailers selling tobacco or cigarette products from selling nitrous oxide, according to the Los Angeles Times. A violation of that state law is an infraction punishable by a fine, the paper reported. Separately, a California bill signed into law on September 18 prohibits the sale of nitrous oxide containers over 8 grams, direct-inhalation devices and flavored nitrous oxide products.
Los Angeles has gone further at the local level. The city council unanimously approved a measure earlier in October prohibiting cannabis and tobacco retailers from selling or distributing nitrous oxide, according to the Los Angeles Times' report. Unlike the state infraction, a violation of the city ordinance is a criminal misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of up to $1,000, six months in jail, or both, the same report notes. Nitrous oxide is otherwise legally sold in canisters and tanks for culinary and automotive purposes, including as a whipped-cream propellant and to boost engine performance.
Doctors Describe Nerve Damage and Paralysis Risk
The health risks cited in Bacak's case track with what emergency physicians have reported publicly. A UCLA emergency-medicine professor told the Los Angeles Times about a 22-year-old who lost the ability to walk after abusing nitrous oxide, and said those who chronically use the gas face nerve injury and numbness. Usage can also lead to blood clots, asphyxiation, impaired bowel and bladder function and paralysis, according to the same report.
A systematic review published on PMC found that nitrous oxide-induced functional B12 deficiency often presents with neurological symptoms without accompanying blood abnormalities, and that methylmalonic acid and homocysteine levels are more sensitive markers than serum B12 alone. Separately, data released by Michigan's health department showed a sharp increase in nitrous oxide-related health emergencies in that state, with 144 poison-center cases and 132 emergency-department cases recorded from 2019 through 2023. A separate federal report from the CDC found that among nitrous oxide-involved poison-center cases, tachycardia, other neurologic symptoms and numbness were among the most commonly reported effects.
Existing California statute addressing nitrous oxide distribution, reviewed via the state legislature's bill-text records, makes it a violation to knowingly distribute or dispense the gas to someone intending to inhale it for intoxication, while exempting licensed medical or dental care and nitrous oxide contained in food products used as a propellant. Separate bill text for SB 936 describes a proposal that would prohibit the sale of containers capable of holding more than 8 grams or from which a person may directly inhale the gas, except where specifically exempted.
