Flint-Area Medical Marijuana Dispensaries Targeted By Authorities

[bobandtorey]

GENESEE COUNTY, MI – Prosecutors are seeking to padlock two more Genesee County medical marijuana dispensaries following investigations by the Flint Area Narcotics Group.

The Genesee County Prosecutor's Office has filed motions asking a judge to padlock Hardcore Harvest, 119 W. State Street in Montrose, and Hemphill Wellness Center, 3365 Associates Drive in Burton, over claims the facilities are violating the state's nuisance ordinance.

Prosecutor David Leyton said he believes the dispensaries are a violation of the state's medical marijuana law.

The state's nuisance law allows officials to padlock a property for up to a year over complaints of drug dealing.

Leyton said he decided to pursue the cases after they were presented to him by FANG, a multi-jurisdictional drug team organized through the Michigan State Police.

"Our focus is to stop criminal activity, which includes drug traffickers who are operating illegally under the guise of the state's medical marijuana law," said Michigan State Police spokesperson Shanon Banner.

However, Bruce Leach, an attorney representing Hemphill Wellness, said the investigations by FANG have more to do with the agency's attempt to ensnare marijuana patients and caregivers before a possible state initiative is place on the ballot later this year to decriminalize the drug than protecting county residents.

Voters passed the state's medical marijuana law in 2008, but it wasn't until earlier this year that FANG asked prosecutors start padlocking the dispensaries.

"FANG has become extremely cavalier in the abuse of medical marijuana patients and their caregivers," Leach said.

Attorneys for Hardcore Harvest could not be reached for comment.

This is the third effort to padlock an area dispensary in the past two months.

Prosecutors first sought to padlock the Clio Caregiver Connection in early March after FANG made multiple controlled purchases of marijuana at the business, according to the complaint. 

The purchaser was a medical marijuana patient, but no person present at the facility was the registered caregiver for the buyer, the complaint claims.

FANG conducted similar operations at the Montrose and Burton facilities.

Leach, who specializes in marijuana law at Kirsch Leach + Associates, said the facilities, particularly the Hemphill Wellness Center, have long operated in the area and have no history of complaints from the community.

"They're not hurting anybody," Leach said. "They're helping people."

State law allows individuals to serve as caregivers for medical marijuana patients, allowing them to possess up to 2.5 ounces of useable marijuana or 12 marijuana plants for each of their registered patients. Caregivers are allowed to have up to five patients.

However, Leach said previous court cases and the support of local ordinances and officials have allowed the dispensaries to operate without interference from law enforcement, particularly in Genesee County.

"Genesee County has been an area of hope and compassion," Leach said.

Leyton said he plans to meet with Leach to discuss the state's medical marijuana law and hear the attorney's arguments as to why the dispensaries should be able to operate.

"I'm open-minded on the issue," Leyton said, adding that he has not pursued criminal charges in the cases. "I'm not looking to criminalize people for low-level marijuana transactions."

Leyton said he couldn't comment as to why FANG has recently delivered multiple padlocking cases to his office in the past few months, but Leach said he believes the agency is looking to cash in before a possible change in state law.

Michigan's drug forfeiture program allows 15 percent of any property forfeited in a drug case to go to the prosecutor's office for future drug-enforcement actions. The remainder goes to the police agency responsible for the bust.

FANG seized nearly $109,000 in assets in 2013, according to the state's 2015 asset forfeiture report. That total jumped to more than $318,000 in 2014.

Court records show $40,000 was seized as part of the investigation at the Montrose dispensary. A civil forfeiture case is currently pending over the dispensary's assets.

State police officials deny the busts are motivated by a potential ballot initiative.

"We follow the law on the books," Banner said. "Speculation about future law does not factor into enforcement decisions."

The Michigan Comprehensive Cannabis Law Reform Committee, known as MI Legalize, announced in February that its campaign to legalize marijuana "the right way" in Michigan has now collected 240,000 signatures.

The state requires 252,000 valid signatures to qualify for the November 2016 general election ballot.

"We're on pace and on track," Jeffrey Hank, the group's executive director, told MLive in February. "We're trying to bring everyone together in unity. We're trying to set the standards for this industry to take off."

The group wants to allow marijuana possession and use by adults, tax retail sales at 10 percent and allow local communities to license marijuana facilities.

All three padlocking cases against the Genesee County dispensaries are still pending in circuit court. Temporary restraining orders are currently in place to keep the businesses from operating. 

 

http://www.mlive.com/news/flint/index.ssf/2016/04/2_more_flint-area_medical_mari.html