The war against marijuana has been raging on for the past couple of years. However, the advent of cannabidiol (CBD) has made it harder for authorities as there is frequent confusion on the legal versus illegal stuff.
The NYPD sure felt the brunt of that confusion in their latest “drug bust”.
The police truly jumped the gun on this one
On November 3, 2019, the NYPD seized a large shipment of what they claimed was illegal hemp. The 75th precinct was so pleased with themselves that they took to Facebook to celebrate the massive bust with a rather dramatic caption where they described the packages as “marijuana destined for our city streets”.
Unfortunately for them, they had made quite a laughable error. It was all legal hemp from a farmer who had all his documents proving that the hemp was legal intact.
How the NYPD concluded that it was marijuana
No thanks to an overzealous FedEx worker who felt the need to tip the police off on a massive shipment coming into the state. Owner of Green Angel CBD John Dee has been in the natural medicine business for six years as a legal farmer and distributor.
Over the weekend in November of last year, he sent a 106-pound shipment of hemp flowers from a farm in Vermont through FedEx. The FedEx guy assumed the shipment that was worth $30,000 was pot and so, he reported it to the Williston police department in Vermont.
The cops took their time to investigate the package and found a police report that proved the company was a licensed hemp grower and the hemp had a THC content of 0.6% that is within the legal range.
The Williston Police Department let FedEx know that they wouldn’t be seizing the shipments since it was all legal, and so the shipment made its jolly way to New York City. There, the FedEx guy brought in the NYPD to the matter. But unlike the Williston P.D, they were quick to decide that it was marijuana. They ignored all the documents the owner had and seized all 106 pounds of the product. [1]
They also arrested the person who came to pick up the shipment
The NYPD, after seizing the hemp, contacted Dee asking him to come over to the station to pick it up. However, Dee was recovering from a medical procedure and instead sent his brother, Ronan Levy, to go on his behalf.
Unfortunately for Levy, it was a trap by the NYPD to get him into custody. As soon as he got into the station, he was arrested and charged with six whopping counts of possession.
Dee took to Instagram to create awareness on the matter
It’s quite painful that after working so hard to be on the legal side of a business, you are falsely accused of committing a crime of that nature. Dee who was at risk of losing a lot of money and his business took to Instagram to create awareness on the issue.
“This was our shipment. My brother was falsely arrested. Those bags were all hemp. All documents were in each box. The farm also called them to give them all their paperwork proving it’s all hemp! Please spread the word! We need to let people know we are not criminals,” he said.
Damage control by the NYPD
At a press conference a couple of days after the incident, NYPD officials claimed the shipment not only tested positive as marijuana but also that Levy did not have a proper ‘bill of handling’ stating that it was legal hemp.
Dee, on the other hand, thinks the officials were excited that they had a major drug bust and thus, ignored the paperwork. He went on to say that they used an outdated field test from the 60s which is unable to tell the difference between various levels of THC. [2]
The arresting officer is also to blame
According to the arresting officer, Rodney Greenidge, the packages contained pot because they possessed “the same physical characteristics” as pot. Unfortunately for Greenidge, the incident turned him into some sort of public enemy. Now, rumor has it that he’s a dirty cop with a history of abuse and false arrest.
A case involving him from 2014 was dug up. It was a case with numerous charges against the NYPD from unlawful stop-and-search to false imprisonment that eventually led to a $15,000 settlement.
In his defense, Greenidge wrote that he “has had professional training as a police officer in the identification of marihuana… and the substance, in this case, possesses the same physical characteristics.”
FedEx and the NYPD did everything wrong here
According to Levy, FedEx knew exactly what was in the package and should never have flagged it to the cops.
“They said they cannot release the hemp because we did not have a license to buy and sell CBD. But there is no such license to buy and sell CBD. It’s all lies,” said Levy.
They still didn’t want to admit defeat even after the shipment was determined to be legal. So, they claimed it was a matter of the farm not being licensed distributors of CBD.
The brothers’ attorney, Sanford Rubenstein had a response for the NYPD. “The issue here is one that involves interstate commerce and the Farm Act certainly would cover that, and to try to restrict interstate commerce as we learned in law school is not proper,” she said.
As for FedEx, “We are also looking at FedEx as a potential defendant and we’ll make that determination once we prepare to file the lawsuit,” she said.
While the hemp has been returned, it has most likely gone bad after staying in the police storage room with poor temperature control for about two months.
The legal status of CBD
Cannabidiol (CBD) is derived from the plant Cannabis sativa. There are two forms of cannabis recognized by the government: hemp and marijuana. Hemp contains high levels of CBD and low THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol). This is the psychoactive compound in marijuana that causes a “high”.
In 2018, the Farm Bill legalized CBD derived from hemp but that contains no more than 0.3% THC. They gave farmers a set of regulations to standby.
According to the bill, “Any cannabinoid — a set of chemical compounds found in the cannabis plant — that is derived from hemp will be legal, if and only if it is produced in a manner consistent with the Farm Bill, associated federal regulations, association state regulations, and by a licensed grower.” [3]
That said, CBD is legal-ish — depending on the THC levels and the state you are in, as some states like Idaho, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Kansas refuse to legalize it.
As for marijuana, it’s illegal because under the controlled substances Act of 1970 iand is classified as a schedule 1 drug. This is because it is perceived as addictive with a high potential for abuse. [4]
At the end of the day, it’s always aggravating when police officers behave in a manner that does not portray what they stand for. However, if you want to go into the CBD business, you don’t need to get scared off. You will be fine as long as you remain on the right side of the law, and adhere to the rules and regulations of the market.
References
- “New York police boast massive 106-pound marijuana bust, but the farmers say it’s legal hemp.” Fox 8. Admin. November 29, 2019.
- “The NYPD Bragged About a Big Pot Bust. Turns Out It Seized 106 Pounds of Legal Hemp. Reason. Zuri Davis. November 7, 2019.
- “Is CBD legal? CNET. Danielle Kosecki. August 2, 2019.
- “Why Is Marijuana Illegal?” Thought Co. Tom Head. January 10, 2020.