Judge rules the license of pot retailer in Flint will stay suspended
A judge on Friday upheld a decision by Michigan’s Cannabis Regulatory Agency to suspend the license of a Flint dispensary after the agency tested its products and found they contained unacceptable levels of banned pesticides, heavy metals, mold and bacteria.
After a two-day hearing over the agency’s decision, a judge with the Michigan Office of Administrative Hearings and Rules found the CRA “has demonstrated, by a preponderance of the evidence presented to date, that the safety or health of patrons or employees is jeopardized by (their) continued operation.”
The CRA announced two weeks ago it was alerting customers that pre-rolled joints, most of which were labeled “MoonRock blunt,” that were sold or given away as promotional items to consumers from Feb. 10 to Sept. 30 at Green Culture in Flint could contain banned pesticides, heavy metals, aspergillus (a type of mold) and bacteria in amounts exceeding state limits.
In an emailed statement, Jars Cannabis, a part owner of Green Culture, said it’s now buying out the former owner and manager, Pat Kanouno. The retailer, which has multiple dispensaries in Michigan and operations in other states, said through its spokesperson Josh Hovey that it hopes to be given the opportunity to fix the previous management’s errors.
“Jars appreciates the CRA’s efforts to ensure everyone in this industry is following the rules and behaving responsibly,” Hovey said. “However, we strongly believe the CRA is being overzealous in this case.”
Hovey noted that hemp — which is what the products were labeled when they were obtained from a licensed hemp processor — is a federally legalized product. The
main difference between hemp and marijuana is THC. Hemp has 0.3% or less of THC, which isn’t enough THC to create the “high” feeling associated with marijuana.
When the CRA had a sampling of the products tested, they found the majority of the products were actually marijuana and had a total THC concentration greater than 0.3%.
Hovey said retailers should not be responsible for inaccurate test results on products. However, as a result of the judge’s decision, Jars has pulled all hemp products from its shelves as a precautionary measure, he said.
The action against Green Culture is among the first public enforcement actions under the leadership of Brian Hanna, who started as the acting executive director of the CRA in September and was named its permanent director by Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Friday.
Hanna, who spent five years with the CRA as its manager of field operations, inspections and investigations and also worked as a criminal intelligence manager and analyst with the Michigan State Police, said recently that in his meetings with industry stakeholders, he heard a consistent message that illicit cannabis making its way into the legal system is a major issue that needs to be addressed.
“We want to find (the illicit product), we want to expose that and we want to make it known,” Hanna said at a roundtable interview in Lansing with several members of the news media in October. “We want to support those that are following the rules, that are paying the regulatory fees, paying the taxes and doing the right thing. If there’s anybody cutting corners or cheating, we want to expose that and take a strong enforcement approach on that.”
The news of his permanent appointment was met with mixed reactions, which were mostly focused on Hanna’s approach to enforcement.
Shelly Edgerton, the board chair of the Michigan Cannabis Manufacturers Association, an association of “many of the state’s largest growers, processors, and vertically integrated cannabis licensees,” said in an email that Hanna has “already proven to be a strong partner and ally in cracking down on Michigan’s massive illicit market and ramping-up enforcement in the licensed industry.”
But Rick Thompson, executive director of NORML of Michigan, an organization that advocates for the legalization of the responsible use of marijuana and serves as an advocate for consumers, said it “seems obvious” that a nationwide search for a permanent director announced by Whitmer didn’t happen given the timeline of when Hanna was named the interim executive director. “I hope the director focuses less on punishments and more on people as he leads the agency going forward,” Thompson said in an emailed statement.