Alcohol agency’s attorney at helm

Casteel staying on for transition

A state Alcoholic Beverage Control Division attorney whose resignation was announced Thursday, along with that of her boss and a colleague, is now the temporary head of the agency.

Mary Robin Casteel, who helped write the rules for Arkansas’ voter-enacted medical marijuana program, will replace Bud Roberts, who tendered his resignation to the governor Thursday.

Roberts’ departure came after his two staff attorneys, Casteel and Milton Lueken, gave notice in the past week of their intention to leave. All three resignations, scheduled to take effect on different dates in June, were publicly announced Thursday.

The three departures would have left the agency — which regulates the sale and manufacturing of alcohol and oversees the budding medical pot program

— without a leader or any attorneys.

About 24 hours after Gov. Asa Hutchinson’s office dispelled claims Roberts was asked to leave, the office issued a news release naming Casteel as the interim director of the agency.

Although Roberts’ resignation isn’t effective until June 15, he’s taking unused leave for the remainder of his time, said Jake Bleed, a spokesman for the Department of Finance and Administration, which oversees the agency.

Casteel will take over Alcoholic Beverage Control’s administrative operations Tuesday, Bleed said. She will receive a yet-to-be-determined raise.

In her letter of resignation, delivered to Roberts on May 19, Casteel said she intended to pursue a “long-held goal,” to enter private practice. Her departure date had been set for June 16.

Reached by phone Friday, Casteel said she was “still very much looking forward to that.”

Casteel declined to say how long she planned to stay with Alcoholic Beverage Control, except that she expected to remain as until people are hired to fill the vacant positions.

“Understanding the situation we’re in now, I’m willing to help with the transition,” Casteel said.

In a statement, Hutchinson thanked Casteel for agreeing to stay during the transition period.

“I have a great deal of respect for Mary Robin, and am confident her knowledge and leadership will serve the agency well during this time of transition,” Hutchinson’s statement said.

Roberts couldn’t be reached Friday to describe the reason for his resignation. He didn’t return a phone call request for comment Thursday.

Casteel and Lueken said they didn’t know the reason for Roberts’ departure.

Lueken, who told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette on Thursday that Roberts was fired, said Friday that was what he “heard.” He said he only learned of his boss’s resignation letter to the governor after he spoke to a reporter Thursday.

In his resignation letter, Lueken announced plans to retire, and he told a reporter Thursday he wants to play more golf. He said Friday he may leave before his effective resignation date of June 23.

Roberts said in his resignation letter to Hutchinson he originally planned to lead the department for two years and agreed to stay on longer to oversee the rule-making process for Arkansas’ medical marijuana program.

Voters approved a constitutional amendment legalizing medical marijuana in the November general election.

Once dispensaries and cultivation centers open in the state, the Alcoholic Beverage Control also will be in charge of enforcing the rules on those facilities.

Bleed said staff attorneys at the finance department will be able to assist the agency as its scope expands.

The changes in staff will not affect the rollout of the medical marijuana program, which has several deadlines required by law, Bleed said.

Casteel