The Scott County Attorney’s Office has filed misdemeanor charges against three Shakopee business owners for allegedly selling THC products during a citywide moratorium.
As first reported by Southwest News Media, Scott County Public Health did “educational visits” in early November 2022 to various stores across the county and found 11 stores out of compliance with local ordinances.
Last year, the state clarified language to allow sales of THC, the psychoactive compound in marijuana. The law allows for sales of hemp-derived edibles containing up to 0.3% THC, five milligrams per serving and up to 50 milligrams per package. However, the state allowed municipal governments the opportunity to put in moratoriums lasting up to one year. In Shakopee, a six-month moratorium was passed August 16.
While eight businesses will not be facing charges as they complied with follow-up orders to remove offending products, the owners of Top Star Market, Ramble on Records and Tobacco Express could be facing up to 90 days in jail and/or a fine of $1,000 after allegedly not complying with the moratorium after subsequent visits from officials.
“We made multiple attempts to educate and get compliance before any enforcement action was taken,” Shakopee Police Chief Jeff Tate said. “How many times do you need to walk into a store and see that they are still selling after you’ve made it clear multiple times before that they can’t, and the products they are selling not only violated the moratorium but they violated the state law as well? Every business charged received multiple warnings, refused to comply and they were all selling products that violated state law. Some gummies were 30-35 times the potency levels that were allowed by state law.”
At this time, only charges for violating the municipal moratorium have been filed. While the THC products allegedly sold at the three businesses violate state drug laws, no charges on that front have been filed.
“You need to ask (the county attorney) about why they went that route,” Tate said when asked about the charges.
Attempts to reach Scott County Attorney Ron Hocevar’s office regarding the charges went unreturned as of the print deadline for this article. In a follow-up Tuesday, April 5, Hocevar declined to comment.
Offending products
According to the criminal complaint, three officers from the Shakopee Police Department visited Top Star Market, which is owned by Sined Adel Manasra, 32, of Shakopee, on Nov. 17.
Shakopee Police Sgt. Josh Davis allegedly provided a copy of the ordinance to the salesperson who “appeared to be the manager or owner” of the business during the visit. The individual was also told to remove the products.
On Nov. 30, Davis returned with a member of the Southwest Metro Drug Task Force, who determined they were selling THC products, according to charging documents.
An agent with the task force was allegedly able to purchase a package of Delta 8 THC containing 1,750 milligram of THC per package.
According to the criminal complaint, Ramble on Records was allegedly found to be selling THC products during the Public Health visit. On Nov. 17, three officers conducted a compliance check in plain clothes and “they confirmed the active sales of THC/CBD edible products and took photos of the products.”
According to the complaint, Davis provided the owner, Stephen Michael Shanks, 54, of Shakopee, with a copy of the ordinance, which temporarily banned THC products from being sold in the city.
Thirteen days later, a drug task force agent returned with Davis to the store. The agent was able to purchase a Delta 8 cookie package containing 62.5 milligrams of Delta 8 THC per cooking and 500 per package, according to the criminal complaint.
Like with the other businesses, Tobacco Express, which is owned by tobacco shop Spring Leaf, officers went to the business and informed a salesperson of the ordinance and ordered them to remove the products, according to charging documents.
On Nov. 30, Davis and a drug task force agent returned where the agent was allegedly able to purchase Delta 9 THC gummies which, according to the label, contained 10 pieces of Delta 9 THC and 10 milligrams per gummy.
According to charging documents the penalty if convicted could be up to 90 days in jail and or a fine of $1,000.
In previous correspondence with Southwest News Media, Shanks maintained that he thought he was initially operating within the bounds of the law and he hasn’t sold the offending products for months. Messages left for the owners of Top Star Market and Tobacco Express have not been returned.
Different approaches, moving forward
Not all cities are pursuing such a hard line with businesses that defied local moratoriums. For example, Savage Police Chief Rodney Seurer said at least five different businesses were selling THC products in the city during its moratorium when police checked in the beginning of December, about a month after Public Health did its initial checks. By the time officials conducted a third visit, those businesses were found to be in compliance, Seurer said.
His approach is different from Shakopee’s, saying there is no way to determine if a product is out of compliance with state law or not.
“We have no way in testing the product whether they have .5 mg or .1 mg THC, whether they are more potent, or what is exactly in the product,” Seurer said. “We have no way of knowing if the edible was made or packaged by a multimillion-dollar lab operating across multiple states (or) if it was created by a fly-by-night outfit operating out of someone’s basement.”
Like Seurer, Scott County Public Health Director Lisa Brodsky said the concern wasn’t about the potency of the products.
“The moratorium that was put in place banned the sale of all THC products, so no THC products were legal,” Brodsky said in an email. “County staff did not examine products to see if they would be legal under state law following the expiration of the moratorium.”
In December, the Shakopee City Council lifted the moratorium on THC products and implemented a licensing model.
One of the stipulations considered by the council when granting a license is that a business didn’t violate the THC moratorium. Tobacco Express and two businesses managed by Manasra, Top Star Market and Nicollet Tobacco, have applied for licenses. All were denied.