Seizures of THC products causing headaches for smoke shop | News

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Smoke shop owners say they’re under attack battling burglars as well as seizures from law enforcement.

All of this over THC products investigators say have higher levels of the active ingredient found in marijuana than the law allows. Delta-8 is legal in the state of Tennessee, but Delta-9 is not.

FOX13 spoke to the attorney for one smoke shop owner.

He said Shelby County Sheriff’s deputy took more than $100,000 worth of goods and cash from his client’s shop. He’s been working to get that money back for months.

“Nobody was charged with any crimes. It’s just money and product taken off the shelves from a business owner,” said defense attorney Brandon Hall.

Video shared with FOX13 shows sheriff’s deputies raiding a Shelby County smoke shop back in October with masks on, putting cuffs on an employee, and seizing products and cash.

“So it’s hitting them from both sides. They’re getting hit from illegal seizures and what I would call illegal seizures also, but done to a legal basis. So we’re getting hit from both sides when all they’re trying to do is follow the law, pay their taxes, and sell a product that people obviously want and that is legal to sell in the state,” said Hall.

Hall said his client sells THC products, which are legal in Tennessee, based on the their levels of Delta-8 and Delta-9 THC. He said it gets fuzzy with how they’re tested. 

“The letter from Mulroy’s office acknowledges that there’s an issue with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigations testing procedure,” said Hall.

A letter with District Attorney Steve Mulroy’s signature says the testing done by the Forensic Services Division for analyzing suspected marijuana “may result in findings that cannot speak as to whether Delta-9 THC was present.”

Hall said months later, he is still working to get his client back the money and product he lost, but something needs to change.

“I think communication from the district attorney’s office, the sheriff’s department and the police department, if they can get a set of guidelines that they want an open dialog between these shop owners, they’re willing to sit down with them.”

FOX13 reached out to the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office following the investigation. A spokesperson with the department sent the following statement:

“The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office investigates a handful of illegal smoke/vape shop each year in unincorporated Shelby County. Following each undercover purchase, SCSO utilizes the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) to test the products that are purchased and suspected as being above the legal limit. Testing used by SCSO through TBI differentiates between Delta 8 and Delta 9 products. In all cases where enforcement action was taken, all tested products were well-above the legal limit, as stated in the law.”