A federal judge in Oregon has dismissed charges in a lawsuit over destroyed hemp reportedly worth $2.5 million.
Oregonized Hemp Co. LLC (OHC) sued Josephine County last May after a 2019 incident when officials with the county, along with the Illegal Marijuana Enforcement Team and Oregon State Police, raided OHC’s warehouse. Law enforcement seized more than 10,000 pounds of hemp plant material, 13,000 gallons of hemp extract, firearms and lab equipment. The next day, they destroyed the hemp material following a judge’s order.
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In the latest saga of the Oregonized lawsuit, a U.S. district judge partially granted Josephine County's motion to dismiss lawsuit claims while allowing OHC to file a second amended complaint, according to Law360.
That decision was based on an earlier recommendation from a magistrate judge, who found OHC failed to state a claim for relief against the defendants.
"There may be some state law claims that plaintiffs can pursue to remedy the loss of their industrial hemp," U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark D. Clarke had said. "However, because the warrants, judicially noticed and incorporated into the complaint, are facially valid, the constitutional claims are shaky at best."
The charges revolved around the legitimacy of law enforcement's warrant—while they were there to seize marijuana, they wound up taking what was allegedly hemp. The OHC team also claimed there was no probable cause for the warrant in the first place.
Josephine County attorneys previously told judges that a detective had determined OHC’s Williams, Ore., warehouse was not authorized for hemp or cannabis storage or processing.
“Although the signed warrant lacks a discussion of the factual basis for probable cause, Medford Detective [Chris] Dode’s application and affidavit contains sworn statements describing the factual basis for his warrant request,” according to the county. “By authorizing the warrant, Judge [Sarah] McGlaughlin concluded probable cause existed.”
Ross Day, legal counsel for OHC and its owner Justin Pitts, told Law360 that this case involves an area of the law that is still developing. He added that the company will “probably” be amending the complaint again.
