Permitted Paso Robles cannabis business charged with illegal sales. What happened?
A cannabis business owner in Paso Robles is being charged with a misdemeanor after allegedly violating city code restricting marijuana delivery.
The complaint, filed by the District Attorney’s Office on May 15, came after Paso Robles police conducted a sting operation on local marijuana business Dubs Green Garden prompted by multiple anonymous tips to the department, Investigations Cmdr. Ricky Lehr told The Tribune on Thursday.
“The people did not wish to give us their name, and it was very short and to the point that Dubs Green Garden is advertising that they’re selling marijuana for recreational use,” Lehr said. “So we looked into it and the department conducted an investigation utilizing an undercover buy through our department, and our findings did find one code that they were in violation of.”
Ernest Hall and his wife Grace, who own the cannabis delivery service Dubs Green Garden, have been at the center of a push for fewer restrictions on marijuana businesses in the city, which currently only allows medical marijuana delivery.
The city does not allow recreational delivery or any retail storefront activity.
Despite the ordinances, however, the pair have continued to receive licenses from the Department of Cannabis Control authorizing adult-use delivery, and their city business licenses have included the label “Rec,” appearing to also authorize recreational delivery, causing confusion they previously spoke about with The Tribune.
City manager Chris Huot previously told The Tribune that, despite the label, city-issued business licenses don’t dictate what type of cannabis local businesses are or aren’t allowed to deliver.
“It’s important to note that business licenses are not regulatory in nature and do not authorize cannabis activity,” Huot wrote. “The city does not issue cannabis licenses; those are issued by the California Department of Cannabis Control (DCC).”
On Thursday, Huot said the city couldn’t comment on the May 15 charges against the Halls, but he clarified that although Dubs Green Garden’s city license is labeled “Rec,” the document also states “Medical Cannabis Delivery Only.”
According to a copy of the city license The Tribune obtained, the special note only read “Medical Cannabis Delivery” and did not explicitly state that only medical cannabis could be delivered.
San Francisco-based Attorney Omar Figueroa is representing the Halls following the charges against them.
Figueroa told The Tribune he questioned why the Halls, who have obtained both state and city licenses, are being prosecuted, while other unlicensed businesses through SLO County, according to Weedmaps, weren’t.
The city is exploring ways to potentially allow future recreational delivery in the city.
On Tuesday, the Paso Robles City Council directed staff to review amending the maximum number of marijuana businesses that can operate in the city, as well city permitting processes that could eventually allow medical-use retailers to also sell recreationally.
City staff intends to return to the council with its suggestions within 90 days.
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