Sacramento Feds Look to Bag Pot Growers

Image: Kesu/Shutterstock

It’s all so confusing. Is California a marijuana free-for-all, at least when it comes to the medicinal herb, or does officialdom want to stamp out the evil weed?

Seems to be a mixed bag, as actions by the Sacramento U.S. Attorney show.

The Sacramento Business Journal’s Mark Anderson reports U.S. Attorney Benjamin Wagner has filed civil forfeiture complaints against large pot-growing operations in rural Trinity and Butte counties.

Just to be clear, of course, while the Golden State allows possession of small amounts of marijuana for medicinal use, the federal government has never said California is an enforcement-free zone when it comes to federal laws.

“The commercial cultivation of marijuana is a violation of federal law, and commercial marijuana cultivators who attempt to mask their activity through structuring their financial transactions in violation of anti-money-laundering laws can expect to have their property seized and forfeited,” Wagner said in a statement.

U.S. Attorneys throughout the state have also announced a crackdown on medical-marijuana dispensaries.

So there you have it. If you want to turn California’s medical-marijuana laws into an entrepreneurial enterprise, at least at the farming or sales level, you face the risk of the wrath of the feds.

Get more business intelligence from Portfolio.com:

• The Nonprofit Social-Media Magic Mix: Does your nonprofit need help boosting its social-media presence? Our resident marketing expert Shama Kabani has some advice.
• A Shot to Success: When entrepreneur Ken Austin learned Avión would be part of a booze-infused story line on the HBO series Entourage, he was thrilled. But it meant speeding up distribution and repeatedly explaining that, yes, his premium tequila brand is real.
• Disney Gets a Mom Blog: Disney has acquired Babble Media, a parenting blog founded by the entrepreneur who started Nerve.com and his wife. Can it remain hip?