On January 28, 2016 at
7:30 a.m., approximately 30 officers in body armor, helmets and carrying
automatic weapons, sledgehammered the front door of Med-West, a San
Diego-based company that makes legal cannabis-based medicines for legal
dispensaries in California.
Interestingly enough,
the local news media knew about the raid and splashed the news over the public
airwaves. They reported that the officers had a search warrant for a suspected
“Hash Oil Lab”. Cash was seized. Bank accounts were frozen. Two employees of
Med-West were handcuffed and detained for hours and later arrested. The officers gave each other high fives as they left the building with their haul.
Just another drug
bust?
No. It wasn’t.
Med-West is a legal business, that is highly regulated. Trusted in the cannabis industry and led by a cannabis pioneer who has helped influence national drug policy in multiple states.
James Slatic, a serial entrepreneur and CEO of San
Diego based business Med-West Distribution, LLC, wasn't at the building during the raid and has not been arrested or charged. Slatic created the company to make and sell CO2
extracted medical cannabis products, including vape pens and cartridges. Slatic is part of the movement
that wants to help create a great new American industry, and to stop putting
people in jail for this helpful plant.
He has an
entrepreneurial vision of helping people and raising awareness of the many options of medical cannabis and giving back to be of service
to this new industry. James was a founding member of the National Cannabis
Industry Association, and founding board member of California Cannabis Industry, and
Nevada Cannabis Industry Associations, sits on the Board of Marijuana Policy
Project, and is a regular speaker at industry and activism events for CalNorml
and Drug Policy Alliance.
Med-West medicines are
not the crude products of yesteryear. Rigorous laboratory testing, in a
city-licensed facility, is done throughout to ensure proper potency and
purity. Importantly, Med-West cannabis oil products are produced within strict
adherence to state laws using a CO2 extraction method. And importantly, NO CO2 extraction took place at this facility.
Med-West does not sell
their products to individual patients, only in wholesale to licensed
dispensaries. City officials in San Diego were regular visitors to the 14,000
square-foot facility. Even police officers had stopped by for a visit earlier
in the year. But just a few weeks after a new statewide law, that Slatic helped
write and pass, took effect a local DA preformed a "smash and grab" on Med-West, and
somebody called the media.
Follow the Money
The lives of James,
his wife and daughters and the employees of Med-West changed drastically on
January 28, 2016.
Law enforcement
personnel raided Med-West took everything, in. All the companies products, raw materials, computers, hard
drives, laptops, files, tax and patient records were seized, along with a large
sum of cash due to be used for payroll and product purchases.
In the aftermath of
this raid, 21 employees are now out of work, and patients in the hundreds of
collectives we served were deprived of their medicine.
It appears that money for at least some of the personnel who planned and conducted the raid was paid from federal funds designated for homeland security ... to protect and defend our nation from terrorism.
Slatic’s Assets, Even Personal and Family Bank Accounts, Have Been Frozen
This includes his wife
and teenage daughters’ accounts as well. His wife, Annette, is a Federal
employee at the VA Hospital in La Jolla, and has nothing to do with the
business. Their daughter is a student at San Jose State, and could not even buy
food at school. According to his bank, this was done with nothing more than a
signed letter from a San Diego police detective. The bank will not provide his
attorneys with a copy of the reported court order, nor will the police or
D.A.’s office.
A Simple Request
Help us fight back by
contributing to the Med-West Legal Defense Fund.
With their assets
frozen, Slatic and his team need funds to pay attorneys, consulting experts, and
others who will help them fight back against this misguided raid.
An escrow account has
been established and fiduciary controls have been put in place to protect the
integrity of the funds raised. The funds will be used to pay attorney’s fees
and for the myriad of expenses that come along with a fight against the
government.
Financial support during this critical time will be deeply appreciated ... some in the industry have already promised to help once this fund is established ... but we would also appreciate small, individual contributions from people who share our belief in the fledgling American cannabis industry.
Truth is on our side. James Slatic and Med-West need those who believe in the American Cannabis industry
to provide them with the financial support they need to win this fight. If this
can happen in San Diego, California … it can happen anywhere.
What We Need & What You Get
We have the following
available for donors:
- 80 Silver California coins $1,000
- 70 Silver Nevada coins $1,000
- 20 Kayman Bikes™ Flash E-Bike for donors of $5000
- Whatever we raise that is not used we will help others
in similar situations
All proceeds go to
legal costs, and other fees and costs toward the business opening again to help
patients. Whatever we raise that is not used will go to help others in similar situations They are seeking to open (in a new location) for
patient's care and medicine soon. For more information, you can search
Med-West San Diego on google, find them on instagram MedWestLLC, or facebook
MedWestDistribution page.
Congressmen Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) and Earl Blumeneur (D-OR) with James Slatic Discussing Asset Forfeiture and the Med-West Raid
Other Ways You Can Help
Not everyone is able
to contribute financially. Here are some other ways that we are asking you to
help:
Thank you for your
support!
Web Sources:
MED-WEST, http://www.med-west.com (accessed
February 10, 2016).
FOX 5 SAN DIEGO, http://fox5sandiego.com/2016/01/28/hash-oil-business-halts-operations-as-detectives-search-lab/ (accessed
January 28, 2016).
NBC 7 SAN DIEGO, http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/Police-raid-hash-oil-lab-kearny-mesa-366884221.html (accessed
January 28, 2016).
NBC 7 SAN DIEGO, http://www.cbs8.com/story/31086445/police-raid-kearny-mesa-business-suspected-of-illegally-producing-hash-oil (accessed
January 28, 2016).