Officers handled the call until they “noticed a large amount of suspicious marijuana,” and they decided to get the sheriff’s office in here. After the Southwest Hennepin Drug Task Force arrived, with a search warrant in hand, officials seized what appeared to be a trove.
There were foods of 6,600 doses, nearly 4,000 grams of cannabis, more than 500 THC vape cartridges, more than 2,400 grams of THC wax concentrate, nearly 1,700 grams of liquid THC, and about $ 35,000 in cash. The estimated street value was nearly a quarter of a million dollars.
“Drug busts of this size are typically associated with large, sophisticated drug trafficking operations, which are often linked to more violent crimes,” said a Facebook post from the sheriff’s office describing the raid. “This is a great example of how we support our office in general and our task force in particular local law enforcement in Hennepin County.”
Here is the post in its entirety.
Our Southwest Hennepin Drug Task Force (SWHDTF) spent nearly a quarter of a million dollars on marijuana and more than …
Posted by Sheriff’s Office of Hennepin County on Tuesday, August 25, 2020
The sheriff’s department did not respond to inquiries, and the local police department issued to their colleagues from the province, so it is difficult to say what kind of response, exactly, was expected from the public.
But it was probably not this one.
“What crazy PR numbskull thought this law enforcement would help look * good *?” a Reddit user who saw the post on Nextdoor said. “Everyone. Only. Person. (Including Republicans) I know there is legalization in the Twin Cities area. Glad the sheriff’s department is putting our tax dollars on quality use.”
Facebook was also not very complementary, based on a quick cruise through the nearly 700 comments.
“[Marijuana]I will be legal next year, “said one.” Way to destroy more lives! “
“Screw you in a BIG way.”
“Go find the real medicine!” one comment commanded. “Your cops are good for nothing!”
Minnesota has been revolving around the topic of legalized recreational cannabis for years, while other states enjoy a windfall of legalization revenue and positive public opinion. A poll by the Star Tribune and MPR earlier this year found that about 51 percent of Minnesota voters thought the state would legalize it, and another 37 percent opposed. The rest were not sure.
It’s still a very partisan problem. About 60 percent of Democrats favored legalization, as opposed to about 42 percent of Republicans. Before the pandemic hit, one of the biggest obstacles to getting legal cannabis on the ballot appeared to be a bloc of solid Senate Republicans. Last year’s bill died at the hands of a Senate committee, and majority leader Paul Gazelka swore that his chamber would not consider it this year.
A bill introduced by House Majority Leader Ryan Winkler went away without a vote after the coronavirus derailed the 2020 legislative session.
But the perception of weeds has changed by necessity. It’s legal for adults in about a dozen U.S. states, plus that gentle umbrella we call Canada. The legal turmoil of Swiss cheese caused by pieces of legalization has in some cases even exacerbated drug trafficking problems, and introduced incentives to smuggle rings to grow and sell cannabis in a legal state in an illegal state, where demand (and price) is higher, and quality control does not exist.
As several Facebook commentators have pointed out, it is difficult to respect a drug bust that would not happen if it had been in Michigan, for example.
“This feels like the human equivalent of a cat bringing you the dead mouse they just killed. “See what I did for you?” Blow me into thinking you actually think you should post this. ”
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