Operator of medical marijuana dispensary pleads not guilty

By WIRE SERVICES

Story Created: Feb 22, 2010 at 4:55 PM PST

Story Updated: Feb 22, 2010 at 5:05 PM PST

Tools

The operator of a medical marijuana dispensary in Culver City pleaded not guilty Monday to 24 felony counts, including unlawful sale of marijuana and money laundering.   

Los Angeles Superior Court Commissioner Donald S. Kennedy ordered Jeffrey Keith Joseph, 41, to remain jailed in lieu of $520,000 bail, despite a request by defense attorney Eric Shevin to lower the amount.   

Joseph is set to return to court March 4 for a hearing to determine if there is enough evidence to require him to stand trial on 13 counts of sale or transportation of marijuana, five counts each of possession of marijuana for sale and money laundering and one count of possession for sale of a controlled substance.   

The charges stem from a search last August at Organica, where officers seized 80 kilograms of marijuana, 450 plants, 12 kilograms of hash oil and 125 kilograms of edible marijuana products, officials said.

Deputy District Attorney John Harlan told the commissioner that the case involves "an illegal drug dealing operation'' with an average monthly income of $400,000.   

Joseph was arrested late last week by U.S. Drug Enforcement Adminstration agents.   

"It's clearly politically driven,'' Joseph's attorney said of the the case, noting that there is " a lot of pressure'' to shut down illegal marijuana shops.   

Shevin said it was "unjust'' for his client "to be sitting in jail with real criminals.''   

If convicted, Joseph faces up to 20 years in state prison, according to the District Attorney's Office.

Add a comment

Name:

Comment: 1000 Characters Left

Los Angeles Wave and its affiliated companies are not responsible for the content of comments posted or for anything arising out of use of the above comments or other interaction among the users. We reserve the right to screen, refuse to post, remove or edit user-generated content at any time and for any or no reason in our absolute and sole discretion without prior notice, although we have no duty to do so or to monitor any Public Forum.

On Demand

This content requires the latest Adobe Flash Player and a browser with JavaScript enabled. Click here for a free download of the latest Adobe Flash Player.