The Hemp Industry Leaders of Texas (HILT), alongside business owner Sabihe Kahn, have filed a federal lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of a series of police raids on hemp businesses in Allen, Texas.
Filed in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas by prominent cannabis attorney David Sergi, the lawsuit names the City of Allen, Allen Police Department, Collin County Sheriff, and the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) as defendants. The suit alleges that these agencies violated the constitutional rights of HILT members through unlawful arrests and raids, citing improper characterization of legal hemp as cannabis and the use of flawed testing methods.
On August 27, 2024, Allen Police, in coordination with the DEA, raided Mr. Kahn’s hemp business, Allen Smoke and Vape, along with other HILT-affiliated shops, under search warrants based on outdated testing standards.
The lawsuit claims these actions defied a previous federal court order prohibiting the DEA from using subpoenas to investigate members of the Allen Vape Coalition, which preceded HILT. The suit alleges that law enforcement deliberately circumvented the federal ruling to continue targeting these businesses.
Mr. Kahn, a 70-year-old community member and law-abiding business owner, was arrested and detained without bond for two days, underscoring what the lawsuit describes as excessive force and biased law enforcement tactics.
The suit highlights the procedural errors and constitutional issues surrounding the raids, including unreasonable searches and seizures, faulty THC testing methods, and lack of probable cause.
Allen Police allegedly employed field tests known to produce inaccurate results, treating all THC content as Delta-9 THC, thereby making legal hemp appear unlawful. HILT asserts that Certificates of Analysis (COAs) were available for all products at the time of the seizures, verifying their compliance with the legal THC limit under Texas and federal law. Despite this, products were seized, and the businesses faced negative public perception due to the raids.
Further complicating matters, the DEA issued subpoenas to Mr. Kahn and other HILT members, demanding extensive personal and financial records under the pretext of a ‘fishing expedition.’ A judge subsequently halted these subpoenas, citing lack of lawful authority.
Following this, Allen’s City Council moved to restrict zoning for new hemp and vape stores, effectively limiting the growth of hemp-related businesses in the area. Despite legal arguments presented by HILT’s attorneys, the council later passed modified restrictions that, while not barring existing stores, prohibited new hemp businesses from opening in the city’s commercial zones.
HILT’s lawsuit contends that these raids, restrictions, and public stigmatization have caused substantial financial harm to hemp business owners and discouraged community participation in the legal hemp market. The association claims that negative publicity has eroded customer trust and deterred prospective new members from joining the organization, ultimately limiting its capacity to support and represent Texas’s hemp industry.
