Port Jervis Cannabis Stores Raided and Closed
Closure is attributed to Illicit cannabis charges
By David Ofshinsky
Two Port Jervis cannabis shops, Port Jervis CBD, 76 Front St. and Smilie’s, 23 Front St., were shut down on Wednesday. June 26. Their cannabis products were seized, and their doors were padlocked and sealed by state authorities.
The closures stem from initiatives announced in April by Governor Kathy Hochul to shut down illicit cannabis operations to protect the legal marketplace. The new regulations provide the New York State Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) and local municipalities with authority to take action against illicit storefronts and those who enable them. As part of the effort, the New York State Illicit Cannabis Enforcement Task Force (ICET) was launched. The task force is a coordinated, state-wide inter-agency effort to shut down illegal and illicit cannabis businesses through civil enforcement. Along with OCM, the NY Department of Taxation and Finance and NY State Police are among over a dozen stakeholders in the group. According to the Governor’s Office, over 114 unlicensed shops have been shuttered and roughly $30 million worth of illicit products have been seized since the start of the initiative.
A review of OCM records disclosed that Port Jervis CBD holds a Cannabinoid Hemp Retail License. This allows the store to sell cannabinoid hemp, or "CBD” products such as tinctures, oils, topicals, pills, capsules and food or beverages with THC concentrations less than or equal to 0.3 percent. The store does not have an adult-use retail dispensary license to sell cannabis products. No license information of any kind was found for Smilie’s.
A neighborhood resident said they once found the owner of Smilie’s, whose name they didn’t know, asleep or passed out sitting in the alley next to the store, leaning against a wall.
“I was afraid he was dead,” the neighbor said.
However, he did get up eventually.
These store closures are civil enforcement actions that entail potential fines and penalties, but not criminal charges. A Tri-State Lookout request for additional information regarding this matter has been made with OCM and awaits a response. Attempts to get comments from individuals associated with the shops were not successful.
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