GRAND RAPIDS, MI – State police crime labs intentionally misrepresent marijuana oil and edibles as having unknown origins, a tactic that can turn a misdemeanor possession charge into a felony and remove protections for Michigan’s medical marijuana users, a federal lawsuit claims.
Maxwell Lorincz of Spring Lake and three others from the east side of Michigan are seeking class-action status in a lawsuit filed this week in U.S. District Court in Detroit against state police Col. Kriste Kibbey Etue and Inspector Scott Marier, interim director of the Forensic Science Division.
They allege the state police Forensic Division, in concert with the Prosecuting Attorney’s Association of Michigan, or PAAM, established a policy to report marijuana-based edibles and oils as, at least potentially, having an unknown origin if no visible plant material is present.
The active ingredient in marijuana, THC, could then be declared a synthetic substance.
“At least one reason for the policy change was to better establish probable cause to arrest medical marijuana patients, obtain forfeiture of their assets, charge them with crimes they did not commit, and to allow felony charges against others for what is at most a misdemeanor,” Farmington Hills attorney Michael Komorn said in the lawsuit.
State police would not comment with legal action pending, spokeswoman Shanon Banner said.
GRAND HAVEN, MI — The Ottawa County prosecutor says he is not out to overcharge Michigan Medical Marijuana Act cardholders who run afoul of state law. Prosecutor Ron Frantz offered the comments as he responded to criticism about a felony charge against a Spring Lake man who holds a medical marijuana card. Max Lorincz is charged with possession of…
The lawsuit also names Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard and his forensic sciences lab commander as defendants for also allegedly designating oils and edibles as Schedule 1 THC, without any qualification as to its origin.
Undersheriff Michael McCabe, who reviewed the lawsuit that has yet to be served, said the sheriff’s laboratory has received high marks and was recently re-accredited by the American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors/Laboratory Accreditation Board.
“Our testing procedures are above and beyond reproach,” he told The Grand Rapids Press and MLive.
“As far as we’re concerned, the lawsuit, in regards to Oakland County Sheriff’s Office, it’s garbage.”
He said his agency has not talked to state police or the prosecutors’ association – or the Oakland County prosecutor – about its procedures.
“We report the test results,” he said. “Charging decisions are made by the prosecutor’s office independently.”
Lorincz, a medical-marijuana patient, is joined in the lawsuit by Oakland County residents Brandon Shoebe, a licensed medical marijuana caregiver, and Cantrell Carruthers, a licensed caregiver and patient, and Livingston County resident Jason Poe, a licensed patient.
The lawsuit focuses primarily on Lorincz’s case. He was arrested last year after police found residue of oil extracted from marijuana while responding to a medical call at his northern Ottawa County home. Lorincz presented his medical-marijuana documentation, but the sample was sent to a crime lab in Grand Rapids for testing.
Max Lorincz is charged with a two-year felony.
Lorincz was charged with possession of marijuana. He insisted he had immunity. He says prosecutors threatened to charge him with a felony of possession of synthetic THC, and did just that when he refused to plead to the misdemeanor.
A Forensic Division scientist testified he could not tell if the THC sample came from a plant or was synthetic.
Prosecutors argued that the charge was appropriate because crime lab workers determined the origin of the THC sample was unknown because no plant material was present.
Prosecutor Ronald Frantz wrote then: “The court’s decision turned on definitions and statutory language that we believed supported the charge as written. The District Court judge found our interpretation to be correct, Circuit Judge Post disagreed and ruled otherwise. … We believe the increasing prevalence of extremely high potency marijuana-based and synthetic-based drugs is reason to update and clarify our statutes.”
Maxwell, who lost custody of his young son for a time, did not see his troubles end.
“Maxwell and the approximately 200,000 other participants in the (medical marijuana program) face the prospect of being wrongly detained, searched, and prosecuted as a result of the Forensic Division’s official reporting policy regarding marijuana,” Komorn wrote.
“Indeed, the rights of numerous other Michigan citizens are endangered by this policy of reporting false felonies.”
He said the state police crime lab’s own results of the substance in Maxwell’s case showed it to be plant-based.
Komorn said that state police documents obtained under Freedom of Information Act requests showed “a concerted action by Forensic Division, PAAM, and law enforcement to ignore the law and bend the science so as to report all marijuana oils and solids that do not contain visible plant matter as potentially Schedule 1 synthetic THC … .
“In fact, the Forensic Division actually changed its lab manual to require this result from its scientists. This change was made in an attempt to strip medical marijuana patients of their rights and immunities, charge or threaten to charge citizens with greater crimes than they might have committed, obtain plea deals, and increase proceeds from drug forfeiture.”
He said that a crime lab scientist wrote “that ‘it is highly doubtful that any of these (medical marijuana) products we are seeing have THC that was synthesized.”
Komorn said it makes no sense that anyone would try to synthesize THC given the ease of obtaining it from marijuana.
He said that Bradley Choate, a supervisor at the Lansing lab, objected to THC being labeled as potentially synthetic if plant material wasn’t found. Choate wrote in an email that such a designation “would lead a prosecutor to the synthetic portion of the law. …
“This could lead to the wrong charge of possession of synthetic THC and the ultimate wrongful conviction of an individual.
“For the laboratory to contribute to this possible miscarriage of justice would be a huge black eye for the division and the department.”
If you or someone you know is facing charges as a result of Medical Marijuana recommended to you as a medical marijuana patient under the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act, contact Komorn Law and ensure your rights are protected. Michael Komorn is recognized as a leading expert on the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act. He is the President of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association (MMMA), a nonprofit patient advocacy group which advocates for the rights of medical marijuana patients and their caregivers.
Contact us for a free no-obligation case evaluation at 800-656-3557.
A Michigan man has been living a nightmare. He lost custody of his son after a felony marijuana bust, even though he has a valid medical marijuana card.
Max Lorincz is fighting to clear his name after he was accused of possessing synthetic marijuana. His bizarre case has revealed how politics might influence pot prosecutions in Michigan.
Lorincz claims he suffers from a debilitating back injury. He says when he traded prescription drugs for this edible candy containing marijuana his symptoms got better.
But it was a small amount of hash oil that landed Lorincz in the weeds.
Police found it when paramedics came to his house on an unrelated medical emergency. Prosecutors charged Lorincz with a felony after the state crime lab determined his hash oil came from an “origin unknown,” implying it is synthetic.
Michigan’s medical marijuana law says only leaves and flowers are legal, and concentrates are a crime.
“I’ve had to go back to the narcotic pain medications, and it’s just terrible,” said Lorincz.
Lorincz tells Crime Watch Daily Grand Rapids affiliate WXMI as his case wound its way through the system, he was forced to go back on powerful painkillers.
“The doctors are telling me one thing, the judge is saying another, and when I followed my doctor’s recommendations, that’s when my health started to get better,” Lorincz said. “Going back and following what the judge is saying, my health’s just been deteriorating ever since.”
Max Lorincz says what was worse was losing custody of his 6-year-old boy. In court a social worker testified against Lorincz, saying his use of marijuana, even if it is legal, may make him an unfit parent.
“This is a political decision,” said Lorincz’s lawyer Michael Komorn.
Komorn claims prosecutors influence the state lab to misreport results so they can get more convictions.
“What is unique about this case is they are relying on the lab to report these substances so they can escalate these crimes from misdemeanors to felonies,” said Komorn.
A former lab director says Komorn’s claims are true.
“So it was in my experience, it was just a nonstop political game that really got frustrating and it wore down the morale of our staff, and quite honestly it wore me down,” said John Collins, a former lab director.
Collins quit his job as director of the state lab after he says he was pressured to produce results that favored the prosecution.
“Our laboratories are not in the prosecution business, they’re not in the conviction business, they’re in the science business,” said Collins.
The Michigan Prosecuting Attorneys Association is denying those claims from Lorincz and his attorney.
As for Max Lorincz, he’s now off the hook. A judge dismissed the felony charge, saying there was no evidence to prove the hash oil was synthetic.
Lorincz and his wife are reunited with their son.
“It’s like a hundred pounds has been lifted off my chest,” said Lorincz. “It’s like our entire life was put on hold the entire time he was gone.
“We’ll try and have as many positive memories as we can to make up the gap but there’s definitely nothing that makes up for the time that we lost, that’s for sure,” said Lorincz.
The Criminal Defense Attorney of Michigan’s Award Committee has selected Michael J. Komorn as the recipient of their Right to Counsel Award. This award recognizes the amazing contributions of a group or individual in the form of legal representation or other extraordinary service.
Komorn was recognized at CDAM’s Annual Dinner and Awards Banquet, Friday, March 11, 2016, at the Troy, Marriott.
Said CDAM President Patricia A. Maceroni, “CDAM is delighted to recognize Michael Komorn for his extraordinary work in uncovering testing irregularities at the Michigan State Police Forensic Crime Lab while representing his client, Max Lorincz, pro bono.”
While defending Lorincz, Komorn obtained emails through the Freedom of Information Act uncovering recent changes in Crime Lab policies. These policies allowed for the reporting of marijuana abstract residue as “origin unknown.
Said Komorn during a recent interview with Michigan Radio, “The lab specifically changed their policy to report these things in a way that they could arrest patients or caregivers, instead of honoring the protections of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act.”wn” allowing prosecutors to charge someone with having synthetic THC, a felony, rather than marijuana, a two year misdemeanor.
Said Komorn during a recent interview with Michigan Radio, “The lab specifically changed their policy to report these things in a way that they could arrest patients or caregivers, instead of honoring the protections of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act.”
In January 2016, Komorn was successful in getting Max Lorincz’ two year felony charge dismissed.
Michigan’s NORML chapter awarded some of the state’s most prominent and outspoken advocates for marijuana law reform during the organization’s Quarterly Meeting held on April 1.
MINORML issues these awards annually, and some are named for activists who have passed away.
Legislator of the Year Award went to Rep. Jeff Irwin (D-Ann Arbor). Rep. Irwin has advocated on behalf of sensible policies and has authored bills on forfeiture reform and marijuana law reform. The Renee Emery Wolfe Activist Award was given to Kevin McCaffery, a Board member of the MILegalize group and a steadfast ally in legalizing cannabis.
A new award, the Gaitwood Galbraith Attorney of the Year Award, was given to criminal defense attorney Michael Komorn. In addition to numerous courtroom victories, Komorn Law uncovered a scandal with scientific reporting of cannabis evidence by the Michigan State Police Crime Lab. Also new: the John Dewitte Evans Veterans Award, given for the very first time to Dakota Serna. Serna has traveled the country advocating for veterans and the use of medical marijuana.
The difficulties of starting a chapter in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula have seemingly been overcome by a group of diehards called the Marquette Work Group, and they were awarded the Gregory Scott Piasecki Work-Group/Chapter Award.
Activist and all-around great guy, Archie Kiel, was given the 420 Award. Outstanding Achievement Awards were given to MILegalize Chair Jeff Hank, Robin Puckett of Jackson NORML, and rising star Colin MacDougall.
The meeting was held at the Eagles Club in Ypsilanti on the afternoon before the Hash Bash and Monroe Street Fairs. Approx. 100 people attended the meeting, where the NORML chapter announces finances and allows anyone to address the Board with suggestions, praise or grievances. An auction held afterward featured a signed Detroit Tigers baseball, a magazine autographed by Tommy Chong, posters and clothing and artwork.
The big winner of the evening was Tom Gillies. A member of the Deaf Power Cannabis group, he won the ultimate High Times Medical Cannabis Cup prize package. Tom and a guest will be given VIP passes and a two-night stay at an area hotel during the annual Cup event in Clio on June 11 and 12. Michigan NORML provided a sign language interpreter for the meeting.
MINORML’s entire release is reproduced below.
The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws
P.O. Box 2293 ~ Kalamazoo, MI 49003
Michigan NORML would like to take this opportunity to thank all the award winners for their outstanding service to the cannabis community in 2015!
We would also like to thank everyone who contributed or made extraordinary contributions to cannabis reform who were not recognized!
We could have given out a thousand awards this year because our community is very active and so many individuals have demonstrated dedication to this cause. We thank all of you and we hope that next year, one of our awards will have your name on it!
Rick Thompson was the Editor in Chief for the entire 2-year run of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Magazine, was the spokesman for the Michigan Association of Compassion Centers and is the current Editor and Lead Blogger for The Compassion Chronicles. Rick has addressed committees in both the House and Senate, has authored over 200 articles on marijuana and is a professional photographer. He can be reached at: 4mrick@gmail.com
GRAND HAVEN, MI — A judge has sided with a Spring Lake man in his battle to get a felony marijuana charge dismissed, a case that hinged on controversial state police testing methods.
Ottawa County Circuit Court Judge Ed Post granted a motion to quash the case against 35-year-old Max Lorincz, who was charged with possessing synthetic THC.
Lorincz was charged in early 2015 with possessing marijuana after police responded to his house for a medical call and found a small container containing a dab of marijuana oil. Lorincz uses the oil to control pain after a 2005 debilitating back injury.
Lorincz argued he was a registered medical marijuana patient and refused to plead guilty to the charge. Prosecutors then upgraded the count to the felony.
Prosecutors alleged the charge was appropriate because state police crime lab technicians simply listed the oil as containing THC, with the origin unknown because there was no plant-based material found.
But Lorincz’s attorney, Michael Komorn, argued that prosecutors need more evidence before they can file a charge of synthetic THC. In Lorincz’s case, the oil was from marijuana, he said.
Komorn argued some prosecutors across the state have pressured the crime lab to report oils and waxes as “origin unknown,” allow them to pursue harsher charges.
The troubles surrounding the felony charge for Lorincz involved more than just a criminal case.
Authorities placed the 6-year-old son of Lorincz and his wife into foster care after an Ottawa County Family Court petition was filed. Their son has been in foster care for more than a year and the couple, as of late October, only had supervised visitation rights.
A hearing is scheduled for Friday, Jan. 22, to review the Family Court case.
Frantz issued the following statement following Post’s ruling:
“The court’s decision turned on definitions and statutory language that we believed supported the charge as written. The District Court judge found our interpretation to be correct, Circuit Judge Post disagreed and ruled otherwise,” Frantz wrote.
“We believe the increasing prevalence of extremely high potency marijuana-based and synthetic-based drugs is reason to update and clarify our statutes,” he said.
OTTAWA COUNTY, Mich. – First uncoveredby FOX 17 an alleged scandal in how state crime labs are testing and reporting marijuana, namely marijuana by-products with no visible plant matter, as felonies.
Lorincz lost custody of his 6-year-old son in part due to this felony.
After reporting on the case over nine months, FOX 17 exclusively reported a shocking email chain that spans months between Michigan State Police Forensic Science Division employees and the Attorney General’s office.
Obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, these emails show debates on how the state’s crime labs changed how they report marijuana. The defense, attorney Michael Komorn and Komorn Law, PLLC, is charging state agencies with directing the lab employees to falsely present results on marijuana products, including cases where plant material is not seen.
The result: felony charges Komorn argues are lies.
Komorn showed evidence in emails that MSP Forensic Science Division is being directed by the Attorney General’s office and the Prosecuting Attorneys Association of Michigan (PAAM) to change the way marijuana is reported to create felonies. PAAM is a non-profit, which is governed by a board of directors including the Attorney General.
“What is unique about this case is that they [the prosecution] are relying on the lab to report these substances so that they can escalate these crimes from misdemeanors to felonies,” said Komorn.
Documents obtained via FOIA, showcase emails about meetings (for instance, July 2013) and direct communication between MSP Forensic Science Division directors, scientists, PAAM, as well as officials with the AG’s office.
An excerpt from an email dated Dec. 13, 2013 suggests an AG official influenced the state crime labs on whether it is the lab’s responsibility to determine if THC tested is natural or synthetic; again, this is the difference between a misdemeanor and a felony.
A technical leader of controlled substances with MSP crime labs wrote an email to colleagues and quoted Ken Stecker, an official with the AG’s office:
“That is my opinion, THC is a schedule 1 drug regardless of where it comes from. I hope that helps. Ken”
Then, the technical leader of controlled substances at a state lab continues to direct other state lab personnel and write:
“Examiner’s that are identifying food products or other non-plant materials as marihuana without the visualization of any plant material should discontinue this practice. The final identification of all phases of testing can only be marihuana when plant fragments, portions, samples, plant hairs or actual plants are visualized by the scientist. To my knowledge, the only other two laboratories that have expressed this concern are Northville and Lansing.” Komorn believes this policy change is not science-based.
“This is like a political decision, and somewhere in there they say well Ken Stecker is going to be the consultant on this going forward, and his position is that THC is a schedule 1,” said Komorn.
“That’s not the law. That’s an incorrect, illegal misinterpretation of the law that he then decrees as the policy for the state lab.”
This AG official’s “opinion” was written into lab procedure. Several emails show other MSP lab supervisors and scientists vehemently oppose it.
For example, a MSP Lansing controlled substances supervisor wrote his disagreements with this policy to colleagues, including an excerpt from an email dated Feb. 14, 2014:
“Prosecutor’s rely on our reports to determine what to charge a person with. A report that states delta-1-THC without any other statement would lead a Prosecutor to the synthetic portion of the law since this is the only place where THC is specifically listed. This could lead to the wrong charge of possession of synthetic THC and the ultimate wrongful conviction of an individual. For the laboratory to contribute to this possible miscarriage of justice would be a huge black eye for the Division and the Department.” This supervisor wrote further concerns in an email to many colleagues nearly one year later, dated Jan. 28, 2015, writing in part:
“Upon reading this correspondence I immediately thought about the Guiding Principles training we receive yearly. Under Professionalism it states that “Conclusions are based on the evidence and reference material relevant to the evidence, not on extraneous information, political pressure, or other outside influences.” Whether or not an individual has a medical marijuana card is immaterial to how we report out our results.
When we made the previous changes I made it very apparent that I did not agree with it. One of my concerns was that by reporting out THC instead of marihuana it would lead to Prosecutors charging people with synthetic THC. This appears to be what the agency wants.”
Another MSP Northville lab scientist wrote the following to colleagues, stating concerns with new reporting policy:
“In order to place the actual compound THC in schedule 1, the criteria of ‘synthetic equivalent’ should be met. Since we really can’t do this, there are many of us who feel that these new evidentiary materials containing THC without any botanical morphology characteristics (candy, butter, etc..) should be identified as resinous extracts of Marihuana.
If you are to call it ‘THC,’ at a minimum, a statement should be provided in the additional information stating that the ‘origin, whether naturally occurring or synthetic could not be determined.’ Also, by going out on that limb and calling it THC, you now jump from a misdemeanor to a felony charge.
We’re bringing this up because there seemed to be some concern about uniformity in making these calls. Further, it is highly doubtful that any of these Med. Mar. products we are seeing have THC that was synthesized. This would be completely impractical. We are more likely seeing naturally occurring THC extracted from the plant!”
“The most damning evidence is that their own forensic scientists, when they’re objecting to the way the lab is going to change their reporting policies, calls them out that they can’t do it based on forensic science, and yet they do it anyways,” said Komorn.
Thursday afternoon, the Prosecuting Attorneys Association of Michigan’s President Michael Wendling responded to FOX 17’s questions with the following statements:
“The Michigan State Police Forensic Science Division sets its own testing and reporting protocols. Neither PAAM nor county prosecutors make those protocols.”
“The MSP Forensic Science Division makes its own decisions relative to the lab protocol. Any decision to report that the source of THC is undetermined does not create a misdemeanor or felony offense. Lab reports document the findings of scientific testing. Those findings, in conjunction with other relevant evidence are considered by prosecutors may be used in when the decision whether to charge a crime and which crime to charge is made.”
“Prosecutors do not receive requests to charge criminal cases from the MSP Forensic Science Division. The MSP Forensic Division reports scientific findings. Prosecutors receive those reports and use them to make decisions regarding whether there is sufficient evidence to pursue criminal charges. Any accusation that the Lab and PAAM are directing lab personnel to report crimes without evidence is untrue. PAAM has no authority over, nor does it direct the MSP Forensic Science Division.”
Yet again in this case, several lab scientists and supervisors expressed they are against this new marijuana reporting protocol.
As FOX 17 reported, the defense filed several motions in Ottawa County Circuit Court this week. The motions ask for Max Lorincz’s charges to be dismissed, as well as asking the accused organizations’ employees to show cause, or credible evidence to show science backs their protocol, in order to not be held in contempt of court.
