Calif. police trespassed on native land, destroyed $100,000 worth of pot, lawsuit says – By Lester Black (SFGATE) / Aug 2, 2023
Sheriff’s deputies in Northern California trespassed on Native American land and wrongfully destroyed more than 100,000 cannabis plants, according to a new lawsuit filed in federal court this week.
Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office deputies raided the farm in July of last year, destroying 113,361 plants worth more than $100,000, as well as multiple greenhouses, according to the lawsuit filed by the farm owner, Gary Cordova. The farm was located in Covelo, a small Mendocino County town that sits within the Round Valley Indian Reservation.
The sheriff’s department said the farm was violating the state’s medical marijuana laws, according to a search warrant attached to the lawsuit, but Cordova says that the farm was fully legal under the Round Valley Indian Tribes’ laws.
