Federal judge blocks THC test in West Virginia hemp suit, allows CBD extraction

A federal judge has blocked a government request for a THC test on a batch of West Virginia hemp and said the hemp can be processed for CBD extraction in nearby Pennsylvania.

The developments come as federal prosecutors say they’re going to continue pursuing civil charges against the farm, Grassy Run, and its affiliated company, CAMO Hemp WV – despite hemp legalization in the 2018 Farm Bill.

The hemp companies are accused of improperly acquiring hemp seed and failing to implement security measures.

U.S. District Judge Robert C. Chambers said this month that he’s “increasingly doubtful” that the case will hold up.

Chambers lifted an injunction on processing the hemp in Pennsylvania, saying that “the sale of the CBD isolate is essential to the future plans of the business.”

Later, he accused prosecutors of “blatant factual misrepresentations” about the hemp as he rejected the U.S. Attorney’s request for a THC test, saying West Virginia’s testing showed the plant was well below the 0.3% THC limit for legal hemp.

Chambers criticized the feds’ “flailing attempts” to take control from West Virginia agriculture authorities.

Carte Goodwin, the lawyer for CAMO Hemp, told Hemp Industry Daily that the 2018 Farm Bill “really underscores the arguments we’ve been making” about hemp’s legality in interstate commerce.

Goodwin expects the entire case to be dismissed soon.