A geographically challenged delivery truck driver may end up costing his company a pot of dough, or at least 333 pounds of gummies worth.
In May 2023, a driver working for Kelowna-based Seven Elks Shipping Inc. picked up five pallets of cannabis products in a five-ton truck from locations in Port Coquitlam and Delta, B.C. He was supposed to deliver three pallets to We Grow B.C. in Creston, B.C. and the remainder to Westleaf Labs, L.P. in Calgary, Alberta.
Somehow, he ended up at the U.S. truck border crossing in Blaine. According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) spokesperson Jason A. Givens, “The driver said he was traveling domestically in Canada and was not seeking entry to the U.S. and had made a wrong turn, ending up at the CBP Pacific Highway Cargo Facility.”
Givens said the driver presented paperwork that verified the shipment was a commercial load of marijuana. CBP officers seized the marijuana, which had a total weight of nearly 875 pounds. (Ed. Note: CBP reported the weight of the marijuana at 875 pounds; however, the lawsuit claims 151,300 grams or 333 pounds).
The driver was allowed to return to Canada and the commercial truck was not seized.
On April 15, We Grow B.C. and Westleaf Labs sued Seven Elks in B.C. Supreme Court seeking compensation for the seized goods. Specifically, the plaintiffs are asking Seven Elks to return the $11,910.62 shipping fee that was paid in advance plus the value of the seized cannabis products which at retail would be worth $823,317. The wholesale cost of the product would be about $370,000.
According to the claim filed in court, Seven Elks has acknowledged in writing to the plaintiffs that it was at fault in respect to the seizure but has failed to return the shipping charges or compensate the two companies for the loss of their products. Further, the companies assert that not only has the seizure meant the loss of revenue and profit from the products, they have also suffered reputational losses with their customers.
It is a federal crime to bring marijuana, a Schedule 1 drug, across the U.S./Canada border even though it is legal in both B.C. and Washington state. Other Schedule 1 drugs include heroin, LSD, mescaline, MDMA, psilocybin and bath salts. Someone who admits their purpose in entering the U.S. is to buy or use marijuana will be deemed inadmissible to the U.S. and potentially charged, depending upon the severity of the traveler’s infraction.
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ArthurReber
I had an interesting discussion some time ago with the Port Director here in Point Roberts. I noted that marijuana was legal in both BC and WA so why were was it not legal to bring it across the border. He responded by saying that, while my point was reasonable, at the border, which they have jurisdiction over, it's not legal. I pointed out that the border doesn't exist as an area, a physical space. It has no existential properties. It is merely a demarcation between countries so there's no "there there" where it is illegal.
He wasn't impressed but I do wonder how this argument would be treated in a federal court.... on either side of the border. I recommend that Seven Elks try this route in their appeal.
Thursday, April 25 Report this