The criminal case against an employee of a Tulsa law firm with hundreds of cannabis-related clients has drawn attention to investigations of “ghost owners,” with an attorney encouraging medical marijuana businesses to look into whether they’re actually operating legally.
Kathleen Windler has been charged in Garvin County District Court, accused along with her employer of knowingly fostering illegal medical marijuana operations. Attorneys for Windler, 68, refused comment.
She is accused of conspiring with others to cultivate 6,000 cannabis plants at a property in the 13700 block of North Garvin County County Road 3295 “without lawful authority” under the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority.
Windler’s LinkedIn profile identifies her as a legal secretary for Jones Brown, a law firm with an office in Tulsa.
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The website for Jones Brown generated an error page as of Friday afternoon. Its last post on its Facebook page was made on June 2, and it has not yet responded publicly to the charge against its employee.
Court records show that the Garvin County Sheriff’s Office carried out two raids near Pauls Valley in April with Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control investigators that led to charges against Windler and four others: Guochuan Chen, Di Xu Fang, Dao Feng and Xueli Feng.
The criminal counts include marijuana cultivation, possession of a controlled substance without a tax stamp and — most notably — endeavoring to violate the U.S. Controlled Dangerous Substances Act. Cannabis, despite being legal in Oklahoma for medical use, remains classified as a Schedule I substance under federal law.
OBNDD spokesman Mark Woodward on Friday declined to comment on the case, which generated new attention this week after Tulsa attorney Ron Durbin posted about the situation on Facebook.
Durbin issued a call for medical marijuana businesses to ensure that their paperwork is in order.
“This is a big, big, big, big mess. And I think there’s gonna be a lot bigger story here,” Durbin said Friday afternoon. “Woodward and them are working on something much, much bigger.”
Woodward said the agency is in the process of “aggressively investigating” what he described as “fraudulent business structures” used to bring out-of-state interests to Oklahoma and circumvent the state’s two-year residency requirement for majority ownership in medical marijuana businesses.
“This is done by paying ‘ghost’ owners to put their name on licenses to claim ownership when they actually have no knowledge or true legal involvement in the grow operation,” Woodward said; he did not confirm the names of those being investigated.
Durbin said in excess of 450 licensed businesses could be affected by these investigations, based on a review of public OMMA business logs. He notes that the same email address associated with a law firm — with no apparent connection to Windler — is listed as OMMA’s point of contact for several hundred medical marijuana business operations.
He called that pattern a “red flag” and encouraged businesses to look into whether their legal counsel or industry consultant is listed as the point of contact for other OMMA licensees. Durbin, who represents OMMA-licensed businesses, said the standard is for the client to retain control of OMMA communications by providing the agency a direct email rather than the legal representation’s contact.
The OMMA remains part of the Oklahoma State Department of Health. Asked about Durbin’s post on Friday, OSDH spokeswoman Rachel Klein said, “We are aware of, and continue to monitor, the situation and will take appropriate steps when necessary.”
Meeting minutes from the Rogers County Board of Commissioners show that Windler represented herself as at least a partial operator of a grow operation in Claremore that received approval for a certificate of compliance April 20. The Tulsa World asked Klein what steps are taken upon OMMA seeing the same name on multiple ownership records for applications.
“OMMA is always looking for ways to improve, and we are steadily moving in that direction,” Klein said of the license verification process. “In fact, we are currently implementing a Marijuana Enforcement Team as one way to assist in our efforts.”
Dao Feng, 45, and Windler, who are charged separately, had court appearances Friday morning. A judge ordered them to return for preliminary conferences in October and November, respectively, records show. A state investigator is listed as a prosecution witness, as are multiple Garvin County sheriff’s deputies.
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Framed by State Question 788, passed overwhelmingly by state voters three years ago, Oklahoma’s medical marijuana laws tried to favor small, local operators by limiting out-of-state ownership stakes, setting license fees low and putting no cap on the number of business licenses that could be issued.
10 things that are still illegal under Oklahoma's medical marijuana laws
Can’t get a prescription for marijuana
Marijuana is listed as a schedule 1 controlled substance in federal law, so it cannot be prescribed, only "recommended."
A Ninth Circuit Court ruling ensures protection for doctors who issue recommendations to patients who may benefit from cannabis-based treatments, but federal law precludes doctors from “aiding and abetting” patients obtaining marijuana. This means doctors and patients cannot discuss dosages, strains or specific cannabis products for treating a specific ailment. Doctors instead fill out a form indicating they have discussed the risks of marijuana use with the patient and feel the benefits are worth the treatment.
Some patients who see physicians for pain and are treated with opioids also may not be able to do so and use medical marijuana as a licensed patient.
Can’t use marijuana in the workplace or be impaired on the job
State Question 788 says only that an employer may not discriminate against an employee simply because of their status as a medical marijuana patient. This means that simply having a license cannot be grounds for termination or discipline. That employer can still, however, write and enforce rules that restrict the use of marijuana by employees just like any other controlled substance. No patients would be protected if they come to work high, use marijuana in the workplace or attempt to do their job while impaired.
Can’t transport marijuana across state lines
Patients who obtain medical marijuana cards in other states may purchase from dispensaries there, but the products may not be brought back to Oklahoma. Nor could a patient travel to a state with a recreational marijuana law and bring any legally obtained products back to Oklahoma. Those patients who plan to cultivate marijuana at their own homes would also not be permitted to obtain seeds from another state.
Can't get a doctor's recommendation inside a dispensary
A change to the law made it illegal to post a physician inside a medical marijuana dispensary, as this one did, for customers to sign up as patients inside the retail business operation.
Can't try the product while shopping
The use of any cannabis product is prohibited inside a licensed medical marijuana business, so patients should not expect samples like what some CBD shops have been able to offer.
Can’t smoke marijuana where tobacco also prohibited
The law makes cannabis like tobacco when it comes to public consumption by falling under the Smoking in Public Places and Indoor Workplaces Act.
Can't give marijuana away
Nothing in the law allows for patients to transfer ownership of marijuana. Patients cannot donate or sell marijuana, even to other patients. Licensed patients may cultivate marijuana on their own residential property or, with written permission, on rented property. They cannot grow outdoors unless the plants are surrounded by a locked 6-foot fence. If the yield of the plants at harvest surpasses the legal amount that may be in a patient’s possession, the marijuana must be either processed or destroyed. Patients may process their own marijuana for concentrates or edibles but would not be permitted to perform extractions using butane.
Can’t drive while impaired on marijuana
Although it is legal for patients to have a certain amount of marijuana on their person, if that patient is behind the wheel, a law enforcement officer will evaluate whether the person is at all impaired. Driving while under the influence remains illegal even for medical marijuana patients.
Can’t possess an excessive amount of marijuana
A patient remains within the legal guidelines if they possess no more than 3 ounces of marijuana on their person and 8 ounces at their residence, 1 ounce of concentrated marijuana, and 72 ounces of edible marijuana. If caught exceeding those limitations, a patient would lose their license and could face criminal charges including intent to distribute or trafficking.
Can't smoke where you're told not to
Renters have no legal right to smoke medical marijuana, even with a patient card, if the landlord/owner issues rules for residents that prohibit smoking.
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