The legal battle over CBD continues in France

Despite MILDECA and DAGC, CBD stores are springing up all over France. However, many of them receive their customers immediately. a visit to the drug squad. Acquisition, transport, possession, transfer of narcotics and incitement to consumption, the charges are always the same. The fate of CBD is thus referred to the courts, which sometimes acquit, sometimes convict.

First cases of acquittal

Since the summer of 2018, the crackdown on CBD stores has been going strong. At the start of 2019, a number of cases have been brought to a successful conclusion, and the courts have more than once recognized the legality of CBD products under European legislation. The latter specifies that products derived from hemp varieties registered in the European catalog and with a THC content of less than 0.2% are legal in Europe. Stores complying with these provisions are therefore in compliance with European law.

• In Le Havre, Cyrille Bjaoui, the manager of the Weed Corner store whose entire stock (oils, extracts, balms, tea, but no flowers) had been seized by police on August 8, was acquitted of all charges on January 7. »Analysis of his products revealed THC levels of between 0.007 % and 0.0147 %, below the European threshold of 0.2 %. However, the public prosecutor has appealed, and the case is still pending. «We will continue to defend our business and its legality with all our heart and soul,» explains the manager. The store was able to reopen after 7 months of administrative closure. Cyrille is still struggling to get the word out, however, because Facebook prevents him from being seen The judiciary is now social networks«.
• In La-Roche-Foron, the managers of the store Organically Your were placed under judicial supervision before being released at the end of January by the Bonneville court. Organiquement Votre's products, made from industrial hemp grown in France from seeds registered in the European Union, comply with European legislation. A fact that Maître Gilles Boin was able to have recognized by the court. However, the prosecutor has decided to appeal.
• In Reims, tobacconists who were selling CBD products were released as well.

For the moment, acquittals are rare, as justice takes time, but numerous trials are underway. These cases could multiply and set a precedent for the government's inaction in terms of regulation. However, these acquittals are only half-hearted victories, as legal proceedings entail extremely heavy losses for retailers: administrative closure, loss of earnings, legal fees, not to mention the psychological pressure they face.

Unequal justice

Given the legal uncertainty surrounding the issue of CBD, justice is rendered unevenly, to say the least. Recently, some shopkeepers in Toulouse were sentenced to 12 months in prison (10 of which were suspended), while not far away in Montpellier, a similar case was dismissed (the products were tested and returned, with the court acknowledging that there had been no offence). Other cases were not bothered by the police at a time when searches are multiplying all over France. It all depends on the goodwill of local prosecutors, according to Cyrille Bjaoui, who explains: «One of my colleagues in the town of Caen, 70 km away, has never been worried.

To remedy this situation, certain organizations are campaigning for the rights of the hemp industry to be recognized, and for the government to introduce clear regulations governing the CBD trade. A fact-finding mission Members of parliament have also requested an inquiry into the legal uncertainty surrounding the hemp and wellness sector, particularly as regards the use of flowers and CBD. «Is this really the priority in the fight against drug trafficking? When these products can be bought over the Internet? When real trafficking takes place every day on street corners?» asked Maitre Julien Plouton, the lawyer who reopened a Bordeaux shop.

Some are taking a more offensive approach to protest against unjust criminalization. This is the case of Bastien, manager of a shop in Cambrai: after a complete seizure of his stock (including dangerous hemp pastes), a theatrical exit in handcuffs and police custody, he has decided to lodge pre-litigation complaints for defamation, obstructing the smooth running of a business, abusive search and damaging the brand image of a business.

Not long ago, has been referred to the European Court of Justice in the Kanavape case. It could force France to comply with European legislation on hemp. The two creators of the first CBD e-cigarette had been sued by the Ordre des pharmaciens (French pharmacists' association) for touting the benefits of CBD. therapeutic properties of CBD.