Attorney General Schwalb Shuts Down Illegal Cannabis Shops Across the District

OAG Enforcement Has Led to 25 Store Closures, Investigations Found That Cannabis Products Were Often Tainted with Amphetamine & Other Narcotics


Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb today announced that the Office of the Attorney General’s (OAG) enforcement efforts over the past six months have led to the closure of 25 unlicensed cannabis retailers in the District. In partnership with the District Alcoholic Beverage and Cannabis Administration (ABCA) and the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), OAG’s Civil Enforcement Section (CES) has brought actions against a total of 38 unlicensed establishments illegally selling cannabis products, many of which were tainted with other narcotics and posed an imminent threat to District residents’ health and safety.

“For too long, unlicensed cannabis stores have been illegally selling unregulated, untested products that put District residents’ safety at risk,” said Attorney General Schwalb. “All so-called ‘gifting shops’ were given ample time to apply for legal medical marijuana licenses, but many failed or refused to do so. OAG, ABCA, and MPD have partnered to shut down these illegal retailers demonstrating our collective commitment to ensuring that every store selling cannabis products in the District complies with the law and plays by the rules.”

In 2023, the DC Council passed legislation expanding the District’s medical cannabis system and providing a legal pathway to bring gifting shops into the regulated medical cannabis marketplace. Additional legislation then gave OAG and ABCA the authority to bring civil enforcement actions against establishments that fail to apply for medical licenses and continue operating in the illegal gifting market.

During joint enforcement operations between ABCA, MPD, and the Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection (DLCP), investigators purchase and test the products, often finding cannabis that tests positive for other narcotics, including amphetamines and psilocybin. In some cases, officers have executed search warrants and recovered weapons, cash, cocaine, and other illegal drugs. After being forced to close, the owners of one unlicensed establishment twice broke into the shuttered location and changed the locks before being permanently shut down. The closure of another store led to the arrest of an owner and the recovery of over 35 pounds of cannabis flower, 22 pounds of THC edibles, 6 pounds of psylocibin mushrooms and edibles, 2 pounds of cocaine, 2 pounds of methamphetamine, $6,817.72 cash, a semi-automatic handgun, and ten dogs from the premises.

In July of 2024, ABCA began issuing cease-and-desist orders to unlicensed businesses, and in September 2024, with OAG’s collaboration, successfully closed the first shop that failed to comply, Supreme Terpene. Since then, the following shops have been closed or have come into compliance with the law thanks to joint District enforcement action:

  • Supreme Terpene: 1344 U Street NW
  • Green Cloud Shop: 706 Kennedy Street NW
  • All American Papers: 504 H Street NE
  • Farmerz/Stonerz: 3236 Prospect Street NW
  • The Green Room/Flight Pass: 1338 U Street NW
  • In the Cut: 1460 Park Road NW
  • Capitol Budz: 607 Pennsylvania Avenue SE
  • Coupons R Us: 6234 Georgia Avenue NW
  • Kaliiva: 1731 Columbia Road NW
  • Peace in the Air: 2118 18th Street NW
  • Promoco LLC: 1813 18th Street NW
  • CBT LLC: 335 H Street NE
  • LifeLuxee/Cannabis Karma: 825 Upshur Street NW
  • All the Buzz: 3232 Georgia Avenue NW
  • KAE/Green Department: 2720 Georgia Avenue NW
  • Capital THC: 1123 Pennsylvania Avenue SE
  • Hidden Gym, LLC: 1508 14th Street NW*
  • Forest Floor: 924 5th Street NW
  • Pride Smoke Shop: 1502 21st Street NW
  • YouGroGurl: 337 H Street NE
  • VIP Clientele: 3551 Georgia Avenue NW*
  • Power Night Club: 2335 Bladensburg Road NE*
  • Dreams Smoke Shop: 2335 18th Street NW*
  • Nomad Smoke Shop: 2026 Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE*
  • District Smoke Shop/District Cure: 2626 Georgia Avenue NW** 

* Reopened as a Non-Cannabis Retailer
** Licensed facility remains open; unlicensed second floor unit closed

OAG’s Unlicensed Cannabis Enforcement actions are primarily conducted by Assistant Attorneys General Shani Brown, Anthony Celo, Collin Cenci, Alycia Hogenmiller, Sophia Mietus, and Christopher Southcott under the supervision of Kimberly Johnson, Chief of the Civil Enforcement Section, and Kerslyn Featherstone, Assistant Chief of the Civil Enforcement Section.