John SchroyerHumboldt County, part of the California Emerald Triangle’s crown jewel of cannabis production, is now in the crosshairs of a federal class action lawsuit for an eight-year-old “abatement program” that levied millions of dollars in fines on property owners over alleged marijuana-related infractions.
The suit, which was originally filed in 2022, will now be allowed to move forward with constitutional claims against the county by property owners who were fined, after the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on Dec. 30 reversed a lower court’s dismissal of the case last May, Law360 reported. It will be heard again by the judge who dismissed the case last year, U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert M. Illman.
The three-judge appellate court ruled that the plaintiffs in the case – a trio of homeowners in Humboldt County who claim they were wrongly penalized by the county to the tune of millions of dollars – can pursue their claims after finding that the residents had “plausibly alleged a sufficient concrete injury” and were entitled to be heard.
The property owners, including Corinne and Doug Thomas, Blu Graham and Rhonda Olson, sparked the suit after being hit with fines from the county over alleged cannabis cultivation, despite the fact that none of them ever grew any marijuana, the suit contends. They claim that the millions in fines from the county’s abatement program were excessive under the Constitution’s Eighth Amendment, and the Ninth Circuit seemed inclined to agree.
“The continued imposition of significant penalties caused plaintiffs emotional and psychological distress, and they incurred expenses attempting to abate the violations by hiring engineers to inspect their property and attorneys to defend them in hearings,” the judges wrote in an opinion released Monday, which ordered the case reopened at the district court level.
Attorney Jared McClain, who is spearheading the case for the plaintiffs and is a principal with the Institute for Justice, told Law360 that county officials “did not even allege they grew cannabis, they just said that cannabis had once been grown on the land.”
The county allegedly used old satellite images to determine which properties had once housed illegal marijuana grows and proceeded to issue fines to the land owners, even if the supposed cannabis crimes predated the current property ownership.
“Guilt is personal, and you can’t charge someone for someone else’s conduct,” McClain told Law360. “They’re levying these millions of dollars of fines for conduct they admit a prior property owner committed, and they’re doing it without a hearing.”
An attorney for Humboldt County declined to comment on the lawsuit to Law360.
Redheaded Blackbelt further reported that roughly 1,200 such abatement notices and fines have been issued by the county since 2017, when the county program was enacted as a response to statewide cannabis legalization, which won at the ballot box in 2016. Those abatement notices and fines have added up to “hundreds of millions of dollars,” the Institute for Justice wrote on its website about the class action.
“I couldn’t think of a better way to close the year and begin anew,” Olson, who’s been fined $7.4 million by the county for cannabis-related crimes of the prior property owner, told Redheaded Blackbelt of the appellate ruling. “We’ve been so abused by Humboldt county it’s really gratifying to feel heard after all these years.”
Thomas v Humboldt
One comment
Frederick Wilson Breckenridge
April 14, 2025 at 4:42 am
I am so embarrassed to have at one time called Rex a friend. In his favor, Cutten fields was great for the kids.
Hasn’t really done much for them since. 2002.
“Hey dad did you see the look on this kids face when we bear maced them.
Did Trevor’s Two Felony DUIs get dismissed instead of enhancing the previous allegations of home invasion and child abuse.
Record shows, that Rex wouldn’t admit it if he did, but does struggle to remember clearly.
Note to Stacy Eads, are you slow honey? You are the legal authority and you need to do your damn job or pass the torch.
The three separate county offices Supervisor, Sheriff, and DA stand alone to make sure nothing even presents the slightest appearance to be a conflict of interest.
Hansel’s deputies are punch themselves against the ropes at a pace only comparable to EPD.
We Sacrifice the right to remain silent in fear of retaliation, Humboldt vs Breckenridge for example.
Three folks yelling at one time and they take only Rex Bohns report?
Horticulture of the sacred herbs and other “instant relief of pain and discomfort” is protected by Separation of Church and State. And even more important a pass time we all had pride in and brought cash and equity, nevermind Officer Clark and her family failed to hold their promises to pay and more importantly force the law, all laws. $500,000.00 from Sam Safuer and witholding if pay and tools and the refusal of my landlord to put anything in writing has kept me from getting any stimulus even through Covid and my economic portfolio bleak
Furthermore, The Hypocritic Oath is formed to prevent the symptoms of the “Sacred Disease of Epilepsy”. I don’t know rough shit circa 300 bc the oldest case in history is an “Ought, Means Should”. Likewise “Ought Not Means Should Not”
I was in jail for trespassing on the inside of a fence that I built and wasn’t paid for and it was largely do to the abuse of entry, invasion of privacy, and digging in my trash by my landlord was doing while I was at church or cr.
These hypocrites are so bad I have nearly a hundred seizures a day on rotation at St. Joseph highlighted how painful and severe they are and how to aid a person.
Two days later Officer White refused to read the chart notes her partner looked like he wanted to eat them.
The scene was a disgrace the rude like a roll over accident and the same charge nurse that said “he can walk” in 2022 was there and then the X-ray and discharge “should not be walking”
Don’t make the mistake of saying I can’t walk with a back or other injury, they will literally like make you walk home without any chartnote.
I was pretty much dead on the last ride and then the dip before the hill down Buhne the bed slammed forward and EMT fell on my face. I have an abrasion on my nose.
When arrested for trespassing, the annoying Captain Smith or whatever his name is who laugh gregariously at those in their protective custody. You’re to protect them from this highschool locker room antics much like the trauma center is no place for laughter “um yeah, I know right” “oooh gross” is never awesome or in PHD reviews
At jail me “do you know what decay in leadership looks like?”. HCSO ” yeah let us show you”. As they threw me in and tore my shoulder out of socket”. They sent me home late without a jacket, thankfully some good Christians pulled up and said bro you look like you are freezing. And not enjoyably if I might add. Much thanks. Take note ya all especially at Proper Wellness, was not even a “Thanksgiving Blanket”
So for those that have not been told yet “States Right” “Qualified Immunity” can only be raised in Federal Court and both prongs have to met.
Rights being violated must be declared while violated according to sheriff unions the states hate it.
Was their any professional negligence or facts left aside to mislead the judge. California Left it to Neglect, see what I did there
I refuse to provide statutory codes to these “bags of hammers for 30 years” Maggie Fleming ”
Stating I sacrificed my right to remain silent and freedom of speech to live with or with our fear of immediate retaliation should suppress the first prong in federal courts but neglect and missing facts absent if truths……
. RJ Leohnor “we just got new evidence” nope put it in a new bag and changed the date to the current date”. Two hours later went back.
They held that same statement for five months and I filed in every response.
You can’t make that up.. well awkward we are at an all or nothing dilemma and they just left all my files including those they held and nevermind looked at in my porch while I was at the emergency room.
Who is the EPD who do I run into at St. jo Sollym “what did you expect to happen to your paperwork when you ask someone to hold it”. Well I one time shamefully had faith in Rex.
Please for the love of God arrest Rex and have a Mexican stand off between Stacy and Tansels.
. So this seems quite retaliatory and all supervisors should probably recognize the conflict when I enter the county supervisor meeting and leave the chamber per policy