Marijuana Clinic Owners Convicted Of Illegal Drug Sales

Two men were convicted in a Long Beach Court on 13 felony counts of drug-related crimes today. Joe Grumbine and Joe Byron reportedly owned three marijuana dispensaries in the Long Beach area and were accused by prosecutors of not only selling drugs illegally, but of tax fraud, and theft. Prosecutors in the case claim that Grumbine and Byron hid their dispensaries under ficticious names to avoid paying taxes, in some cases paying bills by cash in order to avoid paper trails, stealing electricity from nearby businesses in order to grow their products in-house, and even under-reporting their sales for several years in order to pocket nearly $2 million in profits. A Long Beach jury found the two men guilty on all counts after one day of deliberations. The pair are due back in court on January 11th for sentencing and remain out of police custody after posting bail. Grumbine and Byron were first arrested in 2009 after local law enforcement agents raided all three of their marijuana dispensaries.

As any experienced Los Angeles Drug Crime Defense Attorney can tell you, buying, selling and consuming marijuana is a complex issue in the state of California. If you are facing marijuana-related criminal charges, you need an aggressive and skilled Los Angeles Drug Crime Defense Attorney immediately. At Kestenbaum, Eisner & Gorin, LLP, our attorneys have over 50 years of combined courtroom experience in defending people just like you against drug charges and we know how to build defenses that win. Your Los Angeles Drug Crime Defense Attorney can tell you, for example, that while state laws enacted in 1996 decriminalized the use of marijuana, there are many stipulations and a complex legal code that govern who can use it, purchase it and even manufacture and sell it. In order to legally consume marijuana, you must have a valid prescription from a licensed doctor. Your Los Angeles Drug Crime Defense Attorney knows that doctors write these prescriptions for health conditions such as chronic back pain, migraine headaches, or to offset some of the unpleasant side effects of debilitating diseases such as AIDS or chemotherapy treatments for cancer. Those given a state-issued license to use marijuana, may cultivate specific numbers of marijuana plants for their own personal use while local governments can allow patients or caregivers to cultivate more plants, if they choose. If you have been arrested for a marijuana-related crime, call the offices of Kestenbaum, Eisner & Gorin, LLP today at 1-877-781-1570 to speak to an experienced Los Angeles Drug Crime Defense Attorney about your case.