Selling Hemp Tea Is Injurious To One’s Freedom In Germany

German media reports…..Verdict in the Hanfbar trial: suspended sentences for both defendants

BRAUNSCHWEIG.   The district court of Braunschweig  has sentenced Marcel Kaine to nine months and Bardia Hatefi to seven months on probation selling hemp blossom teas made from industrial hemp

Bardia Hatefi had brought a symbolic joint for his closing remarks for demonstration purposes.  Next to him sit lawyer Werner Siebers and Marcel Kaine (right).

Bardia Hatefi had brought a symbolic joint for his closing remarks for demonstration purposes. Next to him sit lawyer Werner Siebers and Marcel Kaine (right).

After four months of negotiations, the verdict against the operators of the Braunschweiger Hanfbar is now available: The 4th major criminal chamber of the regional court convicted them of illicit drug trafficking. Marcel Kaine (28) received a prison sentence of nine months, his business partner Bardia Hatefi (36) received a prison sentence of seven months. The sentences are suspended.

The court thus moved between the demands made in the pleadings : the defendants’ lawyers had demanded acquittals. The public prosecutor’s office, on the other hand, had considered prison sentences of three and two and a half years to be appropriate – these could then no longer have been suspended.

The trial involved Kaine and Hatefi selling hemp blossom teas made from industrial hemp with a comparatively low proportion of the active ingredient THC in their stores. THC is responsible for the intoxicating effects of cannabis. From the point of view of Kaine and Hatefi, the THC content in the teas is so low that they cannot cause intoxication. Instead, the teas are health-promoting because they contain the active ingredient CBD.

In his closing remarks, Bardia Hatefi read statements that, according to him, came from customers of the hemp bar: These describe a whole range of complaints such as sleep disorders, panic attacks, depression and chronic pain – the teas and oils at the hemp bar would have helped them a lot. “We protect and improve public health,” said Hatefi. “We are convinced that we are moving within the framework of the applicable law.”

However, the presiding judge Bohle Behrendt saw it differently: In the judgment he explained that the sale of unprocessed hemp flowers and leaves to end consumers violated the Narcotics Act. This applies regardless of the THC content, because abuse for intoxication purposes cannot be ruled out. Experts had stated that, for example, when processing the hemp flowers in biscuits, an intoxication was possible.

He credited the defendants with the fact that the teas were simple offenses and were not dangerous.

The judgment can be appealed against within one week. Marcel Kaine said after the hearing: “We will do everything we can to ensure that this judgment does not last.”

Source: https://www.braunschweiger-zeitung.de/braunschweig/article228268847/Bewaehrungsstrafe-fuer-Braunschweiger-Hanfbar-Besitzer.html?utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_campaign=HEMP_20200923_Daily

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