Delta-8 seller busted in Ocean Beach

A sidewalk vendor selling delta-8 THC products in Ocean Beach on Sunday had his inventory confiscated by SDPD and was cited for 11359(b) HS - Possession of Cannabis for Sale.

Posted up at the corner of Newport & Bacon, with a large jar of weed and various edibles on display, the man told responding officers that he’s selling “a legal strain called delta-8.”

There’s been a lot of confusion about the legality of this strain of weed.

It was born from a loophole in the 2018 Farm Bill which legalized hemp with less than 0.3 percent THC. Hemp growers started extracting CBD from the plant and converting it to delta-8 THC. It’s weak, unregulated weed with some interesting science behind it.

It took nearly three years for the law to catch up with it, but on October 6, 2021, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 45 into law, making California the 19th state to restrict or ban delta-8 THC.

The illegal vending of delta-8 THC in Ocean Beach and other parts of San Diego has done more harm than good.

“I would imagine the CBD advocates who support AB45 would not want the sales of delta8 and other illegal narcotic products corrupting the very law that affords them the legal right to purchase and use CBD in our state.” SDPD community relations officer, David Surwilo told me.

“At Western we have a Sargent who was a detective in the narcotics unit for four years; he trained many of the detectives assigned to the different narcotic teams and is very familiar with the claims these types of vendors of delta8 and other illegal narcotic product sellers like to make. The sellers often play the ‘you’re violating my rights’ game. In this case the seller tried to argue the aspects of delta8, even though AB45 literally names delta8 as illegal in California. He threatened to call in a complaint when officers refused to release his inventory back to him.”

After this incident, I popped into a local CBD shop on Newport Ave and asked the clerk, who wished to remain anonymous, if they had any delta-8 for sale. “No, we don’t,” she replied. I asked why? “Because it’s illegal, a new law just passed, you’d probably have to go to a dispensary for that, we can’t sell it.”

The FDA issued a warning and is concerned by the proliferation of products that contain delta-8 THC…as these products have not been proven to be safe or effective.