Hundreds of apparently illegal marijuana shops in New York face reopening after Judge Adams’ “Operation Padlock” dealt a setback

Hundreds of apparently illegal marijuana shops that were closed in Mayor Eric Adams’ high-profile raid may be at risk of reopening due to a new ruling that finds the city bypassing part of the legal process.

Queens Supreme Court Justice Kevin Kerrigan’s decision to allow a Queens supermarket to reopen could undo the city’s entire grandstanding effort, dubbed “Operation Padlock to Protect,” said the lawyer representing the store.

“Almost every store has a right to reopen,” said Lance Lazzaro, attorney for Bell Grocery & Deli in Bayside, calling the store closure process a “sham court.”

Lazzaro’s client received a summons from the city sheriff’s office alleging that the store was selling cannabis illegally after officers said they found seven pounds of cannabis product in the store in June and locked it with a padlock.

However, an administrative court dismissed the summons on the grounds that it had not been properly served.

However, the final decision on whether to close the store was left to the sheriff – which Kerrigan said deprived the store owners of their right to due process.

“The Court recognizes that the unlicensed sale of cannabis in the City of New York poses an enormous public health problem,” the judge wrote. “However, shutting down businesses without prior notice to determine whether a violation has occurred violates the very foundation of American democracy and due process.”

The damning judgment goes on to say: “If the sheriff decides to maintain the secrecy order without any evidence of unauthorised activity, the person concerned will be deprived of the right to due process under the law.”

The “significant” ruling essentially turns the administrative court hearings that take place after a business is closed under Operation Padlock into a “farce because the sheriff can do whatever he wants with them,” Lazzaro told the Washington Post on Friday.

“Who the hell put the sheriff in charge of the judge and jury?” asked Lazzaro. “It’s almost a total denial of due process, where the sheriff has the ultimate authority – regardless of what happens at the hearing, they can still deny it.”

Wednesday’s ruling, which the city is appealing, orders the Bell Boulevard store to reopen immediately.

According to the New York Times, which first reported the ruling, nearly 950 stores were summoned by the sheriff’s office, and nearly 140 of those summonses were quashed.

According to the Adams administration, Operation Padlock closed over 900 stores and seized an estimated $60 million worth of illegal products.

“We are confident that we are acting in accordance with the law to protect public safety. We are reviewing the decision and weighing our options,” said City Hall spokeswoman Liz Garcia.

The sheriff’s office did not respond to a request for comment Friday.

Lazzaro, who represents several other businesses in similar proceedings as well as a related class action lawsuit in federal court, charged that the city blatantly failed to comply with the law by failing to properly serve its summons on the required person and that it was not just a one-time mistake but a systematic offense.

“That’s their plan for their ministry here, and (the city has) represented that in every case,” Lazzaro told the Post.

“Regardless of the violation, if the performance is inadequate, everything else falls into disarray,” says lawyer M. Daniel Bach, who regularly pleads before the city’s administrative court, or OATH for short.

Bach also represents a handful of businesses that were closed as part of Operation Padlock, some of which he was able to reopen, albeit only temporarily.

Although his cases did not involve the same delivery defects as the Queens case, Bach said, “If the delivery is not proper, everything else should be dismissed.”

Operation Padlock to Protect began last spring and has been met with overwhelming support from New Yorkers who have denounced the rampant number of illegal pot shops that have sprung up across the city since marijuana sales were legalized in the state.

But it was only in recent weeks that critics began to carp about Operation Padlock, claiming that it might not be as secret as it seemed.

City Treasurer Brad Lander, who recently announced his candidacy to run against Adams in next year’s Democratic primary, asked for detailed information about the operation this summer in a letter.

And earlier this month, a former Bronx undersheriff filed a lawsuit in federal court claiming his 10-year career in the office was ruined because he raised the alarm that the marijuana raids might be illegal.