DEA’s Marijuana Defiance Deepens: Rogue Bureaucrats Undermine DOJ, Supreme Court, and Rule of Law

Terrance Cole’s First Test: Will He Restore DEA Diversion To Legitimacy

As the DEA Diversion spirals into constitutional crisis, all eyes now turn to incoming Administrator Terrance Cole. With the Supreme Court, DOJ, and Congress aligned on the illegality of the agency’s ALJ system, Cole faces a clear mandate: dismantle the DEA’s kangaroo court framework, remove corrupt leadership like Thomas Prevoznik, Matthew Strait and attorney Aarathi Haig, restore sound marijuana policy and return the agency to the rule of law. His next moves will determine whether the DEA Diversion can be salvaged-or whether it must be restructured from the ground up.

WASHINGTON, DC / ACCESS Newswire / June 8, 2025 / While the Department of Justice has publicly withdrawn its defense of DEA unconstitutional administrative law judges (ALJs), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) continues to flout executive orders, Supreme Court precedent, and congressional intent-all while using tainted legal proceedings to obstruct cannabis science and protect entrenched interests.

This brazen defiance is no longer theoretical-it is operational. The DEA is actively weaponizing a judicial system that the U.S. Supreme Court has declared unconstitutional in Axon v. FTC and Jarkesy v. SEC. Despite Attorney General Pam Bondi’s directive that the DOJ will no longer defend this structure, the DEA marches forward, conducting hearings before ALJs who cannot be removed by the President-an arrangement that violates the Appointments Clause and undermines the separation of powers.

The DOJ Says It’s Over-The DEA Didn’t Get the Memo

In direct contradiction to Bondi’s notice to Congress-including Judiciary Committee leaders like Senator Chuck Grassley-DEA officials have scheduled yet another ALJ hearing against MMJ BioPharma Cultivation, a federally compliant research firm seeking to advance treatments for Multiple Sclerosis and Huntington’s Disease. This is not just bureaucratic overreach-it’s deliberate sabotage.

Worse, the DEA is exploiting the legal ambiguity around “harm” to sidestep accountability. By claiming that MMJ and similar companies must first suffer irreparable injury before federal courts can intervene, the agency is playing a dangerous game-daring businesses to be destroyed before they can challenge illegal proceedings.

“The DEA’s abuse of the harm requirement is nothing short of gaslighting,” said MMJ CEO Duane Boise. “They tell us to wait for damage, then slam the door shut when that damage arrives.”

The Real Harm Is Institutional

The true injury here isn’t just to MMJ or its scientists-it’s to the American system of checks and balances. When an executive agency refuses to comply with a Supreme Court ruling and ignores its own Justice Department’s constitutional analysis, it becomes something far more dangerous: an unelected, unaccountable power unto itself.

The Architects of Obstruction: Prevoznik, Strait, and Haig

DEA bureaucrats Thomas Prevoznik, Matthew Strait, and Aarathi Haig have emerged as the chief engineers of this lawless agenda. Haig, already under fire for her ineligibility to practice law in New Jersey due to bar compliance failures, remains the lead attorney against MMJ. Her continued participation not only violates 28 U.S.C. § 530B but further erodes the integrity of the agency’s actions.

Prevoznik and Strait, meanwhile, continue to stall legitimate cannabis research applications while ignoring illegal THC imports and exports. This two-tiered system punishes innovators and protects political allies.

Congress Must Step In-or Be Complicit

Lawmakers must recognize that the DEA is no longer just dragging its feet-it is actively resisting constitutional order. That resistance demands immediate action:

• Terminate the use of ALJs in all DEA enforcement matters.

• Remove agency officials who violate ethical or constitutional mandates.

• Transfer cannabis research oversight to FDA or NIH.

• Hold hearings on DOJ-DEA discord and bureaucratic insubordination.

If Congress fails to act, it will confirm what many Americans already suspect-that federal agencies like the DEA can operate beyond the law, without consequence, and without oversight.

The Rule of Law Is Not Optional

The DEA’s refusal to follow the Supreme Court and its own Department of Justice is a constitutional crisis in real time. It is not just an affront to MMJ-it is a betrayal of every American who believes in due process, scientific integrity, and accountable government.

If the DEA cannot respect the law, then the law must be used to dismantle the DEA.
MMJ is represented by attorney Megan Sheehan.

CONTACT:
Madison Hisey
MHisey@mmjih.com
203-231-8583

SOURCE: MMJ International Holdings

View the original press release on ACCESS Newswire