A WSHU Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request has unearthed over 100 documents relating to an unauthorized inspection of a Connecticut cannabis cultivator earlier this year, after the company’s CEO gave testimony at a General Law Committee public hearing on March 19.
Rodrick Marriott was the director of the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protections Drug Control division who ordered his staff to investigate Affinity Grow, based in Portland, CT just 24 hours after its CEO, Rino Ferrarese spoke at a public hearing in Hartford.
The unannounced inspection by DCP agents was seen as retaliatory after Ferrarese criticized DCP at the public hearing about how they wished to test cannabis products for the adult use market as part of a wider-ranging bill they had put forward to the legislature.
In the FOIA documents, interview statements revealed that Marriott admitted to mishearing part of Ferrarese’s testimony about ‘final form testing of product’ when he decided to order the inspection of Affinity Grow.
The two agents he sent to the company later reported they had found no irregularities.
The inspection sent chills through the cannabis industry in the state leading to Bryan Cafferelli, the commissioner of DCP to make public and private apologies saying the inspection should not have happened.
Read the investigation summary of the incident by the Office of Labor Relations here.
The investigation found that Marriott’s poor judgment was detrimental to the best interests of the agency, and the matter was referred back to DCF for corrective measures and any disciplinary action against Marriott.
On August 6, Marriott attended a pre-disciplinary hearing, which gave him the opportunity to present his side of the story about why he decided to do what he did.
Marriott said he thought there was a public safety issue at hand and that was why he ordered the inspection but said the timing could have been better.
The maximum discipline under consideration by the panel was a 5-day suspension of Marriott without pay.
On Aug. 7, Marriott submitted his letter of resignation to the Commissioner of DCP, making no reference to the inspection incident and ending his seventeen-plus years with the agency. His last day was Sept. 2.
WSHU reached out to DCP for a statement on the matter and about Marriott’s resignation and received the following.
“We stand by our unequivocal statement from the time of the incident: Everyone should feel safe and comfortable providing testimony at a public hearing without fear of retribution or retaliation, whether they are a member of the public or a licensee. It is also imperative that our investigative staff remain able to do their jobs, including looking into all allegations that may negatively impact public health and safety.
The agency has taken several well-publicized steps toward improving communication with the cannabis industry and, based on the agency’s track record in all other areas of regulation, we do not anticipate any further issues of this nature.”
DCP’s statement did not answer questions about Marriott or his resignation.
