The sidelined chair of the state’s Cannabis Control Commission has secured authorized illustration whereas the treasurer nonetheless received’t disclose what’s occurring.
Pot boss Shannon O’Brien was out of the blue faraway from her $181,722 publish by state Treasurer Deb Goldberg on Sept. 14 and suspended, with pay, with no motive given. Even as that state of affairs performs out behind closed doorways, O’Brien has employed high-profile authorized counsel from the Boston legislation agency Todd & Weld, the Herald has discovered.
“I can confirm that we represent Shannon. No further comment for now,” founding companion Howard Cooper mentioned in a Monday morning e mail.
A spokesperson for the Treasurer didn’t present an replace on O’Brien’s suspension greater than every week after the previous gubernatorial candidate was quickly faraway from her job and ordered at hand in her laptop computer and fee identification.
“This remains a personnel matter and we will not be providing any further comment,” the spokesperson mentioned.
In the chairwoman’s absence, Commissioner Ava Callender Concepcion has been serving as performing chair on an interim foundation, after her fellow commissioners selected to restrict her appointment to simply their beforehand scheduled conferences.
When requested if the fee may fill the general public in on the explanations for O’Brien’s departure, the performing chair lamented the state of affairs was a distraction from state regulator’s essential work in updating the hashish guidelines, earlier than pointing to the part of state legislation which dictates the explanations a commissioner could be faraway from their publish.
A CCC commissioner, in line with the legislation establishing the fee, could be faraway from their publish by the treasurer, governor or legal professional common if they’re “guilty of malfeasance in office; substantially neglects the duties of a commissioner; is unable to discharge the powers and duties of the office; commits gross misconduct; or is convicted of a felony.”
O’Brien’s elimination comes a few yr after Goldberg gave her the gig. Missteps have stained her appointment.
Last September, it was discovered O’Brien had been personally concerned in a pair of pot companies looking for licenses from the fee however had not disclosed this to the general public. The chair separated herself from each companies and was cleared of any wrongdoing.
This summer time, O’Brien declared the fee was in “crisis” after revealing she anticipated Executive Director Shawn Collins would quickly depart. Other commissioners appeared shocked by the revelation and O’Brien’s characterization of their work. Collins has publicly pushed again on that assertion.
A bipartisan group of state lawmakers, final week, requested the Joint Committee on Cannabis Policy to carry a listening to so as to unravel ongoing issues on the CCC.
“Since its creation in 2017, The Cannabis Control Commission has faced what sometimes feels like an endless stream of scandals,” they wrote.
Source: www.bostonherald.com”