More than three years ago, Ventura County Sheriff's detectives raided an Ojai medical marijuana cooperative, the home of its co-founder and other sites, seizing as many as 880 marijuana plants, cannabis oils, computers, cellphones and member records.

Prosecutors filed more than 40 felony charges against Shangri La Care Cooperative board president and co-founder Jeffrey Kroll in 2016 after a series of raids, months before California voters legalized recreational marijuana. Allegations ranged from the illegal sale or transportation of marijuana and manufacturing concentrated cannabis to money laundering and not filing income tax returns.

All charges were ultimately dismissed. None of Kroll's or Shangri La's seized property has been returned, according to a motion filed in Ventura County Superior Court in May.

The document filed by Kroll asks Ventura County Superior Court Judge Bruce Young to compel the Sheriff's Office to give back everything. The items include hard drives, four guns, a long list of cannabis products, a digital scale, records related to a now inactive nonprofit linked to the Ventura County Humane Society and even a hot plate Kroll said was seized.

The motion also asks for $12 million to compensate Shangri La for 3,100 pounds of marijuana that cooperative leaders say was destroyed in the raid.

"The members can't understand why Shangri La was never charged but the bulk of what they took is Shangri La's assets," said Kroll, later noting that cooperative members' request for the property and compensation for what can't be returned is a simple legal process. "They want their stuff back."

The cooperative's medical marijuana dispensary closed after Kroll's arrest. It reopened last year and now handles medical and recreational marijuana.

Officials from the Ventura County District Attorney and the Ventura County Sheriff's Office said the seized items still stowed in a property room reflects the way the legal system works, nothing else.

They said the items can't be returned until the owner formally asks a judge to take action. Kroll's motion, they said, sparks that process.

"There needs to be a court order to release it," said Senior Deputy District Attorney Erin Meister, noting prosecutors will talk to law enforcement and review what was seized. "If they're entitled to have the property back, they're going to get it back."

That doesn't guarantee everything will be returned, Meister said.

"If we confiscate an (illegal) gun or contraband, we're not just going to agree to release that," she said.

Kroll, 68, said everything seized was legally owned. He's asking for the return of a handgun, two rifles and a shotgun. All, he said, belong to him and are registered.

As far as marijuana or any other property destroyed, Meister said the sheriff's office would be involved in any discussion about compensation.

"If something is not available for return, I guess it would go to the next step," she said.

Capt. Eric Hatlee, sheriff's office spokesman, said he didn't know what property had been destroyed after the raids. He declined comment on the claim for $12 million.

The motion contends court records show the sheriff's office estimated the value of the seized plants at $75 million. Shangri La's claim of $12 million is based on the $12-a-gram price paid by cooperative members for marijuana.

"We wouldn't be in the case if we didn't have confidence that (Shangri La) is owed substantial money in terms of the crops," said Jason Rowe, a lawyer for the cooperative, saying the value of the plants will be a topic in court. "That's all going have to be litigated and determined."

The motion said the property seizure stopped the distribution of cannabis medications to more than 700 Shangri La members. It alleges several people diagnosed with life-threatening illnesses died.

The seized property included client records containing medical information, said Kroll, adding that members are upset the data hasn't been returned.

"They do not like the fact that the sheriff's department and the district attorney has their medical records," he said.

Everything seized from Kroll and Shangri La was obtained through a court-ordered search warrant, Hatlee said. That means it can't be released voluntarily by the sheriff's office.

"It's the property of the court," he said. "The court has to release it."

Not an isolated case

The raids and charges were not isolated.

Chelsea Sutula, leader of the Sespe Creek Collective dispensary, was arrested the same year as Kroll after raids on property owned by the collective in Ojai and of Sutula's Ventura home. The charges filed against her were dismissed in 2018.

In Kroll's case, he was accused of cooking concentrated marijuana with explosive chemicals, overcharging cooperative members and funneling money into his personal account. He defends himself against all the charges. All were dismissed.

Some of the charges filed against Kroll were tossed out because of lack of evidence, including unlawful transportation of marijuana and money laundering. Others were dismissed because of a ruling that prosecutors didn't file charges on time.

Other people arrested included Robert Hoffman, another co-founder of Shangri La, and William MacNeil, a driver for the co-op. Charges against them were dropped as well.

"I will never probably convince everybody that we were doing everything right," Kroll said. "There was never any intent to break rules or laws."

When the last accusations against Kroll were dismissed, prosecutors said they would refile charges. Kroll said the possibility is why he didn't file criminal action for the return of property earlier.

"They basically kept threatening us that they were going to file charges for three years," he said, noting that he waited to enter his court motion until after the window for refiling charges closed. "I've been as patient as a person could be."

A 2016 lawsuit filed by the cooperative sought return of the property but was dismissed. Rowe said the judge ruled the matter should be dealt with by the criminal court.

Meister said the property legally owned by Shangri La and those connected to the organization will be returned.

"They'll get it back," she said. "That's why there's a process."

The motion asserts deputies and detectives ignored Kroll's efforts to prove Shangri La's operations were legal and went ahead with their raids. It asserts a binder of corporate and regulatory records was not seized in raids because the files supported the legality of the operation.

It alleges members of an inter-agency narcotics task force made claims they knew were false including a statement that $1 million cash was found in a safe in Kroll's residence. The motion contends only $6,500 in cash was found in the raids.

Hatlee said he couldn't comment on any specific allegations.

"That will be something that will be dealt with in court," he said.

Kroll declined comment on his treatment but expressed hope societal perceptions and bias against marijuana won't play a role in the bid to get the property back.

"We have 70 years of brainwashing to overcome," he said.

A hearing is set for June 26.

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