Virginia state senator indicted for drug trafficking charges

Virginia state Sen. Lillie Louise Lucas, who has been in office for over three decades, was indicted for trafficking marijuana, money laundering, and fraud, U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche announced Thursday. Lucas and six others were indicted Oct. 14 on eight charges and are currently in federal custody with a trial set for Thursday afternoon. Federal prosecutors accuse the group of creating a criminal drug trafficking enterprise. Lucas allegedly accrued nearly $5 million from the venture, according to the indictment.

Lucas and her co-defendants are presumed legally innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.

FBI Director Cash Patel said Lucas used her position as state senator to shield a five-year marijuana enterprise involving her daughters and grandson. Her enterprise trafficked large amounts of marijuana, creating generational wealth for her and her conspirators, he said. Recycling drug proceeds into the enterprise that she launched. She also used her position to deflect and defend her operation. Marijuana remains illegal according to federal law, although it is in the process of being reclassified as having a legitimate medical use. In terms of state law, Virginia is on track to begin allowing non-medical retail sales by July 2027.

Did Lucas respond? In a Thursday social media post, Lucas said that the full weight of the federal government has been wielded against her, but she didn’t address the specific charges. She characterized herself as an 82-year-old-great-grandmother and compared the oppression of the Jim Crow era to her current circumstances. She said she will not be intimidated and will fight back.

What did she do about marijuana while in office? During her time in office, she wrote online that she legalized marijuana and even owned her own cannabis outlet. In another social media post from 2022, she continued to boast along the same lines.