George Martorano served 32 years in prison for weed — and then opened a CBD cafe in Philadelphia when he got out.
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‘It is said that I once was the longest-serving nonviolent person in the world for cannabis.’
George Martorano was arrested in Philadelphia in 1982 after being caught by the FBI with a truck full of cannabis, what Martorano says was 2,700 pounds of bud. At the advice of his attorney, Martorano pleaded guilty to a litany of drug charges thinking he would only get 10 years in prison. But the judge gave him a life sentence without parole.
‘So I did all the conspiracy [charges] time, but what kept me languishing in prison all those years was the marijuana count—the CCE [Continuing Criminal Enterprise Statute]—which was 10 to life. As a first offender, there’s no way—no way I should have gotten more than 10. But they gave me life, no parole, and over those years, you know, I was sent to all the worst prisons known to man.’ George M.
During his 32 years in prison, much has changed in the U.S. surrounding cannabis and its legality.
‘You’re laying in a cell, you’re looking at 4 walls, and you’re never getting out, and then on your radio—you know, in prison you’re allowed to have a little radio—and you listen to the news, and you just—constantly, things were going on about marijuana states. And you see dispensaries opening up and you’re just sitting there. And many, many wardens have said—used to bump into me and said, this is insane. I mean, one warden said, ‘I just was in Colorado—me and my wife was in Colorado and we went in the dispensary.’ He didn’t say that he purchased anything, but—you just—well, you don’t get angry. You get smarter. George M.
Finally, after 32 appeals in as many years, Martorano was released at the age of 65 under the DOJ’s compassionate release program. Now he’s just opened up the Hip Hemp Cafe, a coffee shop and CBD boutique in downtown Philadelphia.
‘Our theme is that the Hip Hemp Cafe is here to help people. Money is secondary. We’re here to help people. We want to interact with the community, we want to interact with the city’
Getting out of prison in 2015 after 32 years, Martorano said had no clue what CBD was. But he said he learned by going to mothers who were treating their children with CBD.
‘So, that’s the kind of people that gave me my education, because when you look a mother in the eye and she’s talking to you about her child, and how CBDs—CBD oils and THC oils have changed this child’s life for the better, you know, that’s—it was very absorbent to me, and that’s how, basically, I got into the Hip Hemp Cafe and the CBD products.’
The Hip Hemp Cafe sells all kinds of CBD products From lotions and tinctures, to high-CBD hemp flower and pre-rolled hemp joints. The cafe also offers coffee that’s infused with CBD and CBD-infused treats. But Martorano is most excited to educate the community about the benefits of CBD.
‘With CBDs there’s no buzz factor, it’s just relaxation factor. So, you know, you’ve just gotta talk to individuals. There’s so many people hurting—you know, there’s so many people. They’re tired of the pharmaceuticals and they believe in themselves, and they believe they can change. They don’t want to be dependent on something that’s actually gonna hurt them. So that’s what we want to—we want to teach this.’
#Weed #Cannabis #CBD #CriminalJusticeSystem #WaronDrugs
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