War on drugs locked him up, now he’s a cannabis entrepreneur running a weed shop in NYC

When the marijuana war swept through his New York City apartment complex decades ago, Roland Conner found himself in and out of prison. It’s a time he’d rather not talk about.

Now, at age 50, he has opened the state’s first legal cannabis dispensary, run by a man previously punished under New York’s old prohibition drug laws.

A store in Manhattan’s Greenwich Village called “Smacked” opened to the public on Tuesday with support from the state. It is the second legal location in New York City to buy recreational marijuana, but the first to benefit from a program that revokes sales licenses for people with marijuana-related criminal convictions.

Conner is also receiving support from a $200 million public-private fund to help “social justice” applicants for the state’s tightly controlled dispensary licenses. The money is meant to help remedy the effects of the War on Drugs, especially in communities of color.

“When people passionately come together to fix something, they can really succeed. And I’m a living example of that now,” Conner said as he prepared to open the store.

New York City legalized recreational marijuana in March 2021, but the state-sanctioned drug market has been slow to develop. The first 36 licenses were issued in November. Government officials have reserved 150 dispensary licenses in the first wave of applicants for people with past convictions for marijuana-related offenses.

Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, hopes Conner’s venture will serve as a model for other would-be entrepreneurs.

“This dispensary is the latest example of our efforts to create the most fair and inclusive cannabis industry in the country,” Hochul said in a statement last week. “As we continue to work to right the wrongs of the past, I look forward to opening new dispensaries owned by those most affected by cannabis oversight.”

Like many others, Conner was imprisoned in his youth for relatively minor offenses. A 1991 court verdict sent him away for several months. Talking about it now, he says, only brings back the trauma.

He has been in real estate management for the past 15 years and currently manages a temporary housing development in the Bronx. This gave him the business experience he needed to obtain a dispensary license.

Tracey Strahan announces the opening day of the second legal marijuana dispensary in New York.

Smacked opens like a pop-up pharmacy while the work is being completed on a showcase. The pop-up location will run until Feb. 20 as management hopes to kick-start business and accelerate sales before settling into a long-term location. Together with him, his wife Patricia and son Darius will manage the store.

They will have to compete with dozens of illegal dispensaries in New York that have been operating for a long time. When opening his store, Conner kept in mind that another unlicensed store would soon be opening nearby. Government officials say consumers should not trust what they find in unlicensed trucks, bodegas or street stalls.

At a recent City Council hearing, the Sheriff’s Office Cannabis Task Force said it was actively looking for illegal stores across New York City, where an estimated 1,400 illegal stores operate without state approval. So far, the task force has closed 90 operations.

Conner recalls the days of his youth when marijuana was a part of everyday life. He grew up in projects, in a poor part of Far Rockaways, where some young people whiled away the time, getting high.

“Mostly we were poor. Like every other New York City housing project, it was just riddled with poverty and drugs,” he said. “We often went hungry, but my mother did her best to ensure that we were always full.”

The police constantly patrolled the facilities, he recalled. “Sometimes they would come up and down the block and we would see them come in or they would just show up out of nowhere,” he said. “They’ll just show up out of nowhere and search us. And if they found any drugs on you, they would just lock you up.”

“Back in 1991, they started jailing me for cannabis, and at that moment I was just sucked out into the street. It was so long ago,” he said.

Years later, when his son began selling marijuana to support his family, Conner became alarmed.

“When I saw my son go down this path,” he said, “I didn’t want him to go down this path and get stuck.”

Only one store in New York is authorized to sell cannabis, but the city’s sheriff says 1,400 stores do so illegally. Erica Byfield reports.

When the state opened up a legal market, Conner and his family decided to take a chance and apply for a dispensary license.

“I had to step back and just listen to my father and find a way out,” said his son Darius.

“He said there was a legal way to do what I’m doing now,” Darius Conner said. “In the end, I really want to find the right way to do it.”

Officials said Conner received support from the Bronx Cannabis Hub, which was founded by Bronx Defenders and the Bronx Community Foundation to support individuals applying for the first round of licenses. He was also supported by dozens of customers who lined up early Tuesday morning, saying they were there not only for the marijuana, but also for the owner.

“This person has been jailed for what is now legal and I feel like that’s some sort of restitution,” said client Koss Martin, who also hopes to get one of the first 150 licenses reserved for those previously involved. to marijuana. belief.

“You know, I live in a dream. Thank God I said “guilty” because I am applying for a license myself,” Martin said. .”

Licensed growers in New York City have $500 million worth of legal marijuana ready to sell, but due to state delays in deployment, there are no buyers yet. NBC New York correspondent Adam Kuperstein reports.

Federal data shows that the percentage of whites and blacks who use marijuana is about the same, but the arrest rate of blacks is much higher, according to reports from the American Civil Liberties Union and other organizations.

“When people are poor, they do certain things that they usually don’t,” Conner said. “And so if you don’t talk about poverty and only talk to harsh law enforcement without talking about the reason people do what they do, that’s problematic.”

The New York State Cannabis Board plans to release preliminary sales information in February. The Housing Works Cannabis Company, which opened on Dec. 29, attracted more than 500 customers in its first week of sales, purchasing items from the store within three hours.

More cannabis pharmacies will be opening in the coming weeks, not just in Manhattan, but in the five boroughs of New York State.

Gaby Acevedo of NBC New York contributed to this report.