Idaho Judge Rules Against Return of Hemp Seized as Marijuana

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A truckload of what Idaho police believed to be marijuana is industrial hemp, but a judge has ruled the material will not be returned.

The Idaho Statesman reports a federal judge approved the release of test results Friday that determined the exact nature of 7,000 pounds of a green substance confiscated by Idaho State Police in January.

Yet the judge ruled against a lawsuit filed by Big Sky Scientific of Aurora, Colorado, for release of its hemp and truck.

The 2018 U.S. Farm Bill legalized growth and sale of industrial hemp, as long as it has less than .3% concentration of THC, the psychoactive component in cannabis.

In Idaho, hemp remains illegal regardless of its THC concentration and possession carries the same legal penalties as marijuana.