Feature Story
How Did We Get Here?
A former law enforcement officer’ s journey working within the Missouri cannabis industry.
Editorial and Photography by Clayton Stallings, The EVOLUTION Magazine
It seems everyone around me is asking themselves that question these days, and it’ s hard not to spend all your time pondering the question while watching media news feeds. While it’ s important to stay informed, it’ s also important to keep your sanity while searching for your answers. I have recently turned to history books as a way to do both, and right now, I am reading Home Grown by Isacc Campos, which“ traces the deep roots of the antidrug ideology and prohibitionist policies.” Campos will be the guest speaker at the National WWI Museum and Memorial’ s first cannabis history event; Operation: Dope, A Blunt History of WWI held on June 5.
I like to reflect on this story to remind myself of the positive influence our publication and our involvement with the community really does have. It also reminds me that our local law enforcement is not entirely consumed with antiquated cannabis ideologies.
Many former law enforcement officers also work in the cannabis industry as security or compliance officers. One individual, in particular, started as a security guard and worked his way up through nearly every position in the industry.
In his book, Campos reminds the reader that“ set” and“ setting” are crucial to remember when referring to any past research on marijuana while also discussing the placebo effect of cultural beliefs on those studies.“ If by placebo effect one means an outcome produced not by a drug, but by the beliefs and expectations about a drug.” 1 These two important factors are what led to misconceptions about the classic war on drugs in Mexico, which Anslinger later adopted in the U. S. during the 1970s. These old ideologies not only seem to linger still, but many fear that the current political placebo effect may be pushing cannabis ideology in the wrong direction, according to Marijuana Moment.
In light of all of this, I would like to leave our readers with some stories of HOPE for our cannabis future during these troubling times.
At our last Green Lab with Extract-ED, where we work with local law enforcement and cannabis consumers to find the difference between consumption and impairment, I was pulled aside by a Missouri police officer. He asked my advice on which infused cannabis gummies would be best for his 22-year-old autistic son, ones that would act quickly to help him come out of a sensory overload episode during which he hits and scratches himself. Officer Houston didn’ t know about the faster-acting nano gummies, even though he had permission from his son’ s doctor to use cannabis for treatment. I felt honored to give him the advice he needed for his son and a better living situation at home. Since giving Houston some recommendations, he reported,“ We have used the nano gummies three or four times since then, and it is a night and day difference.”
At Stability Cultivation( left to right), Danny Pereira, COO; Alex Thatch, Director of Cultivation at Stability Cultivation; Hunter Ezzell, GM of Sunny Daze Dispensary, and Julio Rodriguez, Assistant GM of Sunny Daze Dispensary.
Before starting as a security officer at Illicit’ s former MIP in Dearborn, MO, Hunter Ezzell served as a civilian officer in the Buchanan County Jail right after graduating high school in St. Joe, MO. While working at the jail, he attended the police academy and became a full-time patrol deputy for four years, joining SWAT part-time for two years.
“ I wasn’ t planning on getting into the cannabis industry, nor did I consume at the time; it was just a security job,” explained Ezzell.
28 May 2025