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    Massachusetts’s Suspended Cannabis Chair Drops Lawsuit

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    The former chair of Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission (CCC), who was suspended last month, has now dropped her legal challenge after a hearing was granted.

    Last week, Business of Cannabis reported that Shannon O’Brien was ‘suspended with pay’ by state treasurer Deborah B. Goldberg in September, after a number of ‘serious allegations’ were made against her by several colleagues.

    Following her dismissal, the full reasons behind which remain unclear, O’Brien brought a legal challenge against her dismissal in a major escalation of the ongoing dispute.

    According to The Boston Globe, she has now dropped her lawsuit aimed at blocking her suspension after being granted a hearing over the matter, set for November 07.

    “I filed my lawsuit in order to force Treasurer Goldberg to follow the law and give me an opportunity to be heard,” O’Brien said in a statement.

    “I am very much looking forward to having the opportunity to explain in detail to the Treasurer and the Public the significant issues facing the Cannabis Control Commission, what I encountered when I tried to fix them, and explaining why I should immediately resume my duties at the Commission as Chair.”

    Ben Stevens

    Ben is the editor of Business of Cannabis. Since 2021, he has researched, written, and published the vast majority of the outlet’s content, delivering agenda-setting journalism on regulation, business strategy, and policy across Europe.

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