Dan Rush

Dan Rush was an American union organizer and former statewide political and special operations director of the United Food and Commercial Workers for cannabis and hemp workers.[4] He was known for being a leader in the United States Labor movement in politics and for cannabis and hemp industry workers, and a civil and motorcycle rights activist.[5][6] Rush began his career in the union in the 1980s as a senior official responsible for carrying out statewide ballot industry politics and eventually founded the concept of organizing medical cannabis and hemp workers in the United States and Canada.[7] He was later investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation for enriching himself at the expense of his union in 2015, and for cheating his clients by betraying them for bribes from other cannabis industry stakeholders.[8][9][10][3] He took a plea bargain in 2017, pled guilty to three charges, and served a multiyear sentence in federal prison.[3][1]

Dan Rush
Born
Daniel James Rush[1]

(1960-08-22) August 22, 1960
Oakland, California[1]
NationalityAmerican
OccupationFounder and National Director, United Food and Commercial Workers, Medical Cannabis and Hemp Division[2]
Known forgoing to prison for taking bribes[3]

Career

He was born in Oakland, California.[1] In 2017 he testified that he never graduated from high school.[1] He was known as union organizer.[11] Rush was hired to work on various projects for the UFCW Local 5.[12][13][14] In 2012, he was national director of the Medical Cannabis and Hemp Division of the United Food and Commercial Workers union.[15] He was hired by the UFCW International Union in 2014 to head up their cannabis division[12] as Organizing Coordinator.[16][17]

Federal prosecution

Multiple cannabis dispensary entrepreneurs went to the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation, or responded to FBI corruption inquiries, after feeling cheated or betrayed by Rush.[3] This produced a Federal investigation called Operation Limelight.[3] Rush was investigated on corruption charges for using his influence to favor Oakland cannabis businesses in return for paying off a $420,000 loan on Rush's personal house with a shopping bag full of cash.[8][9][3][18] The "sordid details of his indictment"[12] in August 2015 led the national union to immediately fire him.[17]

Rush was originally scheduled to go to trial in 2017.[7] However, on June 20, 2017, Rush pled guilty to two charges of betraying his union for a bribe from an employer, and a third charge of structuring a $500,000 cash deposit to avoid banks reporting it.[1] He was sentenced to 37 months in prison.[3] San Francisco Chronicle reporter Jason Fagone interviewed Rush in prison in 2018.[3] On March 24, 2020, Rush was transferred from federal prison to a halfway house in San Francisco.[3]

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References
  1. United States District Court, Northern District of California (June 22, 2017). "06 22 17 Rush Hearing Transcript Guilty Plea". Case No. CR 15-00454 HSG. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
  2. "Union Organizer Indicted for Corruption, Attempted Extortion, and Money Laundering". FBI. 17 September 2015.
  3. Jason Fagone (March 29, 2020). "Operation Limelight — How a fearsome, fast-talking union boss helped legalize pot, took kickbacks and ended up in prison". Retrieved April 21, 2020.
  4. Peter Hecht (3 October 2010). "Growth of California's pot industry is good news for unions". Mcclatchydc.com.
  5. John Hoeffel (22 September 2010). "California's largest labor union backs pot legalization initiative". Los Angeles Times.
  6. Chris Harland (10 November 2015). "Will unionizing the cannabis industry bud in Oakland?". Oakland North.
  7. Chris Roberts (21 July 2016). "Former Cannabis Union Honcho: Feds Took Me Out". CannabisNow.
  8. David Downs (24 September 2015). "Pot Union Organizer Dan Rush Pleads Not Guilty to Corruption, Attempted Extortion, and Money Laundering". East Bay Express.
  9. "Union Organizer Indicted For Corruption, Attempted Extortion, And Money Laundering". United States Department of Justice. 17 September 2015.
  10. Romain Bonilla (14 August 2015). "Marijuana Union Organizer Wanted by FBI on Corruption Charges". Marijuanapolitics.com.
  11. Ari Berman (2 September 2010). "Just Say Now". Oakland North. Archived from the original on 2017-01-04. Retrieved April 21, 2020.
  12. "UFCW Local 5 Statement on the Indictment of Dan Rush". UFCW Local 5. 15 August 2015. Archived from the original on 2015-08-18. Retrieved April 21, 2020.
  13. Steve Elliott (28 May 2010). "California Medical Marijuana Workers Form Union". Tokeofthetown.com.
  14. "Union endorses initiative to legalize marijuana in California". Los Angeles Times. 14 July 2010.
  15. "After cannabis school raid, big turnout expected at S.F. protest". Los Angeles Times. 2 April 2012.
  16. "CCPR Board of Directors". Coalition for Cannabis Policy Reform. Archived from the original on 2017-01-04. Retrieved 2017-01-03.
  17. David Downs (18 August 2015). "Indicted Pot Union Ex-Official Dan Rush Says He Will Be Vindicated". East Bay Express. Retrieved April 21, 2020.
  18. Laurel Bard; Maya Eliahou; Emma Soldon (24 September 2015). "Berkeley Medical Cannabis Commission member arraigned for extortion, taking bribes". The Daily Californian.
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