White Collar & Government Investigations Blog

On Memorial Day weekend 2023, an Olshan client was traveling from Canada in his car with his son to take a vacation in the U.S. They were driving over the Canadian – U.S. border at Blaine, Washington and were stopped at the border and subject to a random vehicle inspection by the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”).  Without a specific concern, a random routine inspection nevertheless turned into a full blown search of the car, where border agents removed and inspected all of the contents of the vehicle and searched the vehicle itself for more than 2 hours, eventually finding a small prescription medication bottle in the client’s dopp kit in his luggage. The investigation report noted that there were 5 or 6 tablets in the prescription bottle that contained, amongst other medicinal ingredients, a low level of THC (marijuana).  After the find, a young border agent detained the client, and interviewed and interrogated him for several hours, ultimately accusing him of violating the Controlled Substances Act for transporting a Category I Controlled Substance (Marijuana) across the border. Despite the legalization of marijuana in a number of U.S. states, the agent required the client to continue to remain in detention at the border crossing while agents typed up a lengthy and detailed confession statement and “offered” the client to sign it.  The client felt he had no choice but to sign the form. Ultimately, despite acknowledging that the meds were a prescription to treat an ailment and pain, and that the THC levels were low, the client was denied entry into the U.S., and formally denied admissibility and expelled. The client’s son was allowed to continue his journey, and the client was left at the border, stranded. The client was listed as having been determined inadmissible for entry into the U.S. and was now required to obtain a waiver if he wished to enter the U.S. in the future. A waiver is obtained through the filing of an I 192 entry form well in advance of any travel. Without the waiver and a full grant of an I 192 application, the client would be denied at entry and would not be allowed to board any flight to the U.S.