Arkansas State Police Seize Nearly One Ton of of Illegal Drugs Made from Marijuana
Last week, Arkansas State Troopers seized 1,987 pounds of illegal drugs made from marijuana.
In a statement, the Arkansas State Police said:
On Monday, November 17, 2025, at approximately 10:30 a.m., Arkansas State Police (ASP) Troopers conducted a traffic stop on a tractor-trailer near the 173-mile marker eastbound on Interstate 40 in Lonoke County, for a traffic violation.
During a search of the trailer, Troopers discovered four pallets of cardboard boxes containing 960 pounds of illegal marijuana, 1,000 pounds of THC products, and 27 pounds of synthetic marijuana.
Additionally, a firearm was located in the sleeper compartment of the cab.
Troopers arrested the driver, Tobias Xavier Taylor, 37, of Richmond, Virginia, and transported him to the Lonoke County Detention Center.
Taylor is facing multiple felony charges, including Trafficking a Controlled Substance, Simultaneous Possession of Drugs and Firearms, Unauthorized Use of Another Person’s Property to Facilitate Certain Crimes, and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.
Contrary to popular belief, legalization has actually emboldened drug cartels and increased the flow of illegal marijuana products across the country. Arkansas State Police routinely confiscate marijuana grown in states where it is legal.
The U.S. Department of Justice has said organized crime from Mexico and China may be making millions of dollars from illegal marijuana in states like California, Maine, New York, and Massachusetts.
Some of these illegal marijuana operations are tied to labor trafficking, violent crime, and foreign adversaries like the Chinese Communist Party.
NPR has reported that illegal immigrants from China “are taking jobs at hundreds of cannabis farms springing up across the U.S.” Other correspondents have revealed how these illegal marijuana operations contribute to “modern day slavery on American soil.”
That’s one of the reasons Arkansans should think twice before voting to expand marijuana in the state.
All of this underscores what we have said for years: Marijuana may be many things, but “harmless” simply is not one of them.
Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.
Federal Judge Blocks Safeguards Designed to Prevent Petition Fraud in Arkansas
Last week U.S. District Judge Timothy Brooks in Fayetteville blocked a slate of anti-fraud safeguards the Arkansas Legislature enacted regarding the ballot initiative process.
The order specifically affects the following laws:
- Act 602 of 2025 by Rep. Ryan Rose (R — Van Buren) and Sen. Mark Johnson (R — Little Rock) requiring ballot initiative titles to be written at or below an eighth-grade reading level. A ballot title is supposed to accurately summarize a measure so voters can decide if they support or oppose it.
- Act 241 of 2025 by Sen. Kim Hammer (R — Benton) and Rep. Kendon Underwood (R — Cave Springs) requiring petition canvassers to file an affidavit with the Secretary of State verifying the canvasser complied with the Arkansas Constitution and all laws concerning canvassing, perjury, forgery, and fraud.
- Act 453 of 2025 by Rep. DeAnn Vaught (R — Horatio) and Sen. Kim Hammer (R — Benton) requiring petition canvassers for ballot measures to be Arkansas residents who actually live in the state.
- Act 218 of 2025 by Sen. Kim Hammer (R — Benton) and Rep. Kendon Underwood (R — Cave Springs) requiring canvassers to inform people that petition fraud is a crime before obtaining their signatures on a petition.
- Act 240 of 2025 by Sen. Kim Hammer (R — Benton) and Rep. Kendon Underwood (R — Cave Springs) requiring canvassers to verify a person’s identity via photo ID before obtaining the person’s signature on a petition to help prevent people from fraudulently signing someone else’s name.
- Act 274 of 2025 by Sen. Kim Hammer (R — Benton) and Rep. Kendon Underwood (R — Cave Springs) requiring people to read the ballot title – which is a summary of the measure – before signing a petition.
Judge Brooks’ decision effectively gives wealthy special interests a clear path to circulate petitions for deceptive ballot measures in Arkansas.
We have written repeatedly about how Arkansas’ ballot initiative process has become the opposite of what it was intended to be.
The Arkansas Constitution lets canvassers circulate petitions to place measures on a general election ballot. Its original intent was to give citizens a way to function as a “legislative body.” But instead of giving everyday people a way to enact their own laws, special interests have hired people to circulate petitions to place misleading, deceptive, and poorly written measures on the ballot in Arkansas.
Last spring Arkansans testified in legislative committees about petition canvassers allegedly trying to provoke altercations and encouraging people to sign petitions multiple times.
Canvassers for the Arkansas Abortion Amendment allegedly were promised $500 bonuses for “altercations” with pro-lifers.
In response, Arkansas’ legislators passed good measures this year to tighten the ballot initiative process. Now those laws are being blocked in court.
Judge Brooks’ decision is not the final word in the matter. We believe our federal courts ultimately will uphold these good laws as Judge Brooks’ decision is appealed.
Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.