Major Marijuana Advocacy Group Under Criminal Investigation for Fake Petition Signatures: Florida AG

The Sunshine State's top pro-marijuana committee raised $216 million to legalize weed. Now it's under investigation for alleged ballot fraud.

Florida’s largest advocate for recreational marijuana is under criminal investigation for ballot fraud ahead of the 2026 election, the state’s Attorney General’s Office has confirmed to Restoration News.

The political action committee Smart & Safe Florida has been at the forefront of Big Pot’s push to legalize recreational marijuana in Florida, raising just under $216 million between 2022 and 2026. In 2024, Smart & Safe headed a constitutional amendment initiative (Amendment 3) that would have allowed adults age 21 and older to possess up to three ounces of recreational marijuana, which is currently illegal in Florida. 

Amendment 3 stirred widespread controversy that divided Florida conservatives. Prominent Republicans such as President Donald Trump, RNC Chairman and state Sen. Joe Gruters, and former state Sen. Jeff Brandes—who said that at least half of Florida’s lawmakers privately agreed with Amendment 3—all supported the measure, as did the marijuana industry. 

Pro-Amendment 3 committees raised nearly $134 million in the 2024 cycle alone—nearly four times as much as the $35 million raised by anti-Amendment 3 advocates, led by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Almost 94 percent of the "yes" on Amendment 3 campaign funding came from Trulieve, a major Tallahassee-based medical marijuana distributor that operates medicinal cannabis dispensaries across eight states, including 170 in Florida alone—by far the most of any state. (Florida voters approved the sale of medical marijuana in 2016.) 

Notably, Trulieve has provided 96 percent of the $215 million raised by Smart & Safe Florida since 2022.

Amendment 3 ultimately garnered 55.9 percent of the vote in November 2024 but failed to meet the state constitution’s 60 percent threshold to become law. 

Smart & Safe Florida soon raised another $61.5 million to qualify the November 2026 ballot—99 percent of which came from Trulieve—yet failed to obtain the 880,000 valid signature petitions required by state law. 

In January 2026, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced his office had opened a criminal investigation. He alleged that "Smart & Safe Florida knew about dozens of fraudsters turning in over 21,000 petitions" yet "failed to inform law enforcement." 

“We will not allow a mega marijuana corporation to hijack our state’s governing document,” Uthmeier said.

Investigators discovered 14,500 petitions—or 67 percent of the 21,600 filed by the committee for the 2026 election—were invalid. Uthmeier's office soon filed 46 criminal charges against petitioners connected with Smart & Safe Florida. 

Restoration News has confirmed that arrest warrants have been issued for nine individuals. Warrants are pending for six more in connection with alleged fraudulent activity. Uthmeier's office has also issued four criminal subpoenas to Smart & Safe Florida for relevant records.

Smart & Safe Florida has faced similar investigations before. Law enforcement arrested Miami resident Jessica Sonia Humphreys, a paid petition collector for the committee, in January 2024 and again in August 2025 for a total of 72 counts of petition fraud and perjury related to Amendment 3.

Just three days after his January 2026 announcement, Uthmeier revealed that law enforcement had arrested Titusville resident Teagen Marie Targhuhanuchi for using 12 petition signees' information to secretly register them to vote. She was charged with 12 counts of identity theft, 12 counts of submission of fraudulent voter information, and one count of identity theft involving more than 10 individuals.

Now Uthmeier's office has confirmed in a statement to Restoration News that Smart & Safe Florida's proposed amendment "will not be on the ballot [in 2026], and the criminal investigations are ongoing."

Dirty Water Complaints

Trulieve is already facing scrutiny across Florida. Trulieve's million-square-foot "Megatron" production facility in Jefferson County, just outside Tallahassee, has prompted complaints about strong odors and water pollution. An adjacent property owner submitted photo and video evidence to state authorities reportedly showing polluted water from the plant encroaching onto the owner's property. Since then, many videos have been shared online showing water spilling out of Trulieve’s property.

The Suwannee River Water Management District performed two site inspections in April 2026. The district accused Trulieve of multiple alleged violations: standing water, erosion damage, and additional and excessive impervious surfaces, water discharge, pollutants, and flow. 

An April 28 meeting of the Jefferson County Commission was packed with concerned residents pleading their case, as well as representatives from Trulieve, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and the Suwannee River Water Management District. The meeting was so full that many residents had to wait outside the chamber to submit their comments.

Cay Curtis, who resides near the grow facility, told commissioners: "Obviously, there is runoff on neighbors’ properties. There is a tremendous smell . . . I would like them to try and be good neighbors, and to eliminate the smell, and eliminate the water runoff, even if they are meeting state mandated requirements, because obviously, it is not enough."

Local resident Norman Freilich voiced similar frustration: "I don't think they want to be good neighbors. I think they want to make money and they're going to do what they're going to do, however they can do it, to make the most money."

District spokesman Troy Roberts told Restoration News that “the penalty and associated compliance terms are currently being discussed between the District and Trulieve’s attorneys."

Trulieve did not respond to our request for comment.

Former Florida House Speaker Paul Renner, who is now running for governor, told Restoration News that the situation is "unacceptable."

“When Floridians approved medical marijuana, companies like Trulieve promised to be responsible partners," he said. "Instead, as these corporations have grown larger, they've begun putting their own interests ahead of the public's, leading the push to turn Florida into an anything-goes marijuana state. I will stand up to any special interest that tries to rewrite the rules for its own benefit or transform Florida into a state our families wouldn't recognize and don't want."

MORE FROM RESTORATION NEWS:

     INVESTIGATION: The Narco Nation Flooding Our Streets With Poison

     COMMENTARY: Decriminalizing Drugs Failed Abysmally in Portland

     CRIME ALERT: FOIA Reveals 130 Crimes by Illegal Aliens in Georgia

     EXCLUSIVE: Allen West: This is the Best Program for Deporting Illegal Aliens (INTERVIEW)

Spread the truth and save America—chip in today.

Restoration News, a project of Restoration of America, is your trusted investigative news source for the America First movement. As a rapidly growing conservative news site, we focus on delivering accurate and insightful exposés on political news, immigration news, leftist lies, and other pressing issues affecting everyday Americans. Our uncompromising commitment to a hard-hitting, fact-based, America First, and faithful perspective ensures that you receive news that aligns with your values.

Every dollar gets us closer to winning the war on woke.