TULSA, Okla. — Ten months ago, Jabrion Hardin was traveling through Oklahoma with his brother Jimmy. Hardin was moving from Texas to Illinois.
He made a last-minute lane change and got pulled over by the Oklahoma Highway Patrol near Big Cabin.
Hardin said he recently won a settlement from Juul, and was carrying cash from the settlement. He said the lengthy legal battle created a lot of distrust.
"I'd never dealt with that type of money in my life," said Hardin, "so I wanted to pull it and have it in my hands. That's how I knew it was safe. I know that's not how you do things, but it's not unlawful to do so."
Hardin had $62,000 in his truck, along with multiple guns. During the traffic stop near Big Cabin, the trooper told Hardin he smelled marijuana, seizing the money and firearms. There were no drugs in the vehicle, but the trooper claimed to find a pipe.
"They didn't show us the pipe they said they found," said Hardin. "I'm not discounting the fact I smoke marijuana. I have seizures, it calms me down. I don't smoke out of a pipe. I just want to see body cameras to see if they actually got the pipe out of my car."
The trooper had the Hardins drive to the Craig County Sheriff's Office, where they were questioned for hours on a variety of topics.
When Jimmy asked to call his lawyer so he could provide documents detailing the Juul settlement, he said the Sheriff's Office confiscated his phone and put him in handcuffs.
The Hadins said they were told they could leave only if they signed paperwork saying the money was drug money.
Craig County officials and the Department of Public Safety would not comment on the situation, but in court documents, they basically told the court they don't believe the settlement documents are legitimate.
Craig County District Attorney Matt Ballard sent 2 News statement on July 18 about civil forfeiture:
“Civil asset forfeiture is a tool police can use to negatively impact criminals and criminal organizations and stem criminal activities in our communities.
The money brought in through civil asset forfeitures is restricted funds. Allowable uses are narrow and intended to put money from the drug trade to work fighting the problems they are causing.
Forfeited assets must be used to enforce drug laws and for drug abuse education and prevention.
Producing illicit drugs is relatively inexpensive for criminals. It is important to get those drugs off our streets. But as far as drilling down to cripple the criminal enterprises aimed and pushing addictive and dangerous drugs on our loved ones, what’s effective is interrupting the flow of drug money and weapons.”
Aaron Grub, attorney for the Hardins, said 10 months is too long for this to go on.
"Honestly, I'm hearing crickets from the other side," said Grubb. "We have asked multiple times if there is a development on any investigation they are supposedly conducting."
According to Oklahoma Watch, Craig County seized a million and a half dollars in two years, most of it along the same stretch of highway. In the 45 minutes 2 News was there, we saw three drivers pulled over at the Big Cabin exit.
Last year, Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt said civil forfeiture needed to be addressed, calling the problems with it "crazy" to him. The proposed legislation didn't reach his desk.
A trial for the Hardins is set for October, more than a year after the traffic stop.
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