Ojibwe Man Challenges Minnesota’s Authority in Cannabis Case

OG Article By Mike Mosedale

October 14, 2025

Todd Thompson, a White Earth Band member, asserts treaty rights to sell marijuana, facing felony charges after a 2023 raid.

By Mike Mosedale - October 14, 2025

MAHNOMEN — On August 2, 2023, the day after Minnesota legalized recreational marijuana, authorities raided Todd Thompson’s Asema Tobacco & Pipe Shop, seizing 7.5 pounds of marijuana, wax, and cash. Thompson, 56, was charged with felony possession eight months later.

Thompson claims rights under treaties, federal law, and Minnesota’s cannabis statute, which recognizes tribal sovereignty over reservations. He argues state jurisdiction doesn’t apply to civil/regulatory matters like cannabis sales under Public Law 280.

District Judge Seamus Duffy denied dismissal in March, citing criminal elements in state law. However, the Minnesota Court of Appeals granted an interlocutory appeal; arguments are set for November 4. Thompson faces up to five years in prison.

History of Advocacy

Thompson has a record of defending Indigenous rights:

• Arrested in the 1980s during Mille Lacs treaty fights, upheld by the 1999 Supreme Court.

• Won dismissals in off-reservation fishing (2010s) and wild rice harvesting (2024) cases.

• Trespass charge dismissed in 2021 Line 3 pipeline protest.

Frank Bibeau, an attorney for the 1855 Treaty Authority, praises Thompson as a leader in exercising treaty rights for economic gain.

Background and Business

Raised in Minneapolis, Thompson learned traditions from elders like Eugene Begay. He moved to White Earth 18 years ago, opening Asema in 2019 for tobacco and paraphernalia.

Competition from White Earth’s tribal dispensary has hurt sales, but Thompson persists. “It’s in my DNA,” he says of his legal battles.

The case tests state-tribal boundaries amid Minnesota’s growing cannabis market.

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