Marijuana advocate known as NJ Weedman acquitted in retrial

TRENTON, N.J. – A New Jersey marijuana advocate dubbed NJ Weedman has been acquitted of witness tampering in his retrial.

NJ.com reports that Ed Forchion raised his arms in victory after the verdict Thursday in Mercer County Superior Court. His supporters cheered and he smilingly invited the prosecutor to his victory party.

The charges stemmed from a raid narcotics officers executed at his Trenton eatery. Forchion streamed his March 2017 arrest live on Facebook and denied the charges.

Prosecutors argued that he was putting an informant at risk by spreading his name on social media. He said he was just exercising his First Amendment rights.

A jury in November acquitted him of one count of witness tampering and couldn’t reach a verdict on the second. He acted as his own attorney both times.

___

Information from: NJ.com, http://www.nj.com