Virginia state Sen. L. Louise Lucas, one of the most powerful Democrats in the commonwealth, was indicted Thursday on federal drug trafficking, money laundering, fraud, and firearms charges after the Justice Department accused her of running a marijuana distribution enterprise with members of her family.

Get involved in state-level prayer with IFA.

From Fox News:

View Comments (0)

“[They] orchestrated a multi-year scheme to enrich their own criminal marijuana enterprise, ‘the Lucas Enterprise,’ using Lucas’ position as Chairwoman of the Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee to insulate the enterprise from criminal scrutiny and influencing legislation to financially benefit themselves,” FBI Director Kash Patel said in the statement.

Lucas was directly involved in a wide range of activities within the enterprise, including the acquisition and distribution of 100 kilograms or more of marijuana and for the laundering of the drug sales proceeds, the DOJ said.

…

During a conversation with an unindicted co-conspirator, Lucas pushed for favorable language in a Virginia state bill on marijuana reform, telling the co-conspirator “this is our last chance at generational wealth…. I’ve got too old to not be greedy,” the indictment stated.

Lucas, 82, is among seven people charged in the case, including her two daughters and her grandson. She has served in the Virginia Senate since 1991, has been its president pro tempore since 2020, and has chaired the Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee since 2024. According to the indictment, she opened two marijuana-related businesses in 2019, nearly two years before Virginia legalized recreational use. One of her daughters, Lisa Lucas-Burke, is currently running for mayor of Portsmouth.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said Lucas “put her own financial interests before the people she was elected to serve.” The indictment follows a May FBI raid on Lucas’ Portsmouth office and businesses. At the time, officials told reporters the probe was financial in nature and had begun under the Biden administration.

Lucas denies wrongdoing and has cast the case as political retaliation. In a post on X, she said the full weight of the federal government had been turned against an elderly great-grandmother, recalled growing up under Jim Crow, and vowed that she would not be intimidated or back down.

If the charges hold up, this is a sobering picture of what happens when public office becomes a family business. The allegations describe a lawmaker shaping marijuana policy for profit, and they raise hard questions about who has been driving Virginia’s rush to commercialize the drug.

Let’s pray for the prosecutors, judges, and jurors in this case, that the full truth would come out and justice would be done without political favor in either direction. Let’s pray for Sen. Lucas and her family, that they would face these charges honestly and turn to God in repentance for any wrong they have done. Let’s pray that Virginia lawmakers would reject a marijuana industry that enriches insiders while harming families and young people, and that the people of Virginia would elect leaders who fear God and serve their constituents rather than themselves.

How are you praying for integrity in Virginia’s government? Share your prayers and scriptures in the comments.

(Excerpt from Fox News. Photo Credit: CRYSTALWEED cannabis on Unsplash)