Sen. Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, listens during a reconvened legislative session to vote on Gov. Abigail Spanberger's amendments to the Virginia budget, Monday, June 29, 2026 at the Virginia State Capitol in Richmond, Va. (Mike Kropf/Richmond Times-Dispatch via Getty Images)

Mike Kropf | Richmond Times-dispatch | Getty Images

Virginia state Sen. L. Louise Lucas has been charged in a federal indictment with leading an alleged marijuana racketeering conspiracy that included family members of the powerful Democrat, according to court documents made public on Thursday.

The indictment and the FBI said the five-year scheme, which was worth an estimated $4.5 million, obtained and illegally distributed "large quantities of illegal marijuana," and aimed to procure "generational wealth" for members of the enterprise.

Lucas, 82, is a critic of President Donald Trump, and was an architect of ultimately failed efforts in Virginia to redraw the state's congressional map for November to boost chances for Democrats to win certain districts. She also has been a proponent of legalizing marijuana in the state.

The criminal case, which also charges members of Lucas' family, was made public by the Department of Justice less than two weeks before the midterm election. Those contests will determine what political party controls both chambers of Congress.

Lucas, the state Senate's president pro tempore and chairman of the Finance and Appropriations Committee, is not on the ballot this year. The indictment alleges that Lucas, who was first elected to the Senate in 1991, leveraged her position as chairman of the powerful committee to protect her marijuana enterprise.

The indictment says Lucas "was the leader of the enterprise," that she "arranged for the acquisition and distribution of marijuana, supervises the laundering of marijuana proceeds," and "used her political influence to attempt to influence Virginia legislation for the benefit of herself and her family and maintained a premise for the distribution of marijuana." The alleged scheme used two stores, CBD Shopped and The Cannabis Outlet, for its operation.

"On May 6, the FBI executed federal search warrants at The Cannabis Outlet and The CBD Shoppe," the Department of Justice said in a statement. "Agents recovered marijuana and firearms at both locations."

Six other defendants are charged in the alleged scheme, among them Lucas' two daughters and her grandson, Ryan Eichelbeger. One of the daughters, Lisa Lucas-Burke, is running for mayor of Portsmouth.

Lucas is in custody with the other defendants, Attorney General Todd Blanche announced at a press conference Thursday. She is scheduled to appear before a magistrate judge in U.S. District Court in Norfolk, Virginia, at 2:30 p.m. ET Thursday.

In addition to racketeering conspiracy, Lucas is charged with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana; conspiracy to launder money; conspiracy to commit honest services fraud; and maintaining a drug involved premises.

"Today, the FBI, the Department of Justice, and the full weight of the federal government have been wielded against an 82-year-old great-grandmother," Lucas said in a statement posted on X.

"I grew up under Jim Crow. I've seen what happens when people in power try to silence those who stand up to them. I spent my life fighting back, and I'm not stopping now," she said. "I will not be intimidated. I will not be bullied. And I will not back down."

Blanche, when asked at the press conference about criticism from Lucas's attorney that the case is politically motivated, said, "We don't do political paybacks."

The attorney general noted the investigation of Lucas began before the current Trump administration, and that a federal grand jury had determined there was enough evidence to indict her.

"There's decision and processes in place at the department when we're bringing a case against a political official, and the ... first question is: is this investigation proper?" Blanche said. "And the conclusion of that is yes. Is the timing proper? And the conclusion of that is yes."

The indictment was issued by a grand jury on Oct. 14, but was only unsealed Thursday.

The indictment says that after he was hired in 2022, a senior law enforcement officer "warned Louise Lucas that selling marijuana was illegal and was going to get her in trouble one day."

Lucas since 2021 has been a partner in The Cannabis Outlet, a shop that sells selling hemp and CBD, or cannabidiol products.

After a 2024 burglary at the store, two of Lucas' co-defendants claimed to Portsmouth Police that about $3,000 of marijuana products were missing.

One of the overt acts listed in the indictment was an April 2022 meeting between Lucas, her two daughters and an indicted co-conspirator at Lucas' office. At that meeting, the indictment alleges, Lucas asked the unidentified co-conspirator "if they were a member of law enforcement before purchasing between three and five pounds of marijuana" from the co-conspirator with a check for $6,600 from Lisa Lucas-Burke. The check was made out to "Freedom is Dope."

On Feb. 5, 2026, the indictment says, Lucas called an unindicted co-conspirator and discussed the language surrounding the recreational marijuana legislation pending in the Virginia General Assembly, and the possibility of [the co-conspirator] receiving a license and sharing the proceeds with her because 'this is our last chance at generational wealth . . .. I've got too old to not be greedy.'"

The charges come five months after FBI agents executed a search warrant at Lucas' Portsmouth office.

At the time of that May 6 raid, Lucas noted in a statement that it came two weeks after Virginia voters approved the redistricting plan, adding, "Virginians sent a powerful message when they voted to stop Trump's scheme to manipulate the 2026 midterm elections."

"I was proud to help lead that effort and I have never been afraid to stand up to Donald Trump."