Judge criticizes tactics used by officials during raid

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – A federal judge is criticizing tactics used by government agents following a raid earlier this year on a dozen Ziggyz pipe shops in Oklahoma City and Tulsa.

Chelsey Davis, owner of the stores, accuses the DEA in a lawsuit of threatening landlords, shuttering some stores and risking closure of others.

The Oklahoman newspaper reports U.S. District Judge Joe Heaton wrote in a recent order that the government couldn’t attack what it sees as illegal activity by "simply putting someone out of business."

Heaton’s order bars authorities from contacting Ziggyz landlords or pursuing civil forfeiture proceedings against them until the lawsuit is settled.

Law enforcement agencies raided Ziggyz stores in April, seizing merchandise including rolling papers, glass pipes and scales. The raid’s purpose was to stop synthetic marijuana sales.