Galveston County Sheriff Jimmy Fullen and Criminal District Attorney Kenneth Cusick are named as defendants in a federal lawsuit filed Aug. 1 that seeks to block enforcement of Texas's new ban on delta-8 and delta-10 hemp products.

Two hemp retailers and a distributor filed the suit in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, according to Houston Public Media. The complaint also names the Texas Department of State Health Services and Attorney General Ken Paxton. The plaintiffs are asking for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction to halt prosecutions while the case proceeds.

The lawsuit landed four days after the ban took effect July 31. Since that date, possessing delta-8, delta-10, THCP or THCA flower in Texas is a state jail felony carrying 180 days to two years in prison and fines up to $10,000.

Delta-9 THC products containing no more than 0.3% THC by dry weight remain legal.

Why Galveston County?

The suit was filed in the Southern District of Texas, and local law enforcement officials are the parties who would carry out criminal prosecutions under the reclassification. That puts Fullen and Cusick on the hook as the officials residents here would face if charged.

Cusick told the Galveston Daily News on July 31 that his office confirmed with the Texas DPS lab that it can identify delta-8, and that prosecutors will enforce all laws according to the facts of each case. The Galveston County Sheriff's Office did not respond to the newspaper's request for comment.

The League City Police Department said July 31 it will enforce state law while coordinating with Cusick's office, though public information officer Jose Ortega said the department was still working out enforcement procedures and charging decisions.

What residents need to know

There is no grandfather clause. Galveston County defense attorney Mark Diaz warned on July 31 that people who legally purchased delta-8 products before the ban have no protection under the new rules.

"State jail felony is the floor, not the ceiling," Diaz told the Galveston Daily News, explaining that Texas bases penalties on a product's total weight, meaning common delta-8 products could expose someone to charges more serious than the minimum.

Even before a conviction, defendants can face arrest, bond costs, attorney fees and months of court appearances, Diaz said.

Local business hit

Kenneth Berner, co-owner of Burners Vape, Smoke & Herb Shop, opened his first location in League City in 2021 before expanding to Bacliff in 2025. He estimated he had between $2,500 and $4,000 in delta-8 inventory that had to be boxed up or destroyed as of July 31. Delta-8 products had accounted for about 20% of his monthly sales, and changing hemp regulations earlier in 2026 had already cut daily revenue at his two stores by more than half.

The plaintiffs' complaint alleges three grounds: the reinstated definitions draw no line between lawful hemp and unlawful marijuana; the ban is preempted by the 2018 Farm Bill's protections for the interstate hemp market; and the classifications impose an unconstitutional burden on interstate commerce.

Lead counsel Andrea Steel said in an Aug. 1 news release that the state is now treating products as Schedule I drugs, equivalent to heroin, without any change to the underlying laws that allowed Texans to build a multibillion-dollar hemp industry over seven years.

The ban stems from a Texas Supreme Court decision in May that lifted a 2021 injunction and allowed the Texas Department of State Health Services to reclassify most hemp-derived THC as a Schedule I controlled substance, the Texas Tribune reported.

What's next

No ruling on the temporary restraining order has been announced, and the federal court has not scheduled a hearing date. Sen. Charles Perry, R-Lubbock, has confirmed he will file a bill to ban consumable hemp products in the next legislative session.