a popular product at cbd and hemp stores across the state is now at the center of a controversy it comes after a law enforcement raid two weeks ago in waukesha county ben jordan goes in depth on whether the product is legal in wisconsin dozens of cbd stores and even gas stations in the milwaukee area say their top selling product right now is called delta 8 thc store owners say the product that can be smoked vaped or ingested has a psychoactive component similar to marijuana but it's less potent its legality depends on who you ask this is just a cartridge it's called ice cream cake alexander thompson says it was an easy decision for him to transition from purchasing marijuana illegally on the black market to buying a similar product called delta 8 thc from his favorite cbd store on milwaukee's south side i kind of got to a point in my life where do i want to risk going to jail over a plant and the answer is just simply no but that's exactly where chris s wound up after a cbd store was raided two weeks ago in menomonee falls the waukesha county sheriff's office says it confiscated all of the delta 8 thcs sold at this store after a customer's kids unintentionally ingested the product and wound up overdosing requiring a trip to the hospital they just came in here like that chris says he was arrested and is now facing potential felony charges because the sheriff's office claims those products tested over the legal limit of delta 9 thc the difference in delta 8 and delta 9 thc is important to understand delta 8 thc can be derived from hemp whereas delta 9 thc is mainly derived from marijuana and can get a person high state and federal law both banned products sold with more than .3 percent delta 9 thc chris believes since he's a part of the state's hemp pilot program law enforcement shouldn't have a role in regulation if we have something that tests over the limit the department of agriculture they're supposed to contact us and give us a chance to remove the product off the shelves zach rowe owns hazy days in milwaukee what is delta eight it's a naturally occurring cannabinoid that is found in the cannabis plant it's found in both hemp and marijuana zach says he started selling delta 8 last summer and the product now makes up 70 percent of his sales he doesn't deny that it produces a high depending on the dosage it can definitely have a psychoactive effect republican lawmaker adam neeland says that makes delta 8 illegal but admits it is confusing these are legitimate business owners and i think the issue is just a misunderstanding of the law the department of agriculture trade and consumer protection known as dakap which oversees the state's hemp pilot program is still grappling with whether the product is legal right now it doesn't feel like we can go and get a black and white answer on this brian is the state's plant industry director he says the state's department of justice told him delta 8 is technically legal as long as it isn't chemically manufactured their feedback to us is that delta 8 by itself isn't isn't illegal it really their focal point is that synthesis kuhn says the state is now waiting for a final ruling from the drug enforcement agency on the product's legality for now urges cbd store owners who sell the product to have an attorney help them determine whether the delta eight they're selling could put them in legal jeopardy the cbd store owner who was arrested in menomonee falls for allegedly selling illegal products tells me he hasn't been charged with anything yet he says he's been told by the waukesha county district attorney's office that they have 12 months to make that decision reporting in milwaukee ben jordan tmj4 news