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By Khaleda Rahman
National Correspondent
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A Republican Virginia state senator has introduced a resolution that is seeking the expulsion of state Senator L. Louise Lucas, one of Virginia’s most powerful Democrats, as she faces federal charges accusing her of leading a wide-ranging criminal marijuana enterprise.
State Senator Bryce Reeves of Spotsylvania prefiled Senate Resolution 173 on October 30, ahead of the beginning of the 2027 General Assembly session in January.
The resolution seeks to have the Virginia Senate Committee on Privileges and Elections investigate the allegations against Lucas and consider disciplinary action, including expulsion, based on findings “supported by evidence.”
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If approved, the resolution could lead to a separate vote on expelling Lucas, though it acknowledges that she is presumed innocent of the federal criminal charges until proven guilty.
Reeves has said he filed the resolution because the Senate has a responsibility to investigate any conduct that may breach Senate rules.
“I don’t care if she is a Democrat or Republican I swore an oath to the Constitution of the U.S. and Virginia,” he wrote on Facebook last week.
He added: “Let me be clear: the Senator is innocent until proven guilty, just like anybody else. The Senate of Virginia retains independent constitutional authority to investigate conduct that could be a breach of Senate rules, and for good reason. The focus here is Sen. Lucas’ alleged abuse of her position, including the purported bribe.”
Lucas, who is the state Senate’s president pro tempore, is facing five federal charges: racketeering conspiracy, 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. Other defendants charged in the case include her two daughters and a grandson.
Lucas has not entered a formal plea, but has said she intends to plead not guilty.
In a statement posted on social media, she did not directly address the substance of the charges against her, but said it amounted to the federal government wielding its “full weight” against an 82-year-old great-grandmother.
“I will not be intimidated. I will not be bullied. And I will not back down,” Lucas said.
Newsweek has contacted Lucas’ attorney and her office for comment via emails sent outside regular business hours. Reeves' office has also been contacted for comment.
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What Is Louise Lucas Accused Of?
Lucas is accused of leading a criminal enterprise that acquired and distributed large quantities of marijuana and laundered the proceeds, according to an indictment that charges her and six other defendants.
The indictment alleges Lucas used her position as chairwoman of the Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee to insulate the enterprise, which it called “The Lucas Enterprise,” from criminal scrutiny and influence legislation that would benefit it.
According to the indictment, Lucas was the “leader of the enterprise” and “approved and directed criminal activities,” including arranging for the acquisition and distribution of marijuana and supervising the laundering of the proceeds. It cited conversations where Lucas allegedly said the scheme was an effort to accumulate “generational wealth.”
FBI Director Kash Patel said the scheme operated for five years and was worth about $4.5 million.
The indictment alleges Lucas worked with another of the defendants to use her political position to obtain a recreational marijuana license for him, with the understanding that the proceeds from sales under the license would be shared with her to support the “enterprise.”
It alleges she made a $750,000 payment in 2022 for an ownership stake in a business that was the shell holding company for a co-conspirator’s expected Virginia recreational marijuana license. It alleges she used her position in discussions involving the prospective license and that she failed to disclose the business interest on her statements of economic interests.
Reeves’ resolution pointed to two remarks allegedly made by Lucas cited in the indictment to justify why the state Senate should examine if Lucas' legislative work was improperly intertwined with her private interests.
In one, Lucas allegedly acknowledged that her prior conduct was illegal and another involved her alleged discussion of disqualifying a prospective marijuana license applicant until money owed to her was repaid.
The indictment alleges that in March this year, Lucas said “make it legal because I did, when I did it, it was obviously illegal," when talking with somebody about marijuana legislation.
In the other, Lucas allegedly said: "We trying to disqualify somebody until he pays me back my money.”
Marijuana has been legal to possess in Virginia since 2021, but full recreational sales are not underway yet. Legislation enacted earlier this year will allow them starting in July 2027.
Who Is L. Louise Lucas?
Lucas is one of the most influential Democrats in Virginia politics.
She has been in elected office for decades and has served since 1992 in the state Senate, and has been the chamber’s president pro tempore since 2020. Her current term ends in January 2028.
She chairs the Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee, which gives her substantial influence over legislation involving state spending and the budget.
She has been a forceful advocate for marijuana legalization. In 2021, Lucas opened a store in her hometown of Portsmouth, The Cannabis Outlet, to sell legal hemp and CBD products.
“Let’s talk about pot,” Lucas said in a post on X in January 2022. “Yes, we legalized it and I even opened the Cannabis Outlet after we did! But the job isn’t done. People are still in jail for something that is legal today.”
Lucas has been an outspoken critic of President Donald Trump and has characterized the federal investigation into her as politically-motivated. It came as Trump’s Justice Department has faced scrutiny over investigations and prosecutions against perceived adversaries of the president.
In October, Attorney General Todd Blanche rejected any suggestion that politics played a role in Lucas’ case, saying the investigation began before Trump returned to office in January 2025.
When federal agents searched Lucas’ office in May, The Associated Press reported that the probe was opened during Democratic President Joe Biden’s administration, citing an unnamed person familiar with the investigation.
What Could Happen Next?
Reeves' resolution, if approved, would not itself expel Lucas. Instead, it could lay the groundwork for a separate vote on expulsion if the committee's findings supported such an action.
Reeves' resolution would require the Committee on Privileges and Elections to investigate Lucas and determine whether discipline is warranted. Any recommendation from the committee would go to the full state Senate, where Democrats hold 21 seats and Republicans hold 19.
The Virginia Constitution allows the expulsion of a state senator if two-thirds of its elected membership support it, meaning at least eight Democrats would have to vote for it if all 19 Republicans support it.
Meanwhile, Lucas’ arraignment is scheduled for November 16, according to court records reviewed by Newsweek.
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: John Fitzpatrick and Emma Lee-Sang
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