The D.C. Alcoholic Beverage and Cannabis Board upheld the closure of Chocolate City Wellness, a medical cannabis retailer located at 1723 Connecticut Avenue NW, and imposed a 30-day license suspension after investigators found the business sold non-medical cannabis on two occasions.
According to the Board’s October 8 order, undercover operations conducted on August 28 and 29, 2025, revealed that Khopkins, LLC, operating as Chocolate City Wellness, sold untested and improperly labeled cannabis products that were not sourced from licensed cultivation centers or recorded in the District’s METRC tracking system. The transactions were confirmed through field testing and deemed violations of the D.C. Controlled Substances Act and District medical cannabis regulations.
Investigators also discovered additional non-medical cannabis products on-site. Owner Kenneth Hopkins told investigators the business faced financial struggles and difficulties obtaining regulated medical cannabis, according to his testimony on Oct. 8, 2025. He highlighted supply issues, saying that only 20lbs of medical cannabis was available to purchase for 47 dispensaries in August.
“We haven’t been able to fill our orders,” he testified. “We have not been able to meet the demand of our customers so we have lost business.” Hopkins added that customers are going to Maryland because they could not meet demand. “We’re just being told to deal with it when we place an order [ with cultivators],” he said.
The Board determined that the sales posed an imminent danger to public health and safety, affirming its earlier summary closure order and imposing a 30-day suspension, effective until November 7, 2025. Chocolate City Wellness may resume operations on November 8, but the Board warned that any future violations could result in license revocation or non-renewal.
