WeedPress: The Paper Trail

Dark farmhouse at dusk behind court papers, a house key and a gavel, with the headline '605 Cannabis Principal Raised Social Security Disability in Court While Fighting Foreclosure on Emery Home' and 'WeedPress | by Jason Karimi'
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605 Cannabis Principal Raised Social Security Disability in Court While Fighting Foreclosure on Emery Home

Asked about her role at 605 Cannabis, Melissa Mentele told a judge, “Your Honor, I own the company.” Moments later the certified transcript records her saying, “I’m no [sic] Social Security Disability.” Publisher Jason Karimi, the respondent, says she said “on.” She is also fighting a contract-for-deed foreclosure on her Emery home.

Jason Karimi, Publisher

14–22 minutes

Related: Public Records Show Two Civil Cases Involving 605 Cannabis Executive; Questions of Transparency Follow For Reform Leadership

Disclosure: Melissa Mentele has filed several protection-order petitions against WeedPress publisher Jason Karimi. Karimi was the respondent at the May 12, 2026 hearing quoted in this article. The judge denied that petition, and an appeal is pending.¹ Under WeedPress policy, the site does not seek comment from parties in litigation that involves its publisher. WeedPress therefore did not contact the Menteles, the Hornidges or their lawyers. No court order barred WeedPress from seeking comment. The decision was WeedPress’s own. The parties’ positions are taken from their court filings and their statements in court.

Melissa Mentele, one of the four “primary principals” of 605 Cannabis LLC, told a judge this May, “Your Honor, I own the company.”² A few lines later, after the judge said he had “a little bit of an issue with your credibility,” the certified transcript records her saying: “I’m no [sic] Social Security Disability.”³ Karimi was in the courtroom as the respondent. He says she said “I’m on Social Security Disability,” and that the transcript’s “no” is a transcription error. WeedPress has not reviewed the court’s audio recording and has not obtained any SSA record.

“I’m no [sic] Social Security Disability.”

Melissa Mentele, Mentele v. Karimi, No. 49TPO26-343, hearing transcript at 24:25 (May 12, 2026). Karimi, the respondent, says the word spoken was “on.”

Mentele is also fighting a lawsuit over the Emery house where, according to her filings, she has lived for years. Sellers John and Deborah Hornidge want the court to cancel the 2014 contract for deed and return possession of the house to them. The Menteles say the contract was “paid in full.”⁴ In July, Judge Patrick T. Smith denied the Menteles’ bid for a default judgment on their counterclaim, which sought transfer of the deed. He found there had been “insufficient discovery” to enter judgment. In excusing the Hornidges’ late reply, he also found that they had shown “a reasonable cause for delay,” “the allegation of a meritorious defense,” and “the likelihood of success on that defense.” Their defense is that payments were late or incomplete. He has not decided who is right.⁵

What the documents show, side by side:

  • Under oath on May 12, Mentele described her role at 605 Cannabis in four ways:
    • “I own three vertical, I own a vertical cannabis business which has three licenses.”⁶
    • “I left my job at 605 in March of last year.”⁷
    • She works there “[o]ne day a week maybe, and that’s if I feel good.”⁸
    • “Your Honor, I own the company.”⁹
    The judge summarized: “then you testified that you’re a consultant, and now you’re testifying that you own it.”¹⁰
  • The Menteles’ counterclaim says Mentele has lived in the house “for several years” and invested “thousands of dollars.” A month later, Mentele’s motion quoted the same paragraph as “15 years” and “over 120,000 dollars.”¹¹
  • The Menteles’ filings say the contract “has been paid in full.” The sellers say the Menteles “made part of the payment but [are] in default.” So far, the judge has denied the Menteles’ bid for a default judgment. In allowing the sellers’ late reply, he found that they had alleged a meritorious defense and shown “the likelihood of success on that defense.” He has not yet decided who is right.¹²

Social Security Disability and 605 Cannabis

The disability statement. The parties were sworn at the start of the May 12 hearing.¹³ Near the end, the judge told Mentele, “you initially testified that you didn’t work there.” She answered, “Your Honor, I own the company.” The judge said her credibility was “a little bit dampened” and that he was “done taking testimony.” The transcript then records her next words: “I’m no Social Security Disability.”¹⁴ The judge did not respond to that line. He went on to deny her petition.¹⁵ A court recorder certified the transcript as “a true and correct transcription from Court Smart,” the court’s audio system.¹⁶ In context, the remark came right after an exchange about whether she works at 605. Karimi says he heard “on.” Readers should know that the official transcript reads “no.”

Earlier in the hearing, Mentele told the court she had a serious health condition. WeedPress is not publishing those medical details. They are redacted in the transcript linked below.¹⁷

Her role at 605 Cannabis, in the records:

  • The company’s own words. In a 2024 court brief, 605 Cannabis said: “605 consists of four primary principals — Ned Horsted, Kyle Peska, Melissa Mentele, and Elizabeth Tiger.” It adds: “Prior to starting 605, Ned, Melissa, and Elizabeth were the primary architects and advocates for Initiated Measure 26.”¹⁸
  • Local license. 605’s 2025 Lincoln County medical-cannabis license renewal, approved Nov. 25, 2025, lists her as one of six “principal officers and board members.”¹⁹
  • State regulators. The South Dakota Department of Health’s February 2023 notice of intent to revoke 605’s certificates was addressed to “Mr. Horsted, Ms. Mentele, Mr. Peska and Ms. Tiger.”²⁰
  • Her own statements as a company voice. In 2023, she gave a statement to Dakota News Now on behalf of 605: “As a company, we have chosen to protect the patients … by filing suit.”²¹ At the May 12 hearing she said, “Our business does millions per year,” and she called the company’s licenses hers: “I own three vertical, I own a vertical cannabis business which has three licenses.”²²

The rules. Social Security disability benefits come with rules about work and earnings. The record does not show which benefit, if any, Mentele receives. For Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), disability generally means being unable to engage in “substantial gainful activity.” For 2026, the Social Security Administration generally treats earnings above $1,690 a month (for non-blind people) as substantial gainful activity. Work “performed for pay or profit,” including part-time work and work “intended for profit, whether a profit is realized,” can count.²³ SSA says disability beneficiaries who work “must tell us about your earnings no matter how little you earn.” SSDI also allows a trial work period of up to nine months.²⁴ For self-employed people, SSA weighs the value of their services and their income, not only their wages.²⁵

WeedPress does not know whether or since when Mentele has received benefits, what she has reported to SSA, what she earns from 605, or whether SSA knows about her role there. Nothing in these records shows that she has violated any SSA rule.

The foreclosure case: Hornidge v. Mentele

The case is Hornidge v. Mentele, No. 30CIV25-000032, in Hanson County. The register lists it as “Foreclosure.” Technically, it is an action to foreclose and cancel a contract for deed. It is not a bank mortgage foreclosure.²⁶ Under the Dec. 12, 2014 contract, the Menteles agreed to pay “$55,000.00 plus interest.” The contract called for $11,000 down and yearly payments “terminating on January 1, 2025.”²⁷ On Feb. 25 and 26, 2025, notices of default from a Virginia law firm listed “Amount owed: $23,952.93 principal and interest.”²⁸ The suit asks the court to declare the contract terminated, foreclose it, give the sellers possession, and award a money judgment and fees.²⁹

The Menteles answered without a lawyer on May 27, 2026, about 10 months after the sheriff’s returns of service were filed on Aug. 7, 2025.³⁰ They say the contract “has been paid in full,” and they ask the court to order the deed transferred to them.³¹ Mentele says a $10,000 cash “cure” payment deposited on March 27, 2025 “has never been credited nor was it returned.”³² The receipt she filed does not show whose account received the deposit.³³ She also writes that the sellers’ agent’s Feb. 27, 2025 accounting credited “total payments of $46,985.00.” She says that amount, plus the $10,000, means she has “fully performed.”³⁴ She accuses the sellers’ Virginia lawyer, J. Michael Sharman, of drafting their South Dakota pleadings without a South Dakota license. The court has made no finding on that claim.³⁵

She moved for a default judgment because the sellers’ lawyer, J.R. Davies, filed their reply late. Davies swore that the delay was a calendaring mistake, “purely inadvertent and accidental.”³⁶ The sellers’ reply says “payments were not made on the schedule called for in the contract.”³⁷ Judge Patrick T. Smith marked her proposed default order “Denied” on July 16.³⁸ On July 21, he ruled. He found “insufficient discovery done to enable the entry of any judgment on the counterclaim.” He also found the sellers had shown “a reasonable cause for delay,” “the allegation of a meritorious defense,” and “the likelihood of success on that defense.”³⁹ On Aug. 24, Mentele asked the court to fix the order’s title, which refers to a summary-judgment motion that she says no one filed. The register shows a “Notice of Service of Discovery” filed the same day.⁴⁰

A related criminal case. Brent Mentele, Melissa Mentele’s co-defendant in the foreclosure case, was the defendant in a separate Hanson County criminal case, State v. Brent J. Mentele, No. 30CRI23-000051. A uniform complaint dated Dec. 18, 2023, and filed Dec. 19, 2023, listed the offense as “Simple Assault Domestic.”⁴¹ An information filed Jan. 2, 2024, charged him with “Domestic Abuse – Simple Assault – Attempt to Cause Bodily Injury” or, in the alternative, “Domestic Abuse – Simple Assault – Attempts by Physical Menace or Credible Threat to Put Another in Fear,” each a Class 1 misdemeanor, alleged to have occurred on or about Dec. 18, 2023. According to the charging document, the alleged victim, identified only by the initials “M.M.,” was the defendant’s wife; Melissa Mentele is listed among the State’s witnesses.⁴² On Jan. 24, 2024, a “Deferred Prosecution Agreement and Dismissal” was filed, signed by the deputy state’s attorney, Brent Mentele and his lawyer. In it, the State “dismisses any charges against the Defendant relating to this arrest without prejudice,” on the conditions that he “obtain an alcohol evaluation, follow any and all recommendations,” and, for 12 months, “obey all laws and . . . not commit any similar offenses.” The agreement lets the State recharge him if a violation is shown by probable cause during that period.⁴³ The court’s register lists the case status as “TERMINATED 01/24/2024.”⁴⁴ The records do not show a plea or a finding of guilt. WeedPress first reported on the case on Oct. 20, 2026: New Approach South Dakota Leadership Faces Down $800,000 Unpaid Rent Allegation, Foreclosure, and Domestic Assault Case.

“This isn’t Facebook”

At the May 12 hearing, Mentele accused Karimi of publishing her home address and her children’s names. She also said, “Mr. Karimi also broke into the UJS system by using my personal information to look up stuff regarding me.”⁴⁵ Magistrate Judge Andrew Robertson responded:

“Okay. Ma’am, and again, another thing here is we’re in a courtroom. This isn’t Facebook. This isn’t a blog. And so I — you need to provide. You can’t just claim something and, and just have me believe it.”⁴⁶

He called it “the fourth protection hearing that we’ve had on this over two counties.” He denied the petition because “all I’ve got is the one phone call,” which “doesn’t constitute repeated.” He also denied Karimi’s request for sanctions.⁴⁷ Mentele has appealed.

Timeline

  • Dec. 12, 2014: Contract for deed signed: $55,000 plus interest, $11,000 down.⁴⁸
  • Feb. 2023: Health Department notice of intent to revoke 605’s certificates is addressed to Horsted, Mentele, Peska and Tiger.⁴⁹
  • Sept. 12, 2024: 605 tells a court that Mentele is one of its “four primary principals.”⁵⁰
  • Jan. 1, 2025: Final contract payment due.⁵¹
  • Feb. 25–26, 2025: Default notices list $23,952.93 owed.⁵²
  • Mar. 27, 2025: A $10,000 cash deposit is made at Rivers Edge Bank. Mentele says it was a cure payment.⁵³
  • July 28, 2025: The Hornidges sue.⁵⁴
  • Nov. 25, 2025: Lincoln County renews 605’s license, listing Mentele as a principal officer.⁵⁵
  • May 12, 2026: Protection-order hearing. Mentele says “I own the company,” and the transcript records “I’m no Social Security Disability.” The protection-order petition is denied.⁵⁶
  • May 27, 2026: The Menteles’ answer and counterclaim: “paid in full.”⁵⁷
  • June 25, 2026: Mentele’s default motion restates the counterclaim as “15 years” and “over 120,000 dollars.”⁵⁸
  • June 30, 2026: The Hornidges’ late reply and extension motion.⁵⁹
  • July 16 and 21, 2026: Default denied. Extension granted.⁶⁰
  • Aug. 24, 2026: Clerical-error motion and discovery notices. Nothing has been docketed since, as of Oct. 27, 2026.⁶¹

What the record shows, and what it doesn’t

Shows:

  • 605 Cannabis and Lincoln County identify Mentele as a 605 principal.
  • Under oath, she said both that she left her job at 605 and that she owns the company.
  • The certified transcript records her saying “I’m no [sic] Social Security Disability.”
  • A foreclosure and cancellation suit over her home is pending.
  • She claims the contract is paid in full. The court denied her default bid and found that the sellers had alleged a meritorious defense and shown “the likelihood of success on that defense.” No final judgment has been entered.

Doesn’t show:

  • Any SSA record. WeedPress has not confirmed that she receives benefits, how much, or since when.
  • What she earns from 605 or has reported to SSA.
  • Any violation of SSA rules.
  • Who owns the account that received the $10,000 deposit.
  • A final judgment. The foreclosure has not been decided, and no one has been ordered out of the house.

WeedPress has no SSA record. The headline refers to Mentele’s statement in court, which the certified transcript renders as “I’m no Social Security Disability.” Karimi, who is adverse to Mentele in the protection-order case, says he heard “on.”

Publisher’s view

Disclosure: This section is the opinion of WeedPress publisher Jason Karimi, who wrote this article. He is the respondent in the protection-order case Melissa Mentele filed against him, Mentele v. Karimi, No. 49TPO26-343. The court denied her petition, and her appeal is pending. Karimi’s conclusions about why Mentele has gone to court are his opinion. No court has made findings on them.

In my view, the protection-order litigation against me is an attempt to use the courts to retaliate for WeedPress’s reporting on 605 Cannabis’s finances. I have now sat through three of these hearings.

At the May 12 hearing, after being sworn in, Mentele told the court, “I would like him to stop publishing.” Asking the court to protect her, she then said that if it did not, “he’s going to continue this course of conduct and I’m going to come back. And next time I come back with a lawyer.”⁶² In my view, that was a promise to keep filing protection-order petitions — a SLAPP-style tactic — to discourage me from reporting on her and her company.

At the May 12 hearing, the judge called it “the fourth protection hearing that we’ve had on this over two counties” and said it involved “a lot of the same information about the, the blogging, and the disagreements.” He denied the petition.⁶³ I will not be intimidated into stopping or delaying that coverage.

Mentele sees it differently. She told the court she was “trying to seek protection to have him leave me alone,” and she said, “I don’t have any disagreement with him on cannabis policy.”⁶⁴ That is her position, and readers should weigh it. No court has found that she filed for an improper purpose.

I believe the public, the businesses that buy 605’s products, and the regulators who license it deserve to know what the principals of a licensed cannabis company say under oath. That includes what they say about who owns the company, who works there, and the disability statement in the transcript. I am not claiming that anyone has broken any Social Security rule. The documents are posted above so readers can judge them for themselves.

Key documents

Redactions: home addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, the property’s legal description, a bank account number, and medical and crime-victim details.

Court documents (download)

Additional Hornidge v. Mentele filings, No. 30CIV25-000032:

(Personal addresses, contact details and similar personal information redacted by WeedPress.)

State v. Brent J. Mentele, No. 30CRI23-000051 (Hanson County criminal case):

Earlier coverage: Public Records Show Two Civil Cases Involving 605 Cannabis Executive (Apr. 26, 2026); “We Are In A Courtroom. This Isn’t Facebook.” (July 14, 2026).
Related coverage: WeedPress will publish a further report on the 605 Cannabis court records on Nov. 2.

Related coverage

Notes

¹ Transcript of Protection Order Hearing, Mentele v. Karimi, No. 49TPO26-343 (S.D. Cir. Ct. 2d Cir. Minnehaha Cnty. May 12, 2026) (Robertson, Mag. J.) (certified July 8, 2026) (“Tr.”), at 25:1–8, 25:19–21.
² 605 Cannabis, LLC’s Br. in Opp’n to Pl.’s Appl. for Prelim. Inj., Big Country Inv. Grp. Corp. v. 605 Cannabis, LLC, No. 41CIV24-000629 (S.D. Cir. Ct. 2d Cir. Lincoln Cnty. filed Sept. 12, 2024) (“605 Br.”), at 2; Tr. 24:7.
³ Tr. 24:14–15, 24:25.
⁴ Complaint, Hornidge v. Mentele, No. 30CIV25-000032 (S.D. Cir. Ct. 1st Cir. Hanson Cnty. filed July 28, 2025) (“Compl.”), ¶¶ 4, 17–28; Answer & Countercl., Hornidge, No. 30CIV25-000032 (filed May 27, 2026), ¶ 3.
⁵ Order Extending Time & Order Denying Mot. for Summ. J., Hornidge, No. 30CIV25-000032 (July 21, 2026), at 2–3; Reply of Pls. to Countercl., Hornidge, No. 30CIV25-000032 (filed June 30, 2026), at 2.
⁶ Tr. 3:17 (parties sworn); Tr. 11:3–5.
⁷ Tr. 15:23–24.
⁸ Tr. 18:1–8.
⁹ Tr. 24:7.
¹⁰ Tr. 24:11–12.
¹¹ Answer & Countercl., Countercl. ¶ 2; Defs.’ Mot. for Default J. on Countercl., Hornidge, No. 30CIV25-000032 (filed June 25, 2026) (“Default Mot.”), at 4.
¹² Answer & Countercl. ¶ 3; Compl. ¶ 4; Order of July 21, 2026, at 2.
¹³ Tr. 3:17.
¹⁴ Tr. 24:5–25.
¹⁵ Tr. 25:1–8.
¹⁶ Tr. 26.
¹⁷ Tr. 15:20–16:25 (redacted).
¹⁸ 605 Br. at 2.
¹⁹ Lincoln Cnty. Bd. of Comm’rs, Nov. 25, 2025 Agenda Packet, Consent Agenda Item 3 (605 Cannabis medical cannabis license renewal application), at 319–22.
²⁰ S.D. Dep’t of Health, Notice of Intent to Revoke Registration Certificates (Feb. 8, 2023), filed as Ex. 3, Big Country, No. 41CIV24-000629 (filed Aug. 8, 2024) (file-stamped), at 3–4.
²¹ Dakota News Now, report on 605 Cannabis lawsuit (Mar. 29, 2023) (statement of Melissa Mentele).
²² Tr. 19:19–20; Tr. 11:3–5.
²³ Soc. Sec. Admin., How Do We Define Disability?, The Red Book (2026), https://www.ssa.gov/redbook/eng/definedisability.htm; Soc. Sec. Admin., Substantial Gainful Activity, https://www.ssa.gov/OACT/COLA/sga.html.
²⁴ Soc. Sec. Admin., Update 2026, Pub. No. 05-10003, https://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10003.pdf.
²⁵ 20 C.F.R. § 404.1575.
²⁶ Case Summary, Hornidge, No. 30CIV25-000032 (printed Oct. 27, 2026) (“Case Summ.”), at 1; Compl. ¶ 20.
²⁷ Compl. ¶¶ 4–5.
²⁸ Compl. ¶¶ 10–11 & Exs. B-1, C-1.
²⁹ Compl. ¶¶ 17–28 & Prayer for Relief.
³⁰ Case Summ. at 1–2.
³¹ Answer & Countercl. ¶ 3 & Countercl. ¶¶ 1–6.
³² Default Mot. at 6–7.
³³ Defs.’ Opp’n to Pls.’ Mot. to Extend Time to Reply to Countercl., Hornidge, No. 30CIV25-000032 (filed July 1, 2026) (“Opp’n”), Ex. B.
³⁴ Opp’n at 10.
³⁵ Opp’n at 11–14.
³⁶ Default Mot. at 3; Aff. of J.R. Davies, Hornidge, No. 30CIV25-000032 (filed June 30, 2026), ¶¶ 1–2.
³⁷ Reply at 2.
³⁸ [Proposed] Order Entering Default & Default J. on Countercl., Hornidge, No. 30CIV25-000032 (denied July 16, 2026), at 5.
³⁹ Order of July 21, 2026, at 2–3.
⁴⁰ Def. Melissa Mentele’s Mot. to Correct Clerical Error in Order, Hornidge, No. 30CIV25-000032 (filed Aug. 24, 2026), ¶ 2; Case Summ. at 3.
⁴¹ Uniform Complaint No. K 745749, State v. Mentele, No. 30CRI23-000051 (S.D. Cir. Ct. 1st Cir. Hanson Cnty. filed Dec. 19, 2023).
⁴² Information, State v. Mentele, No. 30CRI23-000051 (S.D. Cir. Ct. 1st Cir. Hanson Cnty. filed Jan. 2, 2024), at 1–3.
⁴³ Deferred Prosecution Agreement & Dismissal, State v. Mentele, No. 30CRI23-000051 (S.D. Cir. Ct. 1st Cir. Hanson Cnty. filed Jan. 24, 2024), ¶¶ 1–4.
⁴⁴ Register of Action, State v. Mentele, No. 30CRI23-000051 (S.D. Cir. Ct. 1st Cir. Hanson Cnty.), at 1.
⁴⁵ Tr. 21:5–16.
⁴⁶ Tr. 21:17–20.
⁴⁷ Tr. 23:19–22, 25:1–8, 25:19–21.
⁴⁸ Compl. ¶¶ 4–5.
⁴⁹ DOH Notice at 3–4.
⁵⁰ 605 Br. at 2.
⁵¹ Compl. ¶ 5.
⁵² Compl. Exs. B-1, C-1.
⁵³ Opp’n Ex. B; Default Mot. at 6–7.
⁵⁴ Case Summ. at 1.
⁵⁵ Lincoln Cnty. Renewal at 319–22.
⁵⁶ Tr. 24:7, 24:25, 25:7–8.
⁵⁷ Answer & Countercl. ¶ 3.
⁵⁸ Default Mot. at 4.
⁵⁹ Reply; Davies Aff.
⁶⁰ Proposed Order at 5; Order of July 21, 2026, at 2–3.
⁶¹ Case Summ. at 3.
⁶² Tr. 3:14–17 (parties sworn), 22:12–13, 23:5–9.
⁶³ Tr. 23:19–24, 25:1–8.
⁶⁴ Tr. 10:8–9, 10:19–20.

Jason Karimi, publisher of WeedPress

Jason Karimi, Publisher

Jason Karimi is the publisher of WeedPress and a medical cannabis patient who has covered cannabis law and policy since 2009.

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