Steve D’Angelo’s High Orbit: How the Face of Cannabis Justice Burned the Bridge to the People He Claimed to Save

Moon-wrapped marketing, zero prisoners freed, and a legacy of corporate compliance that helped destroy California’s outdoor cannabis heartland.

By Boof du Jour Investigative Unit

OAKLAND, CA — At 7:22 p.m. PST, a privately funded satellite completed its third full orbit with a glowing message on its surface:“FREE THEM ALL – LAST PRISONER

PROJECT.”

No one was freed.

But the camera-ready moment wasn’t meant for inmates. It was meant for Instagram.

The stunt—bankrolled by an undisclosed donor, though one LPP staffer allegedly referred to them as “a shroom VC with too many Teslas”—was part of a new campaign by Steve D’Angelo’s Last Prisoner Project, which is now less a legal reform effort and more of a vibes-based guilt laundering scheme for the industry’s most compliant cowards.

D’Angelo himself was present at the livestream event in downtown Oakland, where he gave a short speech in front of a moon-themed step-and-repeat, thanking “the cosmic forces of justice” and urging viewers to donate to LPP’s latest initiative: $85 “Terps Not Bars” candle packs. Meanwhile, zero prisoners were released. Not even a phone call home.

A Satellite Full of Nothing

The moon-wrap operation, which sources say cost north of $2.5 million, was described in internal memos as a “symbolic visibility strike.” One PowerPoint deck reviewed by Boof du Jour claims the stunt would create “transformational awareness ripple vectors.”

There was no mention of direct legal aid. Or clemency petitions. Or, you know, actual justice.

“It’s performative activism on ketamine,” said one former LPP volunteer. “We had dudes in county jail waiting on case reviews, and meanwhile the board’s arguing over font sizes for the orbital projection.”

The Sage and the Guillotine

Steve D’Angelo, often dubbed the “father of legal cannabis,” has long styled himself as the soft-spoken shaman of weed reform. But behind the beads and blue hat lies a brutal history of corporate collusion, policy sabotage, and legacy betrayal.

Let’s be honest: Harborside didn’t just survive California’s chaotic legalization process—it helped architect the regulatory maze that buried small farms under tax sludge, testing fees, and bureaucratic trapdoors. D’Angelo was a loud and visible supporter of Prop 64, the very policy package that obliterated outdoor growers in Humboldt, dismantled equity efforts in Oakland, and paved the way for MSO colonialism from coast to coast.

“Steve didn’t just sell out,” said one longtime cultivator in Mendocino. “He drew the fucking map.”

Justice for Sale

The Last Prisoner Project started with noble intent: fight for the release of cannabis prisoners in a country that now profits off the very product people were caged for. But under D’Angelo’s watch, LPP morphed into a lifestyle brand for the whitewashed industry elite.

In 2023, only two prisoners received direct legal support from LPP’s $1.2 million in fundraising, according to documents quietly removed from their website. Meanwhile, over $400,000 was allocated to “brand partnerships,” “media visibility,” and “advocacy amplification.”

Translation: merch, marketing, and moon shots.

“It’s like if the Innocence Project spent their budget on influencer retreats,” said one donor who asked to remain anonymous. “I thought I was helping someone’s dad get out of prison. Turns out I bought Steve a fatter LED wall.”

An Exit Strategy in Hemp Linen

In a leaked Slack thread, one LPP board member allegedly floated the idea of “emotional NFTs of wrongful convictions” to fund future operations. Another suggested partnering with a cannabis seltzer brand “to connect with Gen Z abolitionists.”

This is where the project lives now: orbiting above reality, spewing hashtags, and holding nothing accountable but your wallet.

Meanwhile, legacy operators—the same people D’Angelo claims to fight for—are dying under debt, being raided for zoning violations, and selling their land just to stay solvent.

“Steve used us to polish his image,” said one Oakland-based equity applicant. “Then he watched us drown and built a fucking billboard on the moon.”

A Legacy of Destruction, Branded as Liberation

The most cynical part? D’Angelo will never see consequences for this. In today’s cannabis industry, it’s not about what you do—it’s about what you say on stage. And if you say it slow enough, in just the right hat, with enough incense, you can get away with murder.

Or at least the silent execution of an entire culture.

Boof du Jour Rating:

Negative 5 stars.Zero prisoners released.One career launched.

Steve D’Angelo built an empire out of good intentions and then torched the bridge back to Earth. Now he floats in orbit, shouting about justice no one can hear.

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