Embattled Lake County Sheriff gets DEA Funding for Helicopters

[Payaso]

Lake County California is vast, and there is a lot of large-scale growing happening in the forests. Local Sheriff Rodney Mitchell has once again received approval from the Lake County Supervisors to take funding from the DEA to search out and destroy these gardens using helicopters.

This activity is controversial locally for many reasons including reportedly allowing local officers to receive flight training while doing surveillance from the air.

Sheriff Mitchell is currently running for re-election against two other candidates promising large-scale change within the local department.

On Tuesday the Board of Supervisors approved four helicopter contracts Sheriff Rod Mitchell requested for marijuana reconnaissance, but only after a lengthy discussion that touched on the effectiveness of current marijuana eradication efforts and a desire to quantify results.

The proposed contracts are with PJ Helicopters, $700 per hour, not to exceed $30,000; A&P Helicopters, $775 per hour, not to exceed $50,000; Cutting Edge Helicopters, rate of $490 per hour, not to exceed $10,000; and Sierra Air Helicopters Inc., rate of $525 per hour, not to exceed $10,000.

The contracts were the focus of greater concern this year following last summer's discovery that a sheriff's lieutenant was learning to fly a helicopter under the auspices of a federal Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) grant, as Lake County News has reported.

Then-Lt. Dave Garzoli had negotiated a new operational plan for the DEA grant – which reimburses the county for the helicopter services – in order to get the flight time, which has since become the focus of inquiries by local officials and is now being investigated by the District Attorney's Office.

Supervisor Denise Rushing asked Mitchell if the reimbursement from the DEA is assured. Mitchell said yes, the DEA already had approved the grant funding for the 2010-11 grant year.

“We wouldn't expend any resources without that funding,” said Mitchell.

Rushing wanted to know if there were new oversight provisions in the proposed contracts. County Counsel Anita Grant said the contracts' language includes that “no flight instruction and/or pilot training shall be provided.”

Rushing asked at what point it was appropriate to discuss the county's overall marijuana eradication strategy. “And what happens if we don't sign this today?”

Mitchell responded, “If the board doesn't approve the contracts, we don't fly.”

Read the full story here.

 

[Yes4Prop215]

100k of taxpayer money to go out and destroy a bunch of plants!


awesome!! horay for the DEA!

seriously...the only good part is that at 700 an hour...they only have like 2 days of flying tops LOL...

 

[karmical]

I think its funny that the Sheriffs' Office misused $$ from the Feds and there isn't any Federal investigation, only local DA..

I guess Malfeasance in Office that misused taxpayer $$ isn't that big of a deal anymore.

 

[2Lazy]

I think they are only looking for the truly massive gardens, anyone who's just growing for their own sake won't be affected.

It's funny they throw thousands of dollars to destroy something that can just be replanted. Stupid DEA, you will run out of money and support one day. We won't run out of seeds ever. Deal with it.

 

[ISP_SmokeTrain]

I say take the money Lt. Whirlybird wasted learning to fly, from his retirement fund. That would square things up. Then stop wasting tax dollars hunting down and killing a plant, created by God.