For those that thought the Feds would just let it be legalized----WA. Bust!

[HempKat]

What I get out of this story is these growers were too reckless.

First of all if you're growing for profit, don't be posting pics on the internet, it's just not worth it.

Second, if you're growing in a state experimenting with full on legalization then for fucks sake stay 100% full compliant with the state law. If not for yourself then for all the rest of us wanting to see legalization spread to more states. The best chance for that to happen is if people don't try to run their own program.

Third while you may have the right to own a gun don't have one anywhere near a grow. Regardless of your right to own one it's going to make things worse for you if your get busted.

The forth and final item is don't have your grow where your home is, have your home and all your valuables in the name of someone not personally involved in the grow and then have the grow location in the name of someone else involved in the grow, whoever has the least to lose. If you don't do this the Feds will try to seize everything and claim the drug money provided everything and therefore was okay to seize.

I'm sorry to hear what happened to them and I hope they manage to successfully fight it in court but beyond that I feel like they asked for it. Yes things are getting better and laws are starting to relax but in the end until the laws change federally you can't just go to a state where it's supposed to be legal and think because of that you can take more risks. The reality is that Washington and Colorado are being closely watched right now, so people growing there have to be even more careful, not less. There's more in the balance then just yourself, with these places being watched more closely the question of legalization happening in other states and one day Federally also is in the balance. It would be really sad if change didn't happen on a broader scale because of a few who thought only of their own needs and wants.
I'm fairly confident the Feds were fully aware of the fact they were over the State limit. Hell I wouldn't be surprised if it was the Feds who alerted the State to that fact. What the Feds have said is that they aren't inclined to pursue cases where people are being fully compliant with state laws and limits. Once you aren't in compliance though you're fair game even if you're brought back into compliance by the state.

 

[HempKat]

Yeah while you guys are discussing plant limits and cash and what not..Realize that these people were growing plants, not hijacking anyone, not robbing, killing, raping or maiming anyone. Its their right to do it as they please and to do it on the scale as they please and to make as much dollars as they please, to put the dollars in a bank and not worry about the state stealing their cash in their own home.

Like the post above is hinting, follow the big money and you will understand why your rights are so eagerly stomped on by the powers that be. Those powers that have you all fooled into thinking that these innocent folks did wrong. Overgrow the planet.. you are on the receiving end of a civil war, aka drug war- they said it, spawned by your own government and its all about the money, highly illegal (under your own and international law) and only ends when people stand up for themselves and their rights. You think a state medical law makes you free..haha ya believe in that..We have these freedoms granted to us by law in most countries in the world, it is high time we stop standing for this BS.

Tell me how much liberty do you really have if you have to ask for permission to smoke a joint or grow a few plants. Not enough to grow a hundred ey..How does ones define a portion of liberty, am I entitled to a little bit, but at the states discretion? Am I free? Is that the freedom that your government is killing foreigners somewhere on this planet right now for? Is this the democracy that forefathers including hemp farmers declared a long time ago? Psssssf. Wake up. Ask yourself the next time you look over your shoulder the next time you light up, are you a human born unto this earth not of your own choice, like the rest of us, or are you a slave? IS YOUR BODY AND MIND YOURS? Life and liberty..your rights and also the right of those wrongfully arrested and robbed in this case.

Liberty is an illusion, you only have liberty within the confines of the laws that govern. In other words you're only free to do whatever you want until you break the law. Then after that you are fucked. To ignore that for some grander illusion of what Liberty really should be is stupid and foolish. Let the little guy popped for smoking a joint in public fight the Liberty battle since he's at much less risk then a grower. Growers need to be real and say, "If I'm going to take advantage of these new state laws to have a business and help people I know then I'm going to be the best example I can be of following those laws even if I don't like being confined by them."

 

[stoned-trout]

breaking unjust laws is my duty,,,,damn i am slacking off again

 

[Jhhnn]

What I get out of this story is these growers were too reckless.

First of all if you're growing for profit, don't be posting pics on the internet, it's just not worth it.

Second, if you're growing in a state experimenting with full on legalization then for fucks sake stay 100% full compliant with the state law. If not for yourself then for all the rest of us wanting to see legalization spread to more states. The best chance for that to happen is if people don't try to run their own program.

Third while you may have the right to own a gun don't have one anywhere near a grow. Regardless of your right to own one it's going to make things worse for you if your get busted.

The forth and final item is don't have your grow where your home is, have your home and all your valuables in the name of someone not personally involved in the grow and then have the grow location in the name of someone else involved in the grow, whoever has the least to lose. If you don't do this the Feds will try to seize everything and claim the drug money provided everything and therefore was okay to seize.

I'm sorry to hear what happened to them and I hope they manage to successfully fight it in court but beyond that I feel like they asked for it. Yes things are getting better and laws are starting to relax but in the end until the laws change federally you can't just go to a state where it's supposed to be legal and think because of that you can take more risks. The reality is that Washington and Colorado are being closely watched right now, so people growing there have to be even more careful, not less. There's more in the balance then just yourself, with these places being watched more closely the question of legalization happening in other states and one day Federally also is in the balance. It would be really sad if change didn't happen on a broader scale because of a few who thought only of their own needs and wants.
I'm fairly confident the Feds were fully aware of the fact they were over the State limit. Hell I wouldn't be surprised if it was the Feds who alerted the State to that fact. What the Feds have said is that they aren't inclined to pursue cases where people are being fully compliant with state laws and limits. Once you aren't in compliance though you're fair game even if you're brought back into compliance by the state.

Eloquent & well thought out, analytical & deep. Thank you. That's particularly true wrt the last 2 sentences. The Washington cops will be the Feds' witnesses, & they'll play cases back & forth across the fence to break balls. Unfortunately, it's still the same game, with slightly different rules.

In Colorado, being out of compliance makes no sense to me, nor does it serve the cause of legalization in the slightest. That's bigger than all of us. We cannot waste this opportunity. Period. We sold A64 to the voters on the basis that pot can be used responsibly, which means playing by the rules. It's obviously inspired a lot of people to at least try growing, which is exactly what we need, with some caveats. A paradigm shift is occurring, what really needs to be a quiet one. Three years from today, we want everybody else to look around & say "Huh. Looks the same to me." Because it will be, with one very important difference. Pot will be legal, irreversibly so in this State & many others. What I want, personally, pales in comparison to that. Imperfect as it is, it's orders of magnitude better for the vast majority of people, and that deserves some respect. It's not all about me.

It's what I tell anybody who might listen. Stay legal. Don't give 'em any excuses. Forget making money unless you're able & wiilling to be legal, either Med or Rec. Don't even try. Don't fuck it up for everybody else. Think what you want, but don't get too caught up in absolutist Libertarian notions, either.

It's all new, & it's a totally different headset to go with it. People are becoming a lot more open about it which is an extreme liability for outlaw growers in general, and they don't need to buy into the black market at all. Now that the authorities have fewer people to bother, they'll bother the ones they can even more. Just the way it is.

 

[BushyOldGrower]

It is bigger than one person and we do have to work to get this done but...

America has five percent of the worlds population and yet we imprison 25% of the worlds prisoners.

That isn't freedom so yes this is a big issue however you define freedom.

We all have a duty to human rights which is a far larger issue.

The world isn't getting better very fast is it?

 

[jump /injack]

This bill to reschedule cannabis is pending now! Read this, its to reschedule Cannabis from a Class #1 drug to a Class #2, get in back of this by writing to your CongressCritter and asking them to vote for it, make sure to mention that this is important to you and that you will be following it to see who votes against the People again. These seizures by the Feds won't stop until its reclassified, this will only happen until YOU get behind the bill, HR 4498. The Legal Profession is against the reclassification, they want the money and control, fight it.

NORML has a story about this and a pre-written letter to your elected officials.



Federal: Measure Introduced To Reschedule Marijuana
Virginia Republican Morgan Griffin has introduced legislation, HR 4498, in Congress to reclassify cannabis under federal law from a schedule I to a schedule II controlled substance.
The Act seeks to prohibit the federal government from interfering in the possession and distribution of marijuana in states where physicians are permitted to authorized cannabis therapy.
The measure awaits action from the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
Rescheduling marijuana will loosen existing restrictions on medical marijuana research. It was also allow physicians greater freedom to authorize marijuana as a therapy. It would also clear the way for financial institutions to begin partnering with state-authorized marijuana establishments.
By any objective analysis, cannabis does not meet the criteria of a schedule I controlled substance — a classification that equates the potential harms of marijuana with those of heroin. Further, with 21 states and the District of Columbia now permitting for the physician-authorized use of cannabis, it is not accurate for federal law to maintain that the plant “has no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States.”
HR 4498 falls short of NORML’s ultimate goal of removing marijuana from the Controlled Substances Act altogether. However, it is one of a growing number of legislative measures pending in Congress to significantly amend federal marijuana laws, including:
HR 499: the Ending Marijuana Prohibition Act
HR 689: the States' Medical Marijuana Patient Protection Act
HR 1523: Respect State Marijuana Laws Act
NORML will keep you updated when/if these measures move forward.

 

[jump /injack]

Federal: Measure Introduced to End Federal Marijuana Prohibition
Congressman Jared Polis (D-CO) has introduced legislation, House Resolution 499, which would effectively end the federal prohibition on marijuana and allow states to set their own policies.

House Resolution 499: The Ending Marijuana Prohibition Act of 2013, would remove marijuana from the Controlled Substances Act, transfer the Drug Enforcement Administration’s authority to regulate marijuana to a newly renamed Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Marijuana and Firearms, require commercial marijuana producers to purchase a permit, and ensure that federal law distinguishes between individuals who grow marijuana for personal use and those involved in commercial sale and distribution.

You can read the full text of this measure here.

NORML will keep you updated as this historic legislation moves forward.

 

[maryjaneismyfre]

I stand by what I said..Locally here I know of four court cases where the defendants have said, no stuff this it is my right and the state is breaking the law..and this is why and how. This is under our constitution which is almost verbatim from the UN universal declaration of human rights which was models off successful constitutions like your own. These cases have involved small personal amounts found on rastafarians and also activists medical gardens that were 'busted'. Cases have been either thrown out of court or been delayed in a the constitutional court for a few years now or tied to the original case pending the outcome of the verdict. The argument is sound, it is our right. Logically, one can't be granted liberty on the one hand by the highest law, until you break the law, and be made subject to lower laws that remove your liberty, it creates a mute argument. That is why the lower law, by law has to abide by the higher law when challenged and by precedent will be nullified.

See www.daggacouple.co.za
and http://daggaparty.org/index.html
http://daggaparty.org/downloads/OrderWentzel.pdf
http://daggaparty.org/downloads/Legal_Resources/CannabisRightsinRelationtotheBillofRightsFinal.pdf
http://daggaparty.org/downloads/Legal_Resources/Constitution%20of%20South%20Africa%20Section%20235%20Self%20determination.pdf
http://daggaparty.org/downloads/Legal_Resources/CannabisVsVestedInterestsFinal.pdf

See those for local challenge of law with regards to human rights.. from the country of tata madiba that has recently been through the struggle for human rights and knows all to well what it feels lie to have them taken away. Permission here, permission there..to grow a herb... so how are you NOT a slave? You think that it at all legal to be enslaved? Your constitution will grant you the same and other freedoms as well as international law. You really think this is about plant numbers or even dope for that matter?

We were also the first country (Republic of South Africa, in those days Union I think) to make this plant illegal, it was for racist reasons and oppression and is still BS and nothing else to this day. Dagga is the LEAST of which that grows in my garden and fuck anyone who doesn't approve and fuck anyone who seeks for me to apply for permission. I owe it to no-one and no human has the right to tell me to grow or not grow a plant as I do not have the right to tell oppressors to stop breeding and making more stupid humans. I pay more than enough tax to my state to fucking demand my freedoms granted to me by law. Liberty doesn't mean anything if you roll over and accept it being taken from you. You are as free as you choose to be. I will stand up in any court of law as my forefathers have and will tell this to anyone's face, they no matter who they are were all had to had their asses wiped when they were babies and will when they are old if they make it. Anything else is ego and enforcing your ego over anothers. In debate, it only and always comes down to the kings and slaves principle and believe me in a constitutional democracy the slave is the KING so wake up and stand up for yourself and your fellow humans, nevermind growers, or think about what your children and their children will be born into.

 

[maryjaneismyfre]

Do you think you need to ask for a permit to grow GM frankenseed? Soya, corn etc.. Which do you think is worse for society in general, to grow some GM crop that will cross-pollinate with everything compatible for a long way away and will never be able to eradicate again or regain heirloom genetics and giving your spare change to monsanto etc. OR giving some spare change to a dope grower/peddler and growing some herbs. I go with the herb peddling plant guy myself. GM seeds, fracking, porn acting and rubbing myself up and down on a strippers pole, commodity trading, privately-owned federal banking...there are million things that are perfectly acceptable to do but probably far worse for society than what we are 'not allowed' to do. Whatever. It is all about the money. It is easy to tell a society that has accepted oppression, what to do, to suit your own benefit.

 

[BushyOldGrower]

Of course growing the Sacred Herb shouldn't be regulated at all. Well said.

It isn't a crime to sell marijuana by the highest law and it's really a duty to provide this needed herb.

I am not an anarchist but over regulation amounts to the same thing. A huge world wide violation of human rights.

What could be a reason to regulate cannabis? Money is the answer. The rich and powerful want to control everything.

Never agree to stop growing your own or providing for your friends.

 

[garlicnaan]

This happened in a very isolated small town with a tiny local police force. The weed politics around the area where this happened are very strange. Historical grow families exist out there with ties to the cities and I am very willing to bet one of the Kettle Falls Five simply pissed off (or made green with envy) the wrong person with the right friends, unfortunately.

 

[Kozmo]

Sounds to me like someone had it in for them some way.

 

[armedoldhippy]

It is bigger than one person and we do have to work to get this done but...

America has five percent of the worlds population and yet we imprison 25% of the worlds prisoners.

That isn't freedom so yes this is a big issue however you define freedom.

We all have a duty to human rights which is a far larger issue.

The world isn't getting better very fast is it?

the US has more people in jail JUST FOR DRUGS than the entire European Union has in jail for ANY reason, & they have over a billion people more in their population. something just aint fucking right there...

 

[mojave green]

the US has more people in jail JUST FOR DRUGS than the entire European Union has in jail for ANY reason, & they have over a billion people more in their population. something just aint fucking right there...

it's us that aint right. nobody to blame but ourselves!

 

[armedoldhippy]

go after the meth freaks, H, or crack or something....why do they have such a hard on for weed? I dont get it

because it is the most commonly used "illegal" drug. they get more "bang for their buck" that way. same thing with drug testing; everyone in the fucking world knows that 98% of the people caught by random drug testing are simple weed lovers instead of folks that actually have a hard drug problem. their own "solution" to the "drug problem" pushes MORE people into using harder drugs to avoid random drug testing...yeah, that makes sense...(sorry, no sarcasticon available yet)

 

[Jhhnn]

Sounds to me like someone had it in for them some way.

The Martins are just a vehicle. WA officials, the DEA & the regional US Attorney are just using them to get in Holder's face.

Stiff dick drug warriors, all of them.

 

[Jhhnn]

because it is the most commonly used "illegal" drug. they get more "bang for their buck" that way. same thing with drug testing; everyone in the fucking world knows that 98% of the people caught by random drug testing are simple weed lovers instead of folks that actually have a hard drug problem. their own "solution" to the "drug problem" pushes MORE people into using harder drugs to avoid random drug testing...yeah, that makes sense...(sorry, no sarcasticon available yet)

In the prohibition environment, widespread cannabis use justifies drug testing in a weird way. I can't quite explain it, or not very well, anyway. In straight people's heads, It's OK to fire people using tests that don't prove intoxication but rather that the subject is a lawbreaker. In the Boss' head, it eliminates employees who "might" be stoned at work. In the law enforcement & testing industries, apprehending "offenders" justifies the expense & their jobs.

If cannabis is made legal at the federal level, then CO users, for example, will no longer be lawbreakers by definition if lingering THC metabolites are detected in their urine. The hidden rationale for accepting such tests falls away, particularly when actual THC levels can be measured from saliva testing.

In time, Congress & the whole transportation industry will necessarily be forced to change their methods. When that happens, the number of false "offenders" will necessarily plummet, perhaps taking the whole random testing song & dance along with it. The testing & forced rehab "counseling" industries would take a big hit should that happen, right along side the drug warriors. That doesn't even count all the HR types & lawyers who work the labor relations system in support of the drug war.

For the authoritarian power structure, legalization cuts a lot deeper than than most of us realize. They'll fight to keep what they have, but the reality of successful legalization denies them credibility, puts them on the wrong side of History.

 

[Mad Lab]

In the prohibition environment, widespread cannabis use justifies drug testing in a weird way. I can't quite explain it, or not very well, anyway. In straight people's heads, It's OK to fire people using tests that don't prove intoxication but rather that the subject is a lawbreaker. In the Boss' head, it eliminates employees who "might" be stoned at work. In the law enforcement & testing industries, apprehending "offenders" justifies the expense & their jobs.

If cannabis is made legal at the federal level, then CO users, for example, will no longer be lawbreakers by definition if lingering THC metabolites are detected in their urine. The hidden rationale for accepting such tests falls away, particularly when actual THC levels can be measured from saliva testing.

In time, Congress & the whole transportation industry will necessarily be forced to change their methods. When that happens, the number of false "offenders" will necessarily plummet, perhaps taking the whole random testing song & dance along with it. The testing & forced rehab "counseling" industries would take a big hit should that happen, right along side the drug warriors. That doesn't even count all the HR types & lawyers who work the labor relations system in support of the drug war.

For the authoritarian power structure, legalization cuts a lot deeper than than most of us realize. They'll fight to keep what they have, but the reality of successful legalization denies them credibility, puts them on the wrong side of History.

exactly. people think that the federal government should prefer to legalize so the nations economy can be lifted out of its hole and everyone would be happy.

but the justice system (cases), counseling systems, police and justice dept (seizures) are just some of the few industries that will take a massive hit.

all the sudden potheads are rich and city, state and federal employees are poor. and they have none of the skills necessary to take advantage of the new green rush, which brings many many jobs and businesses.

 

[DrFever]

In the prohibition environment, widespread cannabis use justifies drug testing in a weird way. I can't quite explain it, or not very well, anyway. In straight people's heads, It's OK to fire people using tests that don't prove intoxication but rather that the subject is a lawbreaker. In the Boss' head, it eliminates employees who "might" be stoned at work. In the law enforcement & testing industries, apprehending "offenders" justifies the expense & their jobs.

If cannabis is made legal at the federal level, then CO users, for example, will no longer be lawbreakers by definition if lingering THC metabolites are detected in their urine. The hidden rationale for accepting such tests falls away, particularly when actual THC levels can be measured from saliva testing.

In time, Congress & the whole transportation industry will necessarily be forced to change their methods. When that happens, the number of false "offenders" will necessarily plummet, perhaps taking the whole random testing song & dance along with it. The testing & forced rehab "counseling" industries would take a big hit should that happen, right along side the drug warriors. That doesn't even count all the HR types & lawyers who work the labor relations system in support of the drug war.

For the authoritarian power structure, legalization cuts a lot deeper than than most of us realize. They'll fight to keep what they have, but the reality of successful legalization denies them credibility, puts them on the wrong side of History.

Or maybe in time they will come to realize every tom dik and harry all of a sudden want to grow weed drugs on every street corner for sale right out in the open hahaha

how does this sound after legalizing mj in some states our studies indicate mis use illegal selling abuse for this reason alone
and for this reason fed law prevails anyone caught growing or with any substance of mj will be prosecuted at the fulliest degree
the jails get fuller the system is working how the government wants it to money is being made and people incarcerated what a life
MJ will be used in such cases of terminal ilness late stages of cancer AIDS and that will be it other then that suck it up sore back guy playing the system

 

[WaittillIdie]

420