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Suetaz

Vallario stoked about pot bust

Greg Massé | August 13, 2004 | Glenwood Springs Post Independent

Garfield County Sheriff Lou Vallario on Thursday applauded his drug team's Aug. 2 arrest of a Rifle family that grows medical marijuana.

The undercover drug team netted four arrests that day, but the people who were arrested say they are allowed by state law to grow pot for medical reasons.

Despite those objections, Vallario, who serves as vice chairman of the TRIDENT Board, commended the team.

"This was done the right way. Somebody provided the information for us, and we made the arrest. I thought it was a perfect case to come back on," Vallario said.

TRIDENT first received a report that there was a marijuana growing operation from a citizen's report. The team then conducted 24-hour surveillance on the apartment for 21Ú2 days before making the bust outside of the apartment.

The marijuana bust was the first since TRIDENT temporarily suspended its operations in February and it came less than a week after 9th Judicial District Attorney Mac Myers penned a statement in which he called TRIDENT "the sloppiest, most poorly managed law enforcement agency I have seen in my 25 years working in the criminal justice system."

According to the arrest affidavit, Gene Brownlee, 34, and his wife Jennifer Ryan, 21, both told police they were growing the marijuana legally. The couple, along with Justin Brownlee and Drew Gillespie, both 19, all were arrested outside of 545 Park Ave. in Rifle.

"Mr. Brownlee told us that he believed that they were permitted to grow three marijuana plants 'in flower' and three marijuana plants 'not in flower,' per person with a permit," the affidavit, written by TRIDENT officer Anthony Kornasiewicz said. "When we pointed out that there were many more plants than that growing in his apartment, he told us that the law allowed him to grow 'as many as necessary.'"

Brownlee told officers he is on the registry because he has terminal cancer.

Vallario said that once TRIDENT officers were told the family was on the registry, his team checked on the legitimacy of the couple's claim that they were growing the pot legally.

The officers found out that while some of the pot might have been legal, there were many more plants than the state's medical marijuana program allows.

"The TRIDENT guys are very familiar with that law because they don't want to violate people's rights," Vallario said.

According to state law, those allowed to possess medical marijuana can have a total of six pot plants, three of which can be mature. Aside from the plants, medical marijuana registrants can possess up to two useable ounces of pot.

In all, there were 131 plants in the apartment, according to TRIDENT.

Ryan told police she was a registered caregiver for five patients who are allowed to use medical marijuana, but even with that many patients, she was still over the state threshold, Vallario said.

"We added it up and there were too many plants," Vallario said.

Brownlee was once on the medical marijuana registry, but he has since been "removed or suspended" from it, Vallario said.

"We verified it. The guys took the time to call the medical marijuana registry," Vallario said.

In addition to the high number of plants and Brownlee's apparent suspension from the medical marijuana registry, two people arrested that day told police that some of the pot was sold and traded.

According to the affidavit, Brownlee's nephew, Justin Brownlee, told police he "assisted in the selling of marijuana grown by Gene and Jennifer in the past, and that he has obtained marijuana from them for his own use."

Gillespie said he also helped sell Ryan and Brownlee's pot and said "he has also been paid a part of his wages in marijuana on several occasions by them when they were short of money," the affidavit said. Gillespie works for Brownlee.

Both Gene Brownlee and Ryan told police they never sold their marijuana to anyone without a permit.

Contrary to Brownlee's statements that there were 20 to 30 officers at the house during the raid, there were only about 10, Vallario said.

"There were considerably less than 20 or 30," he said.

The claim has fueled public speculation that TRIDENT is an overly aggressive, military-styled organization, a sentiment that Vallario regrets.

"I would hope, especially in Garfield County where we've received so much support, that people understand there's a reason for the helmets and the vests," he said. "I guess what concerns me is that people might be misled as to what TRIDENT does by what these people say publicly."

Vallario said that while he'll abide by the law that allows marijuana to be used for medical purposes - Amendment 20 of the Colorado Constitution - that doesn't mean he likes it.

"I don't agree with it. I'm not a supporter," he said.

In fact, Vallario said he thinks possession of marijuana should be a felony.

"I don't consider it medicine," he said. "Medically, they haven't convinced me personally that you have to smoke marijuana to solve things. I think there should be another way. I think there are people who abuse that for their own personal drug usage."

Vallario also explained why he called the medical marijuana law "stupid" in a story in another newspaper.

"The point I was getting at is there's no backside to this," he said. "They're allowing people to possess it and grow it, but somebody had to get it illegally to begin with."

According to the amendment, people with cancer, glaucoma, those who are HIV/AIDS positive, people with cachexia, severe pain, severe nausea, seizures - including those that are characteristic of epilepsy - or those with persistent muscle spasms - including those that are characteristic of multiple sclerosis - are eligible to become part of the medical marijuana program.

A patient diagnosed with a debilitating condition that may be alleviated by the medical use of marijuana can apply to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment for a Medical Marijuana Registry identification card.

[Suetaznote: So this was technically a legal bust. We already know that the medical marijuana laws are flawed and need to be fixed. I really don't believe that there should be a limit to how much medicine a person can grow. I hate the attidude of Sheriff Lou Vallario and people like him. He admits he doesn't believe in marijuana's medical value and used the badly written medical laws to abuse these people. We fight to get the laws enacted, then we have to fight to get them to make sense. In the meantime, we have to fight people like this Sheriff who use every tool they can against medical marijuana users. What does is say about us humans when we have to fight among ourselves just to be able to use a plant for medicine? It's a wonder the human race has made it this far.]

__________________

 

xxdr_zombiexx

The ill-will seethes out of this man's republican pores.

Law Enforcement is simply too gleeful to focus on marijuana and attacking marijuana reform.

Cops are the Ku Klux Klan of the Cannabis Community. They hate everything we stand for.

here this cop openly brags that he hates marijuana:He has no concern for the will of the people - a good republican - and he sticks to his ingrained, backwards, and uniformed OPINION that marijuana is somehow bad or should somehow be illegal.

If Officer Doofus had not grown up with reefer madness held as a value (read - crammed down his throat like it is crammed down ours) then we'd not be having THIS conversation.

Cops need to be invited OUT of the cannabis reform process. They are too focused on saving children from the mythical evil and are too prone to see themselves as heros just for arresting sick people.

And, as always, counting plants and measuring dried herb is for the mean and stupid. It's sheer ignorance to have any sort of limit.

So what if some people do illegal things with it - like sell it?

Who's going after Rush for his felonious relationship with Oxycontin?

Reefer madness is Job 1 with law enforcement - Rush was wise to stick with drugs manufactured by massive corporations that contribute to the RIGHT political party by the millions.

Cops work for them - not us.

__________________
Alien Space Signal

There's no money for your issue so long as we're squandering $50 billion a year on the DrugWar. Ben Masel

Fear became the ultimate tool of this government - V.

Unregistered 1

"I don't consider it medicine," he said. "Medically, they haven't convinced me personally that you have to smoke marijuana to solve things. I think there should be another way. I think there are people who abuse that for their own personal drug usage."

You know, it doesnt really matter what the sherriff thinks (whether its a Medicine or not) the bottom line is, it helps the people cope woth thier illnesses, they have it LEGALLY. If the police dont follow the law how the hell do they expect the citizens to?? Arn't the law police supposed to be following the laws they enforce? I think the sherriff should quit worrying about dying people smoking a plant and mabye a bit more time with REAL ISSUES.

xxdr_zombiexx

[zombienote: Nothing about marijuana per se in these articles, but they do give an inkling of the unfathomable profits and wealth these corporating have.

This is why medical marijuana is such an evil terrible unpatriotic thing.

Pharmaceutical companies, ad agencies, and Republicans want you to not be able to use a natural plant to help yourself or your families and they have all this power to make it difficult and dangerous for you to do.

You will pay for their artifical drugs or you will die suffering - you will not have medical cannabis if they can stop you.]


The $200 Billion Colossus
By Marcia Angell | AlterNet | Posted August 13, 2004.

"When I say this is a profitable industry, I mean really profitable. It is difficult to conceive of how awash in money big pharma is."

The Drug Profiteers
By Kelly Hearn, AlterNet | Posted August 13, 2004.

It’s time to rein in the biggest drug peddlers of them all — the pharmaceutical industry. Author Marcia Angell talks about how to fight the other drug war.

JTP

"According to state law, those allowed to possess medical marijuana can have a total of six pot plants, three of which can be mature. Aside from the plants, medical marijuana registrants can possess up to two useable ounces of pot.

In all, there were 131 plants in the apartment, according to TRIDENT. "


What makes this so hard to understand?

That is 125 (or 119 if you count them as a couple) plants too many to be legal.

"He has no concern for the will of the people - a good republican - and he sticks to his ingrained, backwards, and uniformed OPINION that marijuana is somehow bad or should somehow be illegal."

At least he can count .

 

xxdr_zombiexx

PLANT LIMITS ARE STUPID.

"USABLE MARIJUANA" LIMITS ARE STUPID

Don't defend the police on this. You help them remain stupid too.

JTP

Ok, look. It seems pretty clear to me that these folks were growers looking to make some $$$. Medical marijuana proponents should be pissed that clowns like this are mucking it up for those who are real medical marijuana users.

Why support these idiots Zombie?

xxdr_zombiexx

you dont grasp a word I say, do you?

JTP

Sure I do, you said "PLANT LIMITS ARE STUPID. "USABLE MARIJUANA" LIMITS ARE STUPID".

Not to hard to understand what you said.

However, that is the law as it stands today. Those folks who are in real need of medical marijuana don't need recreational growers screwing up the one legal path they have today.

What is so hard to understand about that?

Suetaz

Sheriff's comments anger medical pot user

By Greg Massé | Post Independent Staff | August 23, 2004

A legitimate medical marijuana user said he takes offense to Garfield County Sheriff Lou Vallario's statements decrying the use of pot for medical conditions.

Jeff, 44, a Glenwood resident, is HIV positive, and has hepatitis C and heart disease.

The Post Independent is withholding Jeff's last name to keep his medical conditions personal.

Jeff said he uses medical marijuana to give himself back the appetite he lost as an effect of hepatitis C. He contacted the Post Independent after reading a story in which Vallario said he's not convinced there is a legitimate need for medical marijuana.

"I was a little insulted. I'd sure like to meet that Vallario," Jeff said.

Vallario said he thinks possession of marijuana should be a felony-level offense. He also said he's not convinced that sick people "have to smoke marijuana to solve things."

"I think there should be another way. I think there are people who abuse that for their own personal drug usage," Vallario said in the recent story.

Vallario was commenting on the Two Rivers Drug Enforcement Team arrest of four people for growing pot in their Rifle home. The suspects said they are on Colorado's medical marijuana registry and were growing the pot legally. Police say the suspects far exceeded the limit on how many plants could be grown.

Jeff said he's not gay, has never slept with a man and has never used a drug needle. He said he's a professional businessman with a family who contracted HIV from a woman in Seattle several years ago.

Jeff's lack of appetite, which was actually caused by the hepatitis rather than HIV, caused his body to shrink from 155 pounds down to 119 pounds.

He first tried Marinol - a derivative of marijuana's tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, that comes in pill form - but that didn't work. Next his doctor had him try megestrol acetate as an appetite stimulant.

"It did seem to have a small effect," he said.

But it wasn't enough.

"It's really hard to explain, when you feel hungry, but you don't want to chew the food or swallow it," Jeff said of his appetite loss. "Your system rejects wanting to swallow it. It's frustrating because you're hungry."

Jeff said when his doctor first suggested using marijuana as an appetite stimulant, he laughed.

"I'm not a drug addict, I'm not a pothead, it's just not my style," he said.

But once he began using pot, mostly by baking it into cookies, he gained 36 pounds in three months, going from 119 pounds to 155 pounds.

Jeff said he normally bakes it into cookies because that method of ingesting the pot stimulates his appetite without getting him "stoned."

[Suetaznote: Geez, eating Cannacookies sure got me stoned! It's a completely different kind of high,and it lasts a lot longer than smoking it.]

But sometimes the lack of appetite that he's trying to fix with the pot keeps him from being able to eat the cookie. That's when he has to ingest it in some other way.

Even with HIV, hepatitis C and heart disease, Jeff said he's feeling healthy. All of his medical problems are relatively under control, something he partially credits to his marijuana use.

"I would not be in the good health situation I'm in now if it weren't for it," he said.

He said after reading Vallario's comments, he was surprised at the sheriff's lack of compassion.

"What if one of your children had terminal cancer and the doctor recommended it? What would you do?" he asked. "I just think Vallario needs to get his ducks in a row about people who need it."

Jeff, who came here from the Seattle area, has been on Washington's marijuana registry for three years. While still officially a Washington resident, Jeff said he plans to get on the Colorado registry as soon as possible.

While Jeff disagrees with Vallario's attitude about medical marijuana, he said he completely agrees with the Aug. 2 arrest of Gene Brownlee and his family if they were breaking the law by growing too many marijuana plants.

"I fully support the arrest they made," he said.

He said that as with any substance, whether it's prescription drugs, alcohol, or anything else, there will be some people who abuse their privileges. But most people, he said, will abide by the rules.

"There's a handful of people who abuse it," he said. "They use people like that as an example of the medical marijuana law."

He called Vallario's attitude on medical marijuana an uneducated opinion.

"Either don't speak publicly about it if you don't know what you're talking about, or get educated," he said. "I just don't think he showed any compassion. He's wrong. He's really wrong. I don't want to see the day when I get arrested for something that keeps me alive.

"They should treat us with a little dignity and respect since we're already dealing with (diseases); it isn't easy," Jeff said.

[Suetaznote: Well said Jeff! Everyone should be treated with a little dignity and respect, but it seems that med pot users or any marijauna users get very little of that.]


Contact Greg Massé: 945-8515, ext. 511

gmasse@postindependent.com