LESS FEAR, MORE LOATHING: Though you'd never know it via statewide media, the biggest trial in years on the Big Island has not only the corporate Hawai`i Tribune Herald's attention but that of various news-blogs that have had blow by blow daily coverage by cannabis activist Matt Rifkin and others.
The two sides have rested in the trial of Rastafarian Rev. Nancy Harris of the Sacred Truth Mission on marijuana cultivation charges after Harris presented a defense based on her religious practice under the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
But the trial took a turn yesterday that ought to concern not just journalists but everyone when Deputy Prosecutor Ricky Damerville subpoenaed Tiffany Hunt Edwards, a free lance journalist who hosts the Big Island Chronicle (BIC) "blog." and has reported for various Hawai`i Island publications including the Big Island Weekly (BIW).
Early yesterday Edwards wrote:
From newswoman to newsmaker — Deputy Prosecutor Ricky Damerville “rush” subpoenaed me to testify in the religious use of marijuana trial.
This is a first in my journalism career.
I’m to appear at Third Circuit Court this afternoon to testify in the trial of Nancy Harris who is accused of commercial promotion of marijuana and is using a religious marijuana defense.
At issue is my June 2009 coverage of the case, specifically a free-lance article I wrote for the Big Island Weekly.
Although the trial ended without Edwards testifying the subpoena itself appears to be a blatant violation of the Act 210, the Hawai`i State News Media Privilege law, commonly known as the reporters' "shield law."
As summed up in last year's legislative extension of the law:
Session Laws of Hawaii 2008 (Act 210), established a limited news media privilege against the compelled disclosure of sources and unpublished information to a legislative, executive, or judicial officer or body, or to any other person who may compel testimony.
What that means is that other than the actual article itself the provision of anything the reporter may have seen or heard, including facts recorded in notes, cannot be "compelled."
That type of wording has been interpreted to mean that reporters in jurisdictions that have such shield laws cannot be subpoenaed or "compelled to testify." The article speaks for itself.
Edwards, who herself has also been attending the trial and has written about it on her BIC web site, was not on the original list of witnesses. She told us that she had consulted with two attorneys before the subpoena was withdrawn but didn't say what she would have done had it not been canceled.
The point here is that the very issuance of a subpoena can only be seen as pure harassment on the part of Damerville, especially given that Rifkin's coverage at BIC has been supportive of Harris' defense as was Edwards 2009 BIW article.
While this incident may not be quite as egregious as the 2008 locked-door interrogation at the "cop shop" of journalist and blogger Joan Conrow by Kaua`i Police Department Deputy Chief Clayton Arinaga asking what she saw in covering the "Naue `Iwi" protests, it is equally as offensive to anyone who values a free press.
The law is there for a reason. Journalists should not be acting as volunteer police for many reasons. Not only would credibility- not to mention their safety- become an issue if people think reporters are simply the eyes and ears of the police, but in fact reporters are there to do a constitutionally protected job that requires them to occasionally grant anonymity to those sources who would never talk to reporters if they thought their identities were going to become public.
When police and prosecutors- people who are expected to know the law- ignore it, they can only be seen to be harassing and intimidating journalists causing them to have to think twice as to not just how but what they report.
Will Edwards file a complaint with the attorney general's office or the state bar? We certainly don't know yet but we certainly urge her to follow-up on this matter so as to make sure that it doesn't happen again.
Showing posts with label marijuana reform. Show all posts
Showing posts with label marijuana reform. Show all posts
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
GET SMART
GET SMART: Though there’s been a deafening cone of silence over County Attorney Al Castillo’s response to the Hawai`i Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union’s (ACLU) letter that led to the cancellation of the county’s anti marijuana rally last Thursday, PNN has learned that Castillo has apparently opined that the ACLU was correct in telling the county that using county resources for the activities is illegal.
And to no one’s surprise Prosecutor Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho is none too pleased and has written two nasty letters to Castillo saying so.
Although we weren’t able to obtain Castillo’s “confidential” letter- which was addressed to Iseri, each individual council member, the Kaua`i Police Department (KPD) Chief Darryl Perry as well as three administration honchos- it is obvious from Iseri's responses, which were also “cced” to Mayor Bernard Carvalho, that Castillo supported the ACLU’s position.
In response to Castillo’s original email Iseri wrote
Subject: RE: Anti-Drug Rally Scheduled for February 17, 2011
Aloha Al,
It is quite unfortunate that you chose to send out an email with that tone. You are violating all of the county employees’ rights who chose to attend the rally on their own time. You are suppressing their First Amendment rights and your actions should not be condoned. I will be submitting a letter to the oversight body to review your actions. I have already received calls about you and other County officials that are prohibiting people from attending, even after work hours. Please stop doing this, as I believe, this exposes the county to significant liability.
Further, please be aware that your Deputy County Attorney, on county time, testified on a televised Council meeting with you present, to strongly oppose these same bills, that “other county officials” you make reference to in the press release, exposed the county to significant liability. Yet, I don’t see any reference to your office taking responsibility for its use of county resources to oppose legislation. You were present at the Council meeting and said ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. There is absolutely no authority for the County Attorney’s Office to testify in criminal matters. Let’s call a spade a spade. It is inappropriate to place blame when your office is guilty of the same actions. We are one County and to try to place blame when you were present when all this was happening is totally inappropriate, unprofessional and not in the County’s best interests.
Mahalo,
Shay
But the ACLU did not say that there was anything wrong with employees using their own time and resources to lobby on legislation. In fact they said the opposite in their original letter writing:
At the outset, we note that the American Civil Liberties Union ("ACLU") has long advocated for individual free speech rights, regardless of the content of that speech. Additionally, the ACLU supports and defends the right of government officials and employees to comment on issues in their personal capacities. The issue with the upcoming Rally is not about the individual police officers, prosecuting attorneys and other county employees expressing their viewpoints, it is about the potential use of public resources (including time and labor of County employees) to do so.
The ACLU letter came the same day as the council meeting- which we described yesterday and presumably did not address the presentation made there.
After a response, also confidential, from Castillo, Iseri not only admitted that her office wrote the press release that the ACLU used to point out the illegality of Iseri’s actions, but gives a detailed description of who else acted in the same vein, writing:
Al,
If you haven’t done your total investigation, let it be clear that our office prepared the “draft” release. The “draft” release was provided to KPD to review. It was Beth Tokioka that reviewed it, edited it, and sent it onward. Beth even took the liberty of making amendments to include a quote from Theresa Koki that was never in our initial draft release. Theresa Koki was never presented the release, and never made any quotes because I specifically had asked her about it when the release was amended . It was very clear to me that once we mentioned that Jake had prepared the release, you then took the position to blame KPD and OPA, because of quotes in the release. I find it very sad that because of the unprofessional manner in which this matter was handled at your doing, what started out as a great act of collaboration between KPD, the Administration and the Prosecutor’s Office, has turned into a chaotic event.
Shay
So what did the ACLU say?
Before the passage on employees actions on their own as private citizens they wrote:
Re: February 17 Anti-Drug Rally
Dear Chief Perry and Mr. Castillo:
We write to raise serious legal concerns about the Anti-Drug Rally scheduled for tomorrow, February 17, 2011 ("Rally"). In short, we believe that Kauai County employees are acting outside the scope of their limited, delegated authority, thus exposing the County to litigation. See Rees v. Carlisle, 113 Hawai`i 446, 153 P.2d 1131 (2007). Consequently, we recommend that you cancel or postpone the Rally to allow for further discussion.
1- Factual Background
As we understand it, the Kauai Police Department, the Prosecuting Attorney and others are sponsoring the Rally to "raise awareness and inform the community about the dangers associated with pending marijuana legislation." Kauai Police Department News Release, February 12, 2011. The News Release quotes Prosecuting Attorney Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho, speaking in opposition to specific pieces of legislation currently pending before the Hawaii State Legislature, as stating that `"[i]f passed, these measures will result in increased violent crime, economic crisis and a rise in marijuana usage among our children.'" Id. Finally, the News Release unequivocally states that "Nine police chiefs and prosecuting attorneys from each of the four counties stand united against this dangerous legislation." Id. (emphasis added). Thus, it cannot be disputed that the overriding purpose of the Rally is to persuade constituents to lobby legislators to vote against the pending bills, HB 1169 and SB 58.
The main case that the ACLU cites in its “Legal Background” is Rees v. Carlisle, saying that:
In 2002, the ACLU of Hawaii Foundation ("ACLU of Hawaii") filed suit on behalf of journalist Robert Rees against County Prosecutor Peter Carlisle. The gravamen of the case concerned Carlisle's improper use of public funds to actively advocate in favor of and campaign for the passage of a state constitutional amendment, Senate Bill No. 996 of 2002 ("amendment" or "Question 3"). It was undisputed that Carlisle used public resources for this purpose. The ACLU of Hawaii argued, inter alia, that: (a) neither the City Charter nor Hawaii Revised Statutes ("HRS") § 2840.6 authorized Carlisle's expenditure of public funds to engage in partisan political campaigning; and (b) any law that purported to grant such authority would run afoul of a myriad of constitutional rights, including free association, free speech and the fundamental right to vote.
In 2007, the Hawaii Supreme Court held that "neither the Revised Charter of Honolulu nor HRS § 28-10.6 authorize the prosecuting attorney to advocate for a proposed constitutional election[.]" Rees v. Carlisle, 113 Hawai`i 446, 456, 153 P.2d 1131, 1141 (2007). Based on this holding, the Court declined to reach the constitutional issues. A copy of this decision is attached for your ready reference.
The case seems to go way beyond the incident at hand, going to the very heart of a government employee using office time and/or resources to lobby for or against any legislation- a common practice of police and prosecutors statewide.
In a section called “Neither the Police Department Nor the Prosecutor Is Empowered to Use Public Funds to Advocate for a Particular Legislative Result” the letter says that:
The powers of the Police Department and the Prosecutor are set forth by the County of Kauai Charter, Article XI and IXA, respectively. Notably absent from these articles is any language that authorizes either the Police Department or the Prosecutor to spend public resources to educate the public about issues relating to crime research, prevention and education. Cf. H.R.S. §28-10.6 (authorizing the state Attorney General to spend public resources in this regard); R.C.H. 8-104(e-i) (passed post-Rees to authorize the Honolulu Prosecutor to do the same).
First, the plain language of the County of Kauai Charter limits the authority of the Prosecutor to prosecuting crimes. County of Kauai Charter, Article IXA, Sec. 9A.03. It is well-settled that the Prosecutor's powers and functions are limited to those expressly accorded to his office by the statute creating it. 63A Arri.Jur.2d, Prosecuting Attorneys § 20 (1984). 1 The County of Kauai Charter similarly limits the authority of the Police. County of Kauai Charter, Article XI, Section 11.05. 2 There is no statutory or other Given the similarity in language in Kauai's County Charter and the pre-2007 Honolulu County Charter, court decisions affecting the Honolulu Prosecutor are analogous to the situation now presented by the Kauai County Prosecutor. Honolulu's Department of the Prosecuting Attorney was established in Article VIII of the Revised Charter of Honolulu ("R.C.H.") of 1973 (1983). "Unless otherwise specifically provided by statute, his powers and functions are limited by § 8-105 [now § 8-104] of the Charter to the prosecution of criminal offenses against the laws of the State and the ordinances and rules and regulations of the city." Marsland v. Pang, 5 Haw. App. 463, 472, 701 P.2d 175, 184 (1985) (noting that the county prosecutor only "has been delegated the primary authority and responsibility for initiating and conducting criminal prosecutions within his county jurisdiction").
Furthermore, this limitation on the Prosecutor's powers also eviscerates any argument that engaging in the Rally is germane to the Prosecutor's function. Thus, as fully set forth infra wider Abood v. Detroit Board of Education, 431 U.S. 209 (1977), and its progeny, the conduct of the Police Department and Prosecutor's Office constitutes forced speech in violation of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and Article I, §4, of the Hawaii Constitution.
2 Notably, the Charter empowers the Police to engage in "traffic safety education." "It is a general principle of statutory construction that when 'Congress includes particular language in one section of a statute but omits it in another section of the same Act, it is generally presumed that Congress acts intentionally and purposely in the disparate inclusion or exclusion." Barnhart v. Sigtnon Coal Co., Inc., 534 U.S. 438, 452, 122 S.Ct. 941, 951, 151 L.Ed.2d 908, 922 (2002) (citing Russello v. United States, 464 U.S. 16, 23, 104 S.Ct. 296, 300, 78 L.Ed.2d 17, 24 (1983)). Where the County wanted to provide the authority that grants the Police Department of the Prosecutor the power to expend public resources to educate the public on criminal justice issues.
Consequently, Rees V. Carlisle, 113 Hawaii 446, 153 P.2d 1131 (2007) is directly on point: neither Kauai's Prosecutor nor Police Department may engage in the type of activity proposed by tomorrow's Rally.
The ACLU letter goes onto say that not only are the actions of the county illegal but it exposes the county to liability. In a section marked “Using Public Resources to Fund the Rally and Associated Events Could Expose the County to Liability Under the First Amendment” they say that:
Such openly biased speech by public officials raises serious First Amendment questions. In the words of Justice Black: Probably no one would suggest that Congress could, without violating [the First] Amendment, pass a law taxing workers, or any persons for that matter (even lawyers), to create a fund to be used in helping certain political parties or groups favored by the Government to elect their candidates or promote their controversial causes.
Compelling a man by law to pay his money to elect candidates or advocate laws or doctrines he is against differs only in degree, if at all, from compelling him by law to speak for a candidate, a party, or a cause he is against. The very reason for the First Amendment is to make the people of this country free to think, speak, write and worship as they wish, not as the Government commands.
After a long passage describing various federal and Supreme Court of the US cases that support that, the ACLU letter concludes by saying:
Given the serious legal concerns about tomorrow's Rally, we would recommend that such Rally be canceled or postponed to allow for further discussion. A moderate delay will not hamper the legislative process on the contested bills given that HB 1169 appears to be dead and SB 58 has not yet been scheduled for hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Thank you in advance for your time and attention to this matter. If you have any questions or comments in the interim, please feel free to contact me at 383-8287 or Iperrin(at)acluhawaii)dot)org or Daniel Gluck, Senior Staff Attorney, at 522-5908 or dgluck(at)acluhawaii(dot)org.
Sincerely,
Lois K. Perrin
Legal Director
The fact that Castillo has apparently supported the ACLU’s position now makes it a controlling opinion that the county must follow in the future. We hope that county employees will remember this when they use their position and time and resources to testify and seek to influence legislation in the future.
And to no one’s surprise Prosecutor Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho is none too pleased and has written two nasty letters to Castillo saying so.
Although we weren’t able to obtain Castillo’s “confidential” letter- which was addressed to Iseri, each individual council member, the Kaua`i Police Department (KPD) Chief Darryl Perry as well as three administration honchos- it is obvious from Iseri's responses, which were also “cced” to Mayor Bernard Carvalho, that Castillo supported the ACLU’s position.
In response to Castillo’s original email Iseri wrote
Subject: RE: Anti-Drug Rally Scheduled for February 17, 2011
Aloha Al,
It is quite unfortunate that you chose to send out an email with that tone. You are violating all of the county employees’ rights who chose to attend the rally on their own time. You are suppressing their First Amendment rights and your actions should not be condoned. I will be submitting a letter to the oversight body to review your actions. I have already received calls about you and other County officials that are prohibiting people from attending, even after work hours. Please stop doing this, as I believe, this exposes the county to significant liability.
Further, please be aware that your Deputy County Attorney, on county time, testified on a televised Council meeting with you present, to strongly oppose these same bills, that “other county officials” you make reference to in the press release, exposed the county to significant liability. Yet, I don’t see any reference to your office taking responsibility for its use of county resources to oppose legislation. You were present at the Council meeting and said ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. There is absolutely no authority for the County Attorney’s Office to testify in criminal matters. Let’s call a spade a spade. It is inappropriate to place blame when your office is guilty of the same actions. We are one County and to try to place blame when you were present when all this was happening is totally inappropriate, unprofessional and not in the County’s best interests.
Mahalo,
Shay
But the ACLU did not say that there was anything wrong with employees using their own time and resources to lobby on legislation. In fact they said the opposite in their original letter writing:
At the outset, we note that the American Civil Liberties Union ("ACLU") has long advocated for individual free speech rights, regardless of the content of that speech. Additionally, the ACLU supports and defends the right of government officials and employees to comment on issues in their personal capacities. The issue with the upcoming Rally is not about the individual police officers, prosecuting attorneys and other county employees expressing their viewpoints, it is about the potential use of public resources (including time and labor of County employees) to do so.
The ACLU letter came the same day as the council meeting- which we described yesterday and presumably did not address the presentation made there.
After a response, also confidential, from Castillo, Iseri not only admitted that her office wrote the press release that the ACLU used to point out the illegality of Iseri’s actions, but gives a detailed description of who else acted in the same vein, writing:
Al,
If you haven’t done your total investigation, let it be clear that our office prepared the “draft” release. The “draft” release was provided to KPD to review. It was Beth Tokioka that reviewed it, edited it, and sent it onward. Beth even took the liberty of making amendments to include a quote from Theresa Koki that was never in our initial draft release. Theresa Koki was never presented the release, and never made any quotes because I specifically had asked her about it when the release was amended . It was very clear to me that once we mentioned that Jake had prepared the release, you then took the position to blame KPD and OPA, because of quotes in the release. I find it very sad that because of the unprofessional manner in which this matter was handled at your doing, what started out as a great act of collaboration between KPD, the Administration and the Prosecutor’s Office, has turned into a chaotic event.
Shay
So what did the ACLU say?
Before the passage on employees actions on their own as private citizens they wrote:
Re: February 17 Anti-Drug Rally
Dear Chief Perry and Mr. Castillo:
We write to raise serious legal concerns about the Anti-Drug Rally scheduled for tomorrow, February 17, 2011 ("Rally"). In short, we believe that Kauai County employees are acting outside the scope of their limited, delegated authority, thus exposing the County to litigation. See Rees v. Carlisle, 113 Hawai`i 446, 153 P.2d 1131 (2007). Consequently, we recommend that you cancel or postpone the Rally to allow for further discussion.
1- Factual Background
As we understand it, the Kauai Police Department, the Prosecuting Attorney and others are sponsoring the Rally to "raise awareness and inform the community about the dangers associated with pending marijuana legislation." Kauai Police Department News Release, February 12, 2011. The News Release quotes Prosecuting Attorney Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho, speaking in opposition to specific pieces of legislation currently pending before the Hawaii State Legislature, as stating that `"[i]f passed, these measures will result in increased violent crime, economic crisis and a rise in marijuana usage among our children.'" Id. Finally, the News Release unequivocally states that "Nine police chiefs and prosecuting attorneys from each of the four counties stand united against this dangerous legislation." Id. (emphasis added). Thus, it cannot be disputed that the overriding purpose of the Rally is to persuade constituents to lobby legislators to vote against the pending bills, HB 1169 and SB 58.
The main case that the ACLU cites in its “Legal Background” is Rees v. Carlisle, saying that:
In 2002, the ACLU of Hawaii Foundation ("ACLU of Hawaii") filed suit on behalf of journalist Robert Rees against County Prosecutor Peter Carlisle. The gravamen of the case concerned Carlisle's improper use of public funds to actively advocate in favor of and campaign for the passage of a state constitutional amendment, Senate Bill No. 996 of 2002 ("amendment" or "Question 3"). It was undisputed that Carlisle used public resources for this purpose. The ACLU of Hawaii argued, inter alia, that: (a) neither the City Charter nor Hawaii Revised Statutes ("HRS") § 2840.6 authorized Carlisle's expenditure of public funds to engage in partisan political campaigning; and (b) any law that purported to grant such authority would run afoul of a myriad of constitutional rights, including free association, free speech and the fundamental right to vote.
In 2007, the Hawaii Supreme Court held that "neither the Revised Charter of Honolulu nor HRS § 28-10.6 authorize the prosecuting attorney to advocate for a proposed constitutional election[.]" Rees v. Carlisle, 113 Hawai`i 446, 456, 153 P.2d 1131, 1141 (2007). Based on this holding, the Court declined to reach the constitutional issues. A copy of this decision is attached for your ready reference.
The case seems to go way beyond the incident at hand, going to the very heart of a government employee using office time and/or resources to lobby for or against any legislation- a common practice of police and prosecutors statewide.
In a section called “Neither the Police Department Nor the Prosecutor Is Empowered to Use Public Funds to Advocate for a Particular Legislative Result” the letter says that:
The powers of the Police Department and the Prosecutor are set forth by the County of Kauai Charter, Article XI and IXA, respectively. Notably absent from these articles is any language that authorizes either the Police Department or the Prosecutor to spend public resources to educate the public about issues relating to crime research, prevention and education. Cf. H.R.S. §28-10.6 (authorizing the state Attorney General to spend public resources in this regard); R.C.H. 8-104(e-i) (passed post-Rees to authorize the Honolulu Prosecutor to do the same).
First, the plain language of the County of Kauai Charter limits the authority of the Prosecutor to prosecuting crimes. County of Kauai Charter, Article IXA, Sec. 9A.03. It is well-settled that the Prosecutor's powers and functions are limited to those expressly accorded to his office by the statute creating it. 63A Arri.Jur.2d, Prosecuting Attorneys § 20 (1984). 1 The County of Kauai Charter similarly limits the authority of the Police. County of Kauai Charter, Article XI, Section 11.05. 2 There is no statutory or other Given the similarity in language in Kauai's County Charter and the pre-2007 Honolulu County Charter, court decisions affecting the Honolulu Prosecutor are analogous to the situation now presented by the Kauai County Prosecutor. Honolulu's Department of the Prosecuting Attorney was established in Article VIII of the Revised Charter of Honolulu ("R.C.H.") of 1973 (1983). "Unless otherwise specifically provided by statute, his powers and functions are limited by § 8-105 [now § 8-104] of the Charter to the prosecution of criminal offenses against the laws of the State and the ordinances and rules and regulations of the city." Marsland v. Pang, 5 Haw. App. 463, 472, 701 P.2d 175, 184 (1985) (noting that the county prosecutor only "has been delegated the primary authority and responsibility for initiating and conducting criminal prosecutions within his county jurisdiction").
Furthermore, this limitation on the Prosecutor's powers also eviscerates any argument that engaging in the Rally is germane to the Prosecutor's function. Thus, as fully set forth infra wider Abood v. Detroit Board of Education, 431 U.S. 209 (1977), and its progeny, the conduct of the Police Department and Prosecutor's Office constitutes forced speech in violation of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and Article I, §4, of the Hawaii Constitution.
2 Notably, the Charter empowers the Police to engage in "traffic safety education." "It is a general principle of statutory construction that when 'Congress includes particular language in one section of a statute but omits it in another section of the same Act, it is generally presumed that Congress acts intentionally and purposely in the disparate inclusion or exclusion." Barnhart v. Sigtnon Coal Co., Inc., 534 U.S. 438, 452, 122 S.Ct. 941, 951, 151 L.Ed.2d 908, 922 (2002) (citing Russello v. United States, 464 U.S. 16, 23, 104 S.Ct. 296, 300, 78 L.Ed.2d 17, 24 (1983)). Where the County wanted to provide the authority that grants the Police Department of the Prosecutor the power to expend public resources to educate the public on criminal justice issues.
Consequently, Rees V. Carlisle, 113 Hawaii 446, 153 P.2d 1131 (2007) is directly on point: neither Kauai's Prosecutor nor Police Department may engage in the type of activity proposed by tomorrow's Rally.
The ACLU letter goes onto say that not only are the actions of the county illegal but it exposes the county to liability. In a section marked “Using Public Resources to Fund the Rally and Associated Events Could Expose the County to Liability Under the First Amendment” they say that:
Such openly biased speech by public officials raises serious First Amendment questions. In the words of Justice Black: Probably no one would suggest that Congress could, without violating [the First] Amendment, pass a law taxing workers, or any persons for that matter (even lawyers), to create a fund to be used in helping certain political parties or groups favored by the Government to elect their candidates or promote their controversial causes.
Compelling a man by law to pay his money to elect candidates or advocate laws or doctrines he is against differs only in degree, if at all, from compelling him by law to speak for a candidate, a party, or a cause he is against. The very reason for the First Amendment is to make the people of this country free to think, speak, write and worship as they wish, not as the Government commands.
After a long passage describing various federal and Supreme Court of the US cases that support that, the ACLU letter concludes by saying:
Given the serious legal concerns about tomorrow's Rally, we would recommend that such Rally be canceled or postponed to allow for further discussion. A moderate delay will not hamper the legislative process on the contested bills given that HB 1169 appears to be dead and SB 58 has not yet been scheduled for hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Thank you in advance for your time and attention to this matter. If you have any questions or comments in the interim, please feel free to contact me at 383-8287 or Iperrin(at)acluhawaii)dot)org or Daniel Gluck, Senior Staff Attorney, at 522-5908 or dgluck(at)acluhawaii(dot)org.
Sincerely,
Lois K. Perrin
Legal Director
The fact that Castillo has apparently supported the ACLU’s position now makes it a controlling opinion that the county must follow in the future. We hope that county employees will remember this when they use their position and time and resources to testify and seek to influence legislation in the future.
Monday, February 21, 2011
DOCTOR DOCTOR TELL ME THE NEWS
DOCTOR DOCTOR TELL ME THE NEWS: To simply call last week’s anti-pot council meeting a dog and pony show would be an insult to horses and hounds everywhere . And it would be to ignore the fall-on-the-floor side-splitting presentations of Prosecutor Shaylene Iseri Carvalho and Keith Kamita, head of the state’s drug enforcement division of the Department of Public Safety (DPS) in Councilmember Mel Rapozo’s Pubic Safety Committee.
Iseri- as always mangling the English language with her best "Miss Malaprop" impression- began her “power point” with the word “Marijuana” flashed on the screen in a font reminiscent of the movie “Reefer Madness.” Then, in a spittle-laced rant, she did her fear-mongering, fact-free best to eviscerate any credibility she might have had.
Starting with the much discredited “gateway” theory she soon moved on to medical marijuana with an attack on sick people claiming that, despite clear language in the law, the program was “supposed to be” only for certain terminal patients, and stating that there was a “loophole” for use by those in pain- which, studies show is one of the most beneficial uses of cannabis.
“Doctor” Iseri then turned her rant to trying to convince no one in particular that pot causes violence- failing to understand that it the fact that it’s illegality that leads to any associated violence- and making the claim that the decriminalization of less than an ounce would “allow juveniles to possess” cannabis- a claim later repeated over and over whenever she felt trapped by the actual facts.
There’s also been some public discussion of her contention that an ounce of pot equals 50-60 “joints”. Considering that there’s 28 grams in an ounce and joints of ½ gram are common- although small- the stat might make sense.
But, in fact, in trying to make the claim Iseri held up giant gallon Zip-loc bag containing those 50 or so joints that the vice division of the Kaua`i Police Department (KPD) had prepared, each of which were big enough to be called spliffs.
Among her other claims were that pot nowadays is 10 times stronger than in the 90’s and that plants now contain 37% THC.
We’re pretty sure there are lots of people out there that would like some of that 10-times-stronger, 37% THC pot.
“This is undisputed” she shrieked, adding that this apparently proves somehow that it’s “clearly an addictive drug,” even though no one has ever been physically addicted as commonly are with crystal methamphetamine or heroin abuse.
She then suggested that instead of medical marijuana people use the ineffective government substitute “Marinol” which contains only one of the elements of marijuana by filtering out all of the other beneficial parts used when smoking or ingesting the whole plant.
She prattled on for a while with the usual unsupported blather about how medical use was just a front for legalization, how it’s marketed to children, how “huge amounts of crime” are associated with compassion centers on the mainland- even trying to ridicule the term- and the “myth” that petty possession cases are clogging the courts.
But when she was done Councilperson JoAnn Yukimura, doing her best “Colombo” impression, first cited an actual study- one cited in the legislative decriminalization bills- showing the gateway claim is bogus.
Over and over she asked Iseri for her “studies” to support her facts to no avail. Finally Iseri admitted that everything she said was “our opinion” and that many of her “facts” were indeed the opinions of mainland police departments.
Yukimura, along with Councilperson Tim Bynum also put the lie to Iseri’s claim that the bill to decriminalize less than an ounce would “legalize” marijuana- a term she used repeatedly to try to claim that it would legalize pot use “by kids.”
In fact possession of less than an ounce would still be illegal but it would no longer be a criminal act, only a “violation” subject to a fine as in a parking ticket- a fact that Iseri admitted only after having been asked six- and yes we counted- times.
Iseri also couldn’t cite any study for her claim that pot uses four dollars in social services for every one dollar spent on buying it.
When it got to be Councilmember Dickie Chang’s turn he had apparently never heard of Marinol and, well frankly, he seemed to have much more interest in it than an academic inquiry might have generated.
One trick Iseri tried to use over and over was that, when trapped in her lack of documentation for anything she said she would immediately use misdirection to talk about either use by children or by those at work or operating heavy machinery.
Her sidekick Kamita- the one from the drug enforcement division- is actually the one who administers the medical marijuana program and in trying to show why he wanted to keep oversight in the DPS he made a great case for why the medical program should be taken away from someone like him who actually opposes the program and is more interested in arresting medical users who have a gram more than permitted than in their health.
That’s why one of the bills which Kamita, Iseri and Rapozo all oppose would transfer oversight to the Department of Health (DOH) where it is in every other state with a medical marijuana program and where regulation of any medicine belongs.
Yukimura finally described how the real issue has been access to marijuana for those for whom it is recommended by a doctor under the program and how dispensaries are actually a method that has worked in other states with few problems and actually with decreases in crimes associated with the illegality of pot.
Though Kamita first objected, defending his claim of crime increasing around dispensaries on the mainland, he finally admitted the he didn’t really know and was relying on the propaganda put out by some PDs and prosecutors in California- who of course also stand to lose federal and state grants and funding should the crime associated with illegality disappear.
Kamita and Iseri mumbled and stumbled through it all but finally, after having their excuses derided as nonsense, turned of course to the last refuge of these stragglers in the mid-20th century... saying it “sends the wrong message.”
What message is that? That both your jobs and much of you funding depends on marijuana interdiction?- something they and Rapozo scoffed at but of course couldn’t deny. The message that you’re the last bastion of those in denial at the real facts behind marijuana?
The fact that marijuana is really a “wonder drug” that treats many maladies?
But Rapozo, who was thus running the meeting, wasn’t about to let them look too out of touch and idiotic so he stopped the questioning and turned to public testimony.
That brought up the head of the KPD vice squad who, thankfully, brought some sanity to the discussion more or less deriding the “gateway” idiocy saying that “if you drink a glass of wine you’re not going to turn into a raging alcoholic” and, in answer to a question by Yukimura admitted that “not everyone” who uses pot turns to hard drugs.
He was followed by a handful of people, in favor of the state decriminalization, dispensary and transfer from DPS to Department of Health bills. Each was unceremoniously cut off by Rapozo after their three minutes and, although given an extra minute to “sum up,” were again cut off after another 45 seconds.
We mention that because they were followed by three county employees- two with the mayor’s anti-drug office and another the county attorney who serves KPD- each of whom was given around five minutes without interruption.
Finally Rapozo ended the session by saying “I will close with a very brief” statement and warbling on for almost 15 minutes waffling between statements like “I don’t oppose medical marijuana” and deriding use for things like migraine headaches and intractable, chronic pain.
Of course this was all before Rapozo’s and Iseri’s “anti-pot rally” fiasco last Thursday which that was shot down by the ACLU with a letter to the county regarding the use of county employees and resources to lobby or promote action on legislation- something that the Hawai`i and California courts have said is illegal.
We’ll comment on the letter later this week because it’s an issue that goes well beyond the medical or decimalization of marijuana issue. But if you want a uproarious evening of laugh-until-you-cry entertainment make sure to catch the Mel and Shay Show now playing on Channel 53.
Iseri- as always mangling the English language with her best "Miss Malaprop" impression- began her “power point” with the word “Marijuana” flashed on the screen in a font reminiscent of the movie “Reefer Madness.” Then, in a spittle-laced rant, she did her fear-mongering, fact-free best to eviscerate any credibility she might have had.
Starting with the much discredited “gateway” theory she soon moved on to medical marijuana with an attack on sick people claiming that, despite clear language in the law, the program was “supposed to be” only for certain terminal patients, and stating that there was a “loophole” for use by those in pain- which, studies show is one of the most beneficial uses of cannabis.
“Doctor” Iseri then turned her rant to trying to convince no one in particular that pot causes violence- failing to understand that it the fact that it’s illegality that leads to any associated violence- and making the claim that the decriminalization of less than an ounce would “allow juveniles to possess” cannabis- a claim later repeated over and over whenever she felt trapped by the actual facts.
There’s also been some public discussion of her contention that an ounce of pot equals 50-60 “joints”. Considering that there’s 28 grams in an ounce and joints of ½ gram are common- although small- the stat might make sense.
But, in fact, in trying to make the claim Iseri held up giant gallon Zip-loc bag containing those 50 or so joints that the vice division of the Kaua`i Police Department (KPD) had prepared, each of which were big enough to be called spliffs.
Among her other claims were that pot nowadays is 10 times stronger than in the 90’s and that plants now contain 37% THC.
We’re pretty sure there are lots of people out there that would like some of that 10-times-stronger, 37% THC pot.
“This is undisputed” she shrieked, adding that this apparently proves somehow that it’s “clearly an addictive drug,” even though no one has ever been physically addicted as commonly are with crystal methamphetamine or heroin abuse.
She then suggested that instead of medical marijuana people use the ineffective government substitute “Marinol” which contains only one of the elements of marijuana by filtering out all of the other beneficial parts used when smoking or ingesting the whole plant.
She prattled on for a while with the usual unsupported blather about how medical use was just a front for legalization, how it’s marketed to children, how “huge amounts of crime” are associated with compassion centers on the mainland- even trying to ridicule the term- and the “myth” that petty possession cases are clogging the courts.
But when she was done Councilperson JoAnn Yukimura, doing her best “Colombo” impression, first cited an actual study- one cited in the legislative decriminalization bills- showing the gateway claim is bogus.
Over and over she asked Iseri for her “studies” to support her facts to no avail. Finally Iseri admitted that everything she said was “our opinion” and that many of her “facts” were indeed the opinions of mainland police departments.
Yukimura, along with Councilperson Tim Bynum also put the lie to Iseri’s claim that the bill to decriminalize less than an ounce would “legalize” marijuana- a term she used repeatedly to try to claim that it would legalize pot use “by kids.”
In fact possession of less than an ounce would still be illegal but it would no longer be a criminal act, only a “violation” subject to a fine as in a parking ticket- a fact that Iseri admitted only after having been asked six- and yes we counted- times.
Iseri also couldn’t cite any study for her claim that pot uses four dollars in social services for every one dollar spent on buying it.
When it got to be Councilmember Dickie Chang’s turn he had apparently never heard of Marinol and, well frankly, he seemed to have much more interest in it than an academic inquiry might have generated.
One trick Iseri tried to use over and over was that, when trapped in her lack of documentation for anything she said she would immediately use misdirection to talk about either use by children or by those at work or operating heavy machinery.
Her sidekick Kamita- the one from the drug enforcement division- is actually the one who administers the medical marijuana program and in trying to show why he wanted to keep oversight in the DPS he made a great case for why the medical program should be taken away from someone like him who actually opposes the program and is more interested in arresting medical users who have a gram more than permitted than in their health.
That’s why one of the bills which Kamita, Iseri and Rapozo all oppose would transfer oversight to the Department of Health (DOH) where it is in every other state with a medical marijuana program and where regulation of any medicine belongs.
Yukimura finally described how the real issue has been access to marijuana for those for whom it is recommended by a doctor under the program and how dispensaries are actually a method that has worked in other states with few problems and actually with decreases in crimes associated with the illegality of pot.
Though Kamita first objected, defending his claim of crime increasing around dispensaries on the mainland, he finally admitted the he didn’t really know and was relying on the propaganda put out by some PDs and prosecutors in California- who of course also stand to lose federal and state grants and funding should the crime associated with illegality disappear.
Kamita and Iseri mumbled and stumbled through it all but finally, after having their excuses derided as nonsense, turned of course to the last refuge of these stragglers in the mid-20th century... saying it “sends the wrong message.”
What message is that? That both your jobs and much of you funding depends on marijuana interdiction?- something they and Rapozo scoffed at but of course couldn’t deny. The message that you’re the last bastion of those in denial at the real facts behind marijuana?
The fact that marijuana is really a “wonder drug” that treats many maladies?
But Rapozo, who was thus running the meeting, wasn’t about to let them look too out of touch and idiotic so he stopped the questioning and turned to public testimony.
That brought up the head of the KPD vice squad who, thankfully, brought some sanity to the discussion more or less deriding the “gateway” idiocy saying that “if you drink a glass of wine you’re not going to turn into a raging alcoholic” and, in answer to a question by Yukimura admitted that “not everyone” who uses pot turns to hard drugs.
He was followed by a handful of people, in favor of the state decriminalization, dispensary and transfer from DPS to Department of Health bills. Each was unceremoniously cut off by Rapozo after their three minutes and, although given an extra minute to “sum up,” were again cut off after another 45 seconds.
We mention that because they were followed by three county employees- two with the mayor’s anti-drug office and another the county attorney who serves KPD- each of whom was given around five minutes without interruption.
Finally Rapozo ended the session by saying “I will close with a very brief” statement and warbling on for almost 15 minutes waffling between statements like “I don’t oppose medical marijuana” and deriding use for things like migraine headaches and intractable, chronic pain.
Of course this was all before Rapozo’s and Iseri’s “anti-pot rally” fiasco last Thursday which that was shot down by the ACLU with a letter to the county regarding the use of county employees and resources to lobby or promote action on legislation- something that the Hawai`i and California courts have said is illegal.
We’ll comment on the letter later this week because it’s an issue that goes well beyond the medical or decimalization of marijuana issue. But if you want a uproarious evening of laugh-until-you-cry entertainment make sure to catch the Mel and Shay Show now playing on Channel 53.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
COME HELL OR HIGH BONG WATER
COME HELL OR HIGH BONG WATER: No one seems to know for sure what will happen this afternoon when the appointed time for Councilmember Mel Rapozo’s and County Prosecutor Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho’s anti-marijuana rally comes around.
But only two things seem certain at press time- a bunch of counter demonstrators will likely show up and so will Mel Rapozo.
The rest is a subject for the Babooze Comedy Hour starring the Keystone Cops.
The curtain opened with Act 1 this morning at 10:36 when the Kaua`i Police Department (KPD) issued the following fishy sounding press release.
Anti-drug rally cancelled
LĪHU'E – An anti-drug rally that was scheduled at 4 pm this afternoon in front of the Historic County Building has been cancelled due to the threat of flash flooding for Kaua`i County.
A flash watch is in effect for Kaua`i and Ni`ihau through tomorrow morning.
The rally was planned to raise awareness and inform the community of the pending marijuana legislation now being considered by the state Legislature.
It’s not clear if anyone bought that excuse after our article yesterday exposed the use of county resources to plan the rally and an order from Iseri that attendance was “mandatory” for her staff attorneys and, ahem, strongly encouraged for the rest of the staff... with a suggestion that they “rearrange” their “schedule” to attend.
But in Act 2, at 12:23 p.m.- less than couple of hours after the first release- it disappeared from the county’s press release page, replaced with the following release, this one from the office of County Attorney Al Castillo:
Update on anti-drug rally
LĪHU'E – County officials said this morning that they received a complaint from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) regarding the anti-drug rally that was scheduled at 4 pm this afternoon in front of the Historic County Building.
“We are in receipt of the ACLU complaint and my office is reviewing it,” said County Attorney Alfred Castillo.
The rally was cancelled due to the complaint and for safety concerns due to the threat of flash flooding for Kaua`i County.
A flash watch is in effect for Kaua`i and Ni`ihau through tomorrow morning.
The rally was planned to raise awareness and inform the community of the pending marijuana legislation now being considered by the state Legislature.
Oh to be a fly on the wall to witness all that went into that release.
But Act 3 was on it’s way and at 1 p.m. a “Breaking News” update appeared at the local newspaper’s web site from new cops and court reporter Jessica Musicar with a headline of “Rapozo: Anti-drug rally still a go”
Musicar wrote:
Is it canceled or isn't it?
Whether an anti-drug rally will be held at 4 p.m. remains unclear, as the county and a member of its council have indicated conflicting answers.
Kaua`i County Council member Mel Rapozo, who said he originally scheduled the rally, plans to show up at the historic County Building with other participants, regardless of the county's notice of cancellation. The rally was intended to raise awareness and inform the community about pending marijuana legislation under consideration by the state Legislature.
This morning, however, the county canceled the rally, citing a weather warning. It later noted this afternoon in a press release that the cancellation is also tied to a complaint from the American Civil Liberties Union.
Rapozo said he is upset that the county was hiding behind the weather.
"To use the weather as an excuse is unacceptable," Rapozo said. "The reason for the cancellation wasn't the weather. It was the ACLU's concerns."
Although the county has not specified the nature of the complaint, stating only that County Attorney Alfred Castillo is reviewing it, Rapozo said the organization took issue with the county using public resources to host the rally.
Acting as a citizen of the county, rather than a councilman, Rapozo added he will be at the rally with church and youth groups...
We can see it now. Since county employees and any solicited attendees- like the island’s pastors and their minions who Rapozo urged to attend- most likely had heard about the “official” cancellation and the counter demonstrators- especially those who read the local newspaper on-line where, in the comments column, the protest was originally organized- probably either haven’t heard or heard Rapozo will be there, we expect to see Mel facing down a group of pissed off citizens.
.
But in all seriousness canceling the anti-pot-party after a complaint from the ACLU cannot be allowed to be where this ends. We urge a full investigation by at least the attorney general’s office if not the FBI- since of course KPD and the prosecutor are the alleged “perps”- as well as ethics complaints against Chief Darryl Perry whose underlings organized the KPD’s involvement, Councilmember Rapozo and, especially, Prosecuting Attorney Iseri... all of whom are or should be well aware of the laws.
It’s high time to take a page from the prosecutor’s playbook and make an example of those involved so that this type of thing never happens again.
But only two things seem certain at press time- a bunch of counter demonstrators will likely show up and so will Mel Rapozo.
The rest is a subject for the Babooze Comedy Hour starring the Keystone Cops.
The curtain opened with Act 1 this morning at 10:36 when the Kaua`i Police Department (KPD) issued the following fishy sounding press release.
Anti-drug rally cancelled
LĪHU'E – An anti-drug rally that was scheduled at 4 pm this afternoon in front of the Historic County Building has been cancelled due to the threat of flash flooding for Kaua`i County.
A flash watch is in effect for Kaua`i and Ni`ihau through tomorrow morning.
The rally was planned to raise awareness and inform the community of the pending marijuana legislation now being considered by the state Legislature.
It’s not clear if anyone bought that excuse after our article yesterday exposed the use of county resources to plan the rally and an order from Iseri that attendance was “mandatory” for her staff attorneys and, ahem, strongly encouraged for the rest of the staff... with a suggestion that they “rearrange” their “schedule” to attend.
But in Act 2, at 12:23 p.m.- less than couple of hours after the first release- it disappeared from the county’s press release page, replaced with the following release, this one from the office of County Attorney Al Castillo:
Update on anti-drug rally
LĪHU'E – County officials said this morning that they received a complaint from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) regarding the anti-drug rally that was scheduled at 4 pm this afternoon in front of the Historic County Building.
“We are in receipt of the ACLU complaint and my office is reviewing it,” said County Attorney Alfred Castillo.
The rally was cancelled due to the complaint and for safety concerns due to the threat of flash flooding for Kaua`i County.
A flash watch is in effect for Kaua`i and Ni`ihau through tomorrow morning.
The rally was planned to raise awareness and inform the community of the pending marijuana legislation now being considered by the state Legislature.
Oh to be a fly on the wall to witness all that went into that release.
But Act 3 was on it’s way and at 1 p.m. a “Breaking News” update appeared at the local newspaper’s web site from new cops and court reporter Jessica Musicar with a headline of “Rapozo: Anti-drug rally still a go”
Musicar wrote:
Is it canceled or isn't it?
Whether an anti-drug rally will be held at 4 p.m. remains unclear, as the county and a member of its council have indicated conflicting answers.
Kaua`i County Council member Mel Rapozo, who said he originally scheduled the rally, plans to show up at the historic County Building with other participants, regardless of the county's notice of cancellation. The rally was intended to raise awareness and inform the community about pending marijuana legislation under consideration by the state Legislature.
This morning, however, the county canceled the rally, citing a weather warning. It later noted this afternoon in a press release that the cancellation is also tied to a complaint from the American Civil Liberties Union.
Rapozo said he is upset that the county was hiding behind the weather.
"To use the weather as an excuse is unacceptable," Rapozo said. "The reason for the cancellation wasn't the weather. It was the ACLU's concerns."
Although the county has not specified the nature of the complaint, stating only that County Attorney Alfred Castillo is reviewing it, Rapozo said the organization took issue with the county using public resources to host the rally.
Acting as a citizen of the county, rather than a councilman, Rapozo added he will be at the rally with church and youth groups...
We can see it now. Since county employees and any solicited attendees- like the island’s pastors and their minions who Rapozo urged to attend- most likely had heard about the “official” cancellation and the counter demonstrators- especially those who read the local newspaper on-line where, in the comments column, the protest was originally organized- probably either haven’t heard or heard Rapozo will be there, we expect to see Mel facing down a group of pissed off citizens.
.
But in all seriousness canceling the anti-pot-party after a complaint from the ACLU cannot be allowed to be where this ends. We urge a full investigation by at least the attorney general’s office if not the FBI- since of course KPD and the prosecutor are the alleged “perps”- as well as ethics complaints against Chief Darryl Perry whose underlings organized the KPD’s involvement, Councilmember Rapozo and, especially, Prosecuting Attorney Iseri... all of whom are or should be well aware of the laws.
It’s high time to take a page from the prosecutor’s playbook and make an example of those involved so that this type of thing never happens again.
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
AN OFFER YOU CAN’T REFUSE
AN OFFER YOU CAN’T REFUSE: Today’s idiotic rally against marijuana took a well deserved bashing today from new and surprisingly enough competent cops and courts reporter at the local newspaper, Jessica Musicar, with an especially poignant “kicker” saying “Expert calls county press release ‘fear-mongering’” above a headline of “Kaua`i officials to rally against pot legislation.”
Joining her expert in questioning the sanity of the organizers was a letter (last one) in today’s Honolulu paper from Pamela G. Lichty, President of the Drug Policy Forum of Hawaii and, more surprisingly, the usually vapid local paper’s Greek Chorus which was joined by many new names and nearly unanimous- with 66 out of 67 comments and counting at press time (*see some below)- in condemning not just the reason for the rally but the propriety of government officials conducting the rally and other related issues.
We’re not sure whether it will materialize but many of the commenters promised to go down to the rally to mock and ridicule the participants.
Though the Musicar’s article claims that “the demonstration is being led by the Kaua`i Police Department, County of Kaua`i Anti-Drug Program, Office of the Prosecuting Attorney, among others” PNN has learned that, unsurprisingly, the “reefer madness” rally is the brain child (and we use that term loosely of course) of none other than Councilperson Mel Rapozo and his joined-at-the-hip, equally-craven doppelganger, Prosecutor Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho.
Seems that the idea for the rally got started when the babooze-meister himself sent a letter to as many pastors and religious leaders on the island as he could find asking them to rouse up their rabble to oppose the scourge of marijuana.
But, we’ve learned, not only are they urging government workers to attend but Iseri has notified the salaried attorneys in her office that attendance at the rally is “mandatory.” And, told the rest of the staff that they should “rearrange your schedule” to attend or if they couldn’t, to go after work, intimating that they were being offered time off to attend on the taxpayer’s dime.
These are the same staff that Iseri begged- and got- extra pay for recently in order to take care of a so-called “backlog of cases” that built up during the county furloughs, as we reported last week.
We’re not sure how many others in county government have been offered a similar “deal” but we wouldn’t be surprised to find out that the answer is every single one of them.
It’s outrageous enough that that the Kaua`i Police Department (KPD) and Prosecutor Iseri are, instead of simply enforcing the law, trying to tell the legislature what laws to enact. It’s even more outrageous that they would use the club of employment to force their underlings to support them, even if the employee disagreed with the “war on drugs,”- especially for as innocuous a drug as marijuana, especially compared to other drugs- as a misguided effort whose mid-20th Century mindset has run its course (according to the U.S. Justice Department).
The ultimate outrage is that Iseri has demanded some attend her stupid rally and used the bribery of time off- and/or the extortion of an implied threat that further employment might be jeopardized- to make sure they are marked present.
The lies about what goes on in California are abominable. The conflict of interest in supporting a big money ticket for the police and prosecutors- who not only receive grants for eradication and interdiction but get to keep the proceeds of their seizures for extra goodies that they can't ask the council for- is obscene.
The idea that they are using their position to try to stop a sane decriminalization policy toward general use and a saner still policy in providing a safe and legal means for patients who require medical marijuana is sickening.
But to do it all on the taxpayers’ dime is intolerable.
-------
*Here are a selection of the comments on the article in the local paper. All are “sic.”
hampstr: I lived in Venice, California, about 3 blocks from 2 medical marijuana clinics. There was never any violence or crime associated with either of the clinics. These claims are so ludicrous that I had to pinch myself to make sure I wasn't dreaming. It's not 1964 anymore. It's 2011 and we all know that marijuana doesn't doesn't lead to riots in the streets.
Jinx138: I have a problem with people publicly opposing or supporting anything in uniform. This falsly sugestes that they are speeking for the whole organization when they are only speaking for themselves.
sebastaloha: You should sit outside the dispensary here in town...the patients are from all walks of life, all ages, all socio-economic classes. There are no bars on the windows, no hardcore security thugs, and no fear of ripoff or prosecution. Its right in town, amidst all other businesses....they are well respected, and the neighboring businesses have no problems with them either. The city council backs them, and is involved in forming the rules and regulations that they abide by. No using the medicine on or around the premises, and if you have it acceessible in your vehicle you can be ticketed for open-container just as alcohol. Educate ourselves and your children
stop the lies: The police and prosecuting attorney are marching against pot, it is quite simple, they are afraid to lose their job. If we the people decide to decriminalize pot, how can they justify what they do for a living.
Sensei: Since when do government officials organize protest rallies against the government? The Constitution gives that right to the PEOPLE. These selfish government employees are afraid of not showing enough convictions to merit their employment. Our prisons are filled with these minor drug users, costing us taxpayers millions of wasted money.
ltereader: This article reminds me of Reefer Madness. Are we seriously still in the 30s?.. Over the years I've seen pot work wonders with those in pain, or undergoing chemotherapy (no nausea), and even a senior with parkinson's. Smoking pot stopped the shaking long enough for him to regain some dignity and eat a meal on his own rather than being fed by others. Sadly, he was always paranoid about smoking it because of the laws. People like this should be entitled to smoke without worrying!
kekaha dave: disinformation aka. the "reefer madness" propaganda machine of kpd, with them discrediting the DARE program with outright lies to children regarding the use of cannabis, medical or not, is due to them being threatened by the loss of federal funding for green harvest which has been shoring up their inflated budget for years. helicopters do nothing to fight the devastating ice problem which is the paramount drug problem on kauai. it is reprehensible and pathetic that a state agency formed to uphold the law, steps outside the bounds of their job description and attempt political influence against necessary law referendums. it shows that they are biased in their job, fearful of loosing that job while uninterested in the needs of patients, to the point they need to demonstrate against pending law reform. the police are going down a slippery slope towards discrediting themselves for what they will demonstrate for is irrelevant to the reality of 8,000+ patients' needs. to protect and serve?
AiMoKea: (M)y sister-in-law was dying of cancer a few years back and the ONLY thing that gave her comfort was MJ. I SAW it work for her and have been pro-medical MJ ever since and also feel very strongly that those who spew the false propaganda against it are truly ignorant on the highest (pardon the pun) level.
Joining her expert in questioning the sanity of the organizers was a letter (last one) in today’s Honolulu paper from Pamela G. Lichty, President of the Drug Policy Forum of Hawaii and, more surprisingly, the usually vapid local paper’s Greek Chorus which was joined by many new names and nearly unanimous- with 66 out of 67 comments and counting at press time (*see some below)- in condemning not just the reason for the rally but the propriety of government officials conducting the rally and other related issues.
We’re not sure whether it will materialize but many of the commenters promised to go down to the rally to mock and ridicule the participants.
Though the Musicar’s article claims that “the demonstration is being led by the Kaua`i Police Department, County of Kaua`i Anti-Drug Program, Office of the Prosecuting Attorney, among others” PNN has learned that, unsurprisingly, the “reefer madness” rally is the brain child (and we use that term loosely of course) of none other than Councilperson Mel Rapozo and his joined-at-the-hip, equally-craven doppelganger, Prosecutor Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho.
Seems that the idea for the rally got started when the babooze-meister himself sent a letter to as many pastors and religious leaders on the island as he could find asking them to rouse up their rabble to oppose the scourge of marijuana.
But, we’ve learned, not only are they urging government workers to attend but Iseri has notified the salaried attorneys in her office that attendance at the rally is “mandatory.” And, told the rest of the staff that they should “rearrange your schedule” to attend or if they couldn’t, to go after work, intimating that they were being offered time off to attend on the taxpayer’s dime.
These are the same staff that Iseri begged- and got- extra pay for recently in order to take care of a so-called “backlog of cases” that built up during the county furloughs, as we reported last week.
We’re not sure how many others in county government have been offered a similar “deal” but we wouldn’t be surprised to find out that the answer is every single one of them.
It’s outrageous enough that that the Kaua`i Police Department (KPD) and Prosecutor Iseri are, instead of simply enforcing the law, trying to tell the legislature what laws to enact. It’s even more outrageous that they would use the club of employment to force their underlings to support them, even if the employee disagreed with the “war on drugs,”- especially for as innocuous a drug as marijuana, especially compared to other drugs- as a misguided effort whose mid-20th Century mindset has run its course (according to the U.S. Justice Department).
The ultimate outrage is that Iseri has demanded some attend her stupid rally and used the bribery of time off- and/or the extortion of an implied threat that further employment might be jeopardized- to make sure they are marked present.
The lies about what goes on in California are abominable. The conflict of interest in supporting a big money ticket for the police and prosecutors- who not only receive grants for eradication and interdiction but get to keep the proceeds of their seizures for extra goodies that they can't ask the council for- is obscene.
The idea that they are using their position to try to stop a sane decriminalization policy toward general use and a saner still policy in providing a safe and legal means for patients who require medical marijuana is sickening.
But to do it all on the taxpayers’ dime is intolerable.
-------
*Here are a selection of the comments on the article in the local paper. All are “sic.”
hampstr: I lived in Venice, California, about 3 blocks from 2 medical marijuana clinics. There was never any violence or crime associated with either of the clinics. These claims are so ludicrous that I had to pinch myself to make sure I wasn't dreaming. It's not 1964 anymore. It's 2011 and we all know that marijuana doesn't doesn't lead to riots in the streets.
Jinx138: I have a problem with people publicly opposing or supporting anything in uniform. This falsly sugestes that they are speeking for the whole organization when they are only speaking for themselves.
sebastaloha: You should sit outside the dispensary here in town...the patients are from all walks of life, all ages, all socio-economic classes. There are no bars on the windows, no hardcore security thugs, and no fear of ripoff or prosecution. Its right in town, amidst all other businesses....they are well respected, and the neighboring businesses have no problems with them either. The city council backs them, and is involved in forming the rules and regulations that they abide by. No using the medicine on or around the premises, and if you have it acceessible in your vehicle you can be ticketed for open-container just as alcohol. Educate ourselves and your children
stop the lies: The police and prosecuting attorney are marching against pot, it is quite simple, they are afraid to lose their job. If we the people decide to decriminalize pot, how can they justify what they do for a living.
Sensei: Since when do government officials organize protest rallies against the government? The Constitution gives that right to the PEOPLE. These selfish government employees are afraid of not showing enough convictions to merit their employment. Our prisons are filled with these minor drug users, costing us taxpayers millions of wasted money.
ltereader: This article reminds me of Reefer Madness. Are we seriously still in the 30s?.. Over the years I've seen pot work wonders with those in pain, or undergoing chemotherapy (no nausea), and even a senior with parkinson's. Smoking pot stopped the shaking long enough for him to regain some dignity and eat a meal on his own rather than being fed by others. Sadly, he was always paranoid about smoking it because of the laws. People like this should be entitled to smoke without worrying!
kekaha dave: disinformation aka. the "reefer madness" propaganda machine of kpd, with them discrediting the DARE program with outright lies to children regarding the use of cannabis, medical or not, is due to them being threatened by the loss of federal funding for green harvest which has been shoring up their inflated budget for years. helicopters do nothing to fight the devastating ice problem which is the paramount drug problem on kauai. it is reprehensible and pathetic that a state agency formed to uphold the law, steps outside the bounds of their job description and attempt political influence against necessary law referendums. it shows that they are biased in their job, fearful of loosing that job while uninterested in the needs of patients, to the point they need to demonstrate against pending law reform. the police are going down a slippery slope towards discrediting themselves for what they will demonstrate for is irrelevant to the reality of 8,000+ patients' needs. to protect and serve?
AiMoKea: (M)y sister-in-law was dying of cancer a few years back and the ONLY thing that gave her comfort was MJ. I SAW it work for her and have been pro-medical MJ ever since and also feel very strongly that those who spew the false propaganda against it are truly ignorant on the highest (pardon the pun) level.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
WHAT’S HE BEEN SMOKIN’?
WHAT’S HE BEEN SMOKIN’?: Where- or more to the point who- do we blame for the impossibly contrived and deceitful “reefer madness” in an article by clueless police beat reporter Paul Curtis in today’s local paper.
We could start with Curtis himself for the unchallenged regurgitating of the equally clueless KPD officer Mark Ozaki’s presentation to a church group.
Not even the DEA itself claims that (t)hose hooked on the “new,” more-potent, quick-growing strains of Kaua`i marijuana are... break(ing) into homes and vacation rentals seeking money to fund their habits”
Habits? Oh nooo- they must be mainlining it nowadays Gertrude.
But that’s just for starters. Later Ozaki claims that “(w)hat used to take a year now takes less than a month as these new pot plants can go from seed to harvest in 28 days”.
A whole lot of medical pot patients would like to get their hands on those seeds especially if they grow a biologically ridiculous “strain... comprised of 60 to 70 percent tetrahyrdocannabinol, compared to less than 20 percent just a few years ago”.
Ooooo- dat's some sticky bud. Stop holding out on us Mark. If that’s da kine the cops smoke think what a great recruiting tool it’d be.
Perhaps Curtis is just warning us that this crap is actually what these people think is factual and that it’s being foisted on our kids who know of course all this is an over the top pack o’ lies and so assume whatever pinheads like Ozaki claim about deadly drugs like ice is equally fabricated.
But if so, where is the rebuttal- a staple of the usual “he said she said reporting”.
Curtis makes it worse with the tired old post hoc proctor hoc fallacy of “the gateway drug theory” which is belied by the fact that those at the top of the societal rung commonly use the sacred herb regularly.
Did you know that most pot smokers started out on mothers milk? And all of them breath oxygen?
We might blame Editor Nathan Eagle whose credibility at the helm of the paper has taken a nose dive since reporter Mike Levine left and ceased to keep him honest if not for the fact that Curtis is now the “assistant editor” who has no higher editor on days that Eagle is off.
We could say that this parochially backward and insidiously destructive mindset begins at the top with kindly old brain-dead Chief Darryl Perry and his merry men of mental midgets at the police commission who seems satisfied with presenting this D.A.R.E style drivel rather than putting officers on the beat to do other things... like maybe, oh, maybe, let’s say... solve murders or something.
Congrats all around for doing the impossible- making KPD even more of a laughing stock.
But really it begins and ends with our elected officials who haven’t got the guts to stop this kind of frittering away of resources on green harvest operations, busting medical users (as the article describes) and of course devoting a full-time officer on a short-staffed force to spread utter bull-sh*t to our kids and other equally gullible groups like churches and business groups.
With public pressure the council on the Big Island has taken matters into their own hands, cutting off funding for the choppers and forcing the police department to stop busting users.
Until we put some pressure on our council to buy a clue- and some political guts- we’ll continue to see this kind of drivel in our faces over coffee each morning.
We could start with Curtis himself for the unchallenged regurgitating of the equally clueless KPD officer Mark Ozaki’s presentation to a church group.
Not even the DEA itself claims that (t)hose hooked on the “new,” more-potent, quick-growing strains of Kaua`i marijuana are... break(ing) into homes and vacation rentals seeking money to fund their habits”
Habits? Oh nooo- they must be mainlining it nowadays Gertrude.
But that’s just for starters. Later Ozaki claims that “(w)hat used to take a year now takes less than a month as these new pot plants can go from seed to harvest in 28 days”.
A whole lot of medical pot patients would like to get their hands on those seeds especially if they grow a biologically ridiculous “strain... comprised of 60 to 70 percent tetrahyrdocannabinol, compared to less than 20 percent just a few years ago”.
Ooooo- dat's some sticky bud. Stop holding out on us Mark. If that’s da kine the cops smoke think what a great recruiting tool it’d be.
Perhaps Curtis is just warning us that this crap is actually what these people think is factual and that it’s being foisted on our kids who know of course all this is an over the top pack o’ lies and so assume whatever pinheads like Ozaki claim about deadly drugs like ice is equally fabricated.
But if so, where is the rebuttal- a staple of the usual “he said she said reporting”.
Curtis makes it worse with the tired old post hoc proctor hoc fallacy of “the gateway drug theory” which is belied by the fact that those at the top of the societal rung commonly use the sacred herb regularly.
Did you know that most pot smokers started out on mothers milk? And all of them breath oxygen?
We might blame Editor Nathan Eagle whose credibility at the helm of the paper has taken a nose dive since reporter Mike Levine left and ceased to keep him honest if not for the fact that Curtis is now the “assistant editor” who has no higher editor on days that Eagle is off.
We could say that this parochially backward and insidiously destructive mindset begins at the top with kindly old brain-dead Chief Darryl Perry and his merry men of mental midgets at the police commission who seems satisfied with presenting this D.A.R.E style drivel rather than putting officers on the beat to do other things... like maybe, oh, maybe, let’s say... solve murders or something.
Congrats all around for doing the impossible- making KPD even more of a laughing stock.
But really it begins and ends with our elected officials who haven’t got the guts to stop this kind of frittering away of resources on green harvest operations, busting medical users (as the article describes) and of course devoting a full-time officer on a short-staffed force to spread utter bull-sh*t to our kids and other equally gullible groups like churches and business groups.
With public pressure the council on the Big Island has taken matters into their own hands, cutting off funding for the choppers and forcing the police department to stop busting users.
Until we put some pressure on our council to buy a clue- and some political guts- we’ll continue to see this kind of drivel in our faces over coffee each morning.
Friday, July 9, 2010
WHICH WAY IS UP?:
WHICH WAY IS UP?: A friend of ours has a penchant for proclaiming “well this means the end of the world is coming soon” every time a bit of incongruous idiocy is performed by some government entity or official.
And our response is always to call him an “optimist” because in reality it never ends and in fact, the whirling sucking eddy caused by self-aggrandizing egoists will just keep on and on and on as we continue to slide indefinitely down the razor blade of life.
Latest case in point are reports of the decision by the local US Attorney to bust Roger Christie's "THC Ministry" on the Big Island along with 13 of his pakalolo promoting adherents even reportedly chartering a cargo plane to transport them all to Honolulu.
Don’t these sh*t-for-brains have anything better to do with our money than to worry about a bunch of pot smokers?
What kind of people get so riled up by the local Big Island ban on enforcement of pot laws that it keeps them up at night dreaming up ways to circumvent it?
While California stands poised to finally end prohibition through a ballot initiative officialdom in Hawai`i remains a backwater stuck in a reefer madness mentality that reeks of a money-grabbing scam to create busy-work for law enforcement no matter what society dictates.
Money for treatment and especially after care for methamphetamine abusers is conspicuously absent while we allow our pols to pour money down the toilet of interdicting innocuous herbs.
And even when people spend years to elect sensible local councils as the Big Island did the federal money trumps sensibility.
Perhaps worst of all may be the expected drivel from the beaten-down-before-they-begin crowd who will no doubt be crowing “well what do you expect- they threw it in the cops’ collective faces by openly claiming religious status- even opening a storefront in downtown Hilo”.
What do we expect?- how ‘bout a bit of freakin’ professionalism from those who are entrusted with wielding the judicial Sword of Damocles.
When it comes down to it, to jail a handful of hippies who worship at the peaceful alter of marijuana and allow a horde of repressive, oppressive genocidal, judeo-islamo-christian, fear-mongering snake oil salesmen to attach their toxic tax-free tentacles onto every facet of civilization is the utmost in moral societal hypocrisy.
Their and our friend’s oft-heard message that “the end is neigh” may be all that keeps these superstitious, magical-thinking adherents in their odd subconscious state of optimism. If so, it leaves us with the particularly gloomy thought that when all is said and done, hoping- or even working- for change may be the worst kind of pessimism of all.
----
Update: Check out the details today in Joan Conrow’s update to our Wednesday post on the EEOC sexual harassment suit against ITT and PMRF - apparently the retaliation goes back to an article she wrote about the complainant three years ago
-------
Clarification: Councilperson Lani Kawahara voted with Councilperson Tim Bynum to use the county’s huge surplus to stop county furloughs which we reported on Tuesday.
And our response is always to call him an “optimist” because in reality it never ends and in fact, the whirling sucking eddy caused by self-aggrandizing egoists will just keep on and on and on as we continue to slide indefinitely down the razor blade of life.
Latest case in point are reports of the decision by the local US Attorney to bust Roger Christie's "THC Ministry" on the Big Island along with 13 of his pakalolo promoting adherents even reportedly chartering a cargo plane to transport them all to Honolulu.
Don’t these sh*t-for-brains have anything better to do with our money than to worry about a bunch of pot smokers?
What kind of people get so riled up by the local Big Island ban on enforcement of pot laws that it keeps them up at night dreaming up ways to circumvent it?
While California stands poised to finally end prohibition through a ballot initiative officialdom in Hawai`i remains a backwater stuck in a reefer madness mentality that reeks of a money-grabbing scam to create busy-work for law enforcement no matter what society dictates.
Money for treatment and especially after care for methamphetamine abusers is conspicuously absent while we allow our pols to pour money down the toilet of interdicting innocuous herbs.
And even when people spend years to elect sensible local councils as the Big Island did the federal money trumps sensibility.
Perhaps worst of all may be the expected drivel from the beaten-down-before-they-begin crowd who will no doubt be crowing “well what do you expect- they threw it in the cops’ collective faces by openly claiming religious status- even opening a storefront in downtown Hilo”.
What do we expect?- how ‘bout a bit of freakin’ professionalism from those who are entrusted with wielding the judicial Sword of Damocles.
When it comes down to it, to jail a handful of hippies who worship at the peaceful alter of marijuana and allow a horde of repressive, oppressive genocidal, judeo-islamo-christian, fear-mongering snake oil salesmen to attach their toxic tax-free tentacles onto every facet of civilization is the utmost in moral societal hypocrisy.
Their and our friend’s oft-heard message that “the end is neigh” may be all that keeps these superstitious, magical-thinking adherents in their odd subconscious state of optimism. If so, it leaves us with the particularly gloomy thought that when all is said and done, hoping- or even working- for change may be the worst kind of pessimism of all.
----
Update: Check out the details today in Joan Conrow’s update to our Wednesday post on the EEOC sexual harassment suit against ITT and PMRF - apparently the retaliation goes back to an article she wrote about the complainant three years ago
-------
Clarification: Councilperson Lani Kawahara voted with Councilperson Tim Bynum to use the county’s huge surplus to stop county furloughs which we reported on Tuesday.
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