National Guard, State Police descend on 81-year-old’s property to seize single pot plant

[Calculating]

Last edited Thu Oct 6, 2016, 05:34 PM - Edit history (1)

God damn fascists. The war on cannabis is an absolute bloody joke at this point and needs to be ended yesterday. Hey jack booted thugs, how about doing something about the plague of heroin sweeping the nation? NO? I guess it's easier to raid the 80 year old growing one cannabis plant hahaha.
http://www.gazettenet.com/MarijuanaRaid-HG-100116-5074664

AMHERST — All that remains of the solitary marijuana plant an 81-year-old grandmother had been growing behind her South Amherst home is a stump and a ragged hole in the ground.

Margaret Holcomb said she was growing the plant as medicine, a way to ease arthritis and glaucoma and help her sleep at night. Tucked away in a raspberry patch and separated by a fence from any neighbors, the plant was nearly ready for harvest when a military-style helicopter and police descended on Sept. 21.

In a joint raid, the Massachusetts National Guard and State Police entered her yard and cut down the solitary plant in what her son, Tim Holcomb, said was a “pretty shocking” action — one that he argues constitutes unlawful surveillance and illegal search and seizure.

“It’s scary as hell,” said Tim Holcomb.

[chillfactor]

1. oh good god....

for ONE plant....from an elderly lady....what REAL crimes were going on during this monstrous assault on one elderly person?

[MindPilot]

2. Can we call it a police state now?

When asking for a warrant is considered "escalation" it is pretty much over.

Fuck the pigs.

[asiliveandbreathe]

3. What a terrible experience for this lady...and for what?

I grew up in Mass. I have been away for 20 years..and now wonder - what the hell is happening to my beloved state...the kicker - it isn't criminal....

BTW - I know that facility in Framingham - It is our emergency Mass. central command - I remember storm of '78 - yup they will dispose of all that stuff...yup - you betcha -

Although the "staties" can be a bunch of - .... - anyway - I remember we were coming through Hampton Beach on Motorcycles from Laconia week-end..now, NH doesn't have a helmet law - (at least they didn't) - so we would stop short of the Mass border in Salisbury Beach..well, dear 'ol brother crossed over and boom..statie right there..dumb ass..not only a ticket for not having his helmet on, but he threw a cig butt on the ground - okay another ticket for that..

My brother is a Viet Nam Vet - and he has very little regard for authority..this same statie used too work RT 9 - my brother had his own company, 3 car carriers at the time..long haul from NJ/NY/long hours..back and forth - yup same ol' statie harassed him all the time..would stop him - and measure the length of the last cars on his trailer...what a chump...Never a citation for car overhang..

Be well all - we will get through this..and Mass. hopefully will pass Rec MJ..

[Hoyt]

4. Stupid, but since no one was charged/arrested, I take that as tacit approval

of growing your own. Pay any taxes due, don't distribute, and hide it better is my layman's interpretation.

[jack_krass]

5. Motherf*ckers

[Vinca]

7. We were just watching an unrelated news story out of Massachusetts and I wondered aloud

to my husband about the Massachusetts police uniforms that include Nazi-style hats. After reading this story it seems appropriate for them.

[smirkymonkey]

8. Thank god they are keeping us safe from vicious criminals like this old woman!

I'm glad they aren't wasting their time bothering with petty crime or anything.

[Qutzupalotl]

9. State Police. National Guard. You sure you don't need reinforcements?

How fucked up are our priorities when a PLANT warrants a raid?

[Egnever]

10. I would point fingers squarely at the neighbors on this one

Obviously ridiculous response but it would never have been detected without a complaint from nosey neighbors

[Major Nikon]

17. That's not necessarily true

I've actually seen the spectral imaging products used on aircraft and they work incredibly well. They simply plug in the specific color spectrum of cannabis plants and the imaging cameras differentiate between other plants. Cameras can see far beyond the color spectrum that humans are limited by and make use of the ultraviolet and infrared frequencies that are invisible to us. The stuff I saw is now over 20 years old and even back then it could pick out a single plant in the middle of a garden. I'm sure the stuff available today is even better.

[ronnie624]

22. Wow.

I had no idea different species of plants has unique spectral signatures.

Surely law enforcement can now see inside our homes, with modern surveillance technology.

[Major Nikon]

27. That's how insects differentiate between them

Bees, other pollinating insects, and some birds can see well into the ultraviolet spectrum that is invisible to you and me. The types of plants they are most interested in to them stands out like a light in a dark room. You can actually buy layman camera equipment that can see ultraviolet and takes amazing pictures, but the lenses are usually made from quartz and are very expensive. Infrared is easier and more practical. I have a DSLR that has been converted for infrared use and for the most part you can use standard lenses.

Does this mean law enforcement can see inside your home? Perhaps with x-rays (which would be highly illegal on anything other than a highly restricted basis) and to some degree they can use the low infrared spectrum to detect heat signatures from hot lights used to grow illicit plants, but for the most part, no they can't see through walls and roofs.

[Tsiyu]

11. I wish older people understood the DEA

as well as the kids do. This "Raid" was a coordinated effort to keep their criminal thug operation going in the state. If they can't show that their choppers and body armor and guns are actually "catching evil plants," they don't get as much funding for next year.

So they did a last-ditch effort to find a few plants to prove they are REAL HEROES AND WARRIORS. If they don't show some sort of seizures, they lose money. It's not about that woman's actions being truly criminal and damaging to society any more than if she had a bottle of prescription Oxys in the house. IT'S ABOUT MONEY MONEY MONEY MONEY.

On other sites, the kids know what this is all about, but for some reason, the old farts in my generation can't seem to add 2 plus 2.

This 81-year-old woman has glaucoma and osteoarthritis I believe, and could qualify for a MA cannabis med card. She chose to grow one plant to ease her symptoms. Is she evil? Should we throw her in jail? Those of you smug Boomers who think the kids are silly for caring about legal weed are ASSHOLES. The kids care more about that 81-year-old woman than any of you selfish pigs. PEOPLE LIKE HER are the reason the war on drugs is the EVIL here. But keep making fun of the kids; it helps the DEA bully sick elderly people.

This woman and many others were descended upon by the National Guard, DEA and staties in a coordinated effort. They then told folks - even with LEGAL PLANTS (but they possibly, maybe might be seen from the road so they're now illegal) - that they "only want the stems and won't charge you if you don't request a warrant."

As one young person said: "Nice fourth amendment you've got there; be a shame if something happened to it."

We have no due process or probable cause because of the DEA. ANYTHING is probable cause, and they can do whatever they want to your money, your home and your vehicle.

The DEA OWNS ALL OF US. They fucking own us.

I wish that people in my generation would wake the fuck up and see the idiocy in the War on Drugs, but most Boomers are clueless idiots, and I mean it. So let's send them more goddamned money this year, Boomers, m'kay?

The kids will get rid of the DEA. And shake their heads at the COWARDICE of their parents.

[Calculating]

18. The East Coast boomers are the main problem

A lot of them are still following a delusion that cannabis legalization is some kind of 'fringe' issue that only millennials and west coast liberals care about. They don't even try to produce any real arguments against legalization. They just ignore the whole issue writing it off as some kind of stupid social trend. It's honestly really weird. It's almost like they only oppose it out of contempt for young people or to 'stick it to those darn progressives'. How dare they try to change the established order which has been in place for 80 years? Let's keep sending the JBT's after Granny over a plant.

[Tsiyu]

20. It's so much bigger than they want to admit

Last edited Sat Oct 8, 2016, 11:48 AM - Edit history (2)

and you are correct that much of the East Coast is mired in absolute denial.

This issue isn't about kids wanting a legal buzz.

It's about whether we, as supposedly "free" people, and our physicians, should be able to choose which medicines we put into our own bodies. Everyone knows the DEA and our INJUSTICE DEPARTMENT are motherfucking LIARS. Cannabis is far safer than opiates, yet our Justice Department protects the legal opiate dealers with every resource they have, while they spend over 3 billion a year throwing people in jail for using a safe, reliable herbal substance.

It's about letting the alcohol and beer lobbyists, who sell a substance that directly kills over 80,000 a year, hold our legislators by the balls when it comes to other recreation substances that might HURT THEIR FUCKING PROFITS. Our politicians give blowjobs to the beer lobby while they try to tell us we're criminals because we'd rather relax with an herb than a cocktail. FUCK ALL OF YOU ALCOHOL-DRINKING HYPOCRITES. YOU MAKE LIFE SUCK!

It's about disenfranchising and sucking every financial resource away from MILLIONS of young people who can no longer vote for Hillary or anyone because they had a little weed or one pill. Yes, if you give your kid only one of your prescription painkillers for their sore knee, they are now a bona fide felon because of that ONE PILL. FUCK ALL OF YOU who think that's just fine with you. FUCK YOU.

East coasters for the most part retain their "puritan" values, and love to gossip, moralize and live in the 17th century when it comes to science or compassion. But they Lurve their whiskey and their goddamned prescription meds. East coast boomers don't give a flying fuck about cancer patients, combat vets or babies with seizure disorders. They love their money-making court systems and their Pharmco lobbyists, and they LOVE feeling superior to others morally.

It is an amazing phenomenon, but the West Coasters give us all hope that humans are not as deluded as those on this pathetic east side of the nation.

[annabanana]

24. "East Coast"

is this shorthand for the entire 1800 miles? or shorthand for... what?

[Tsiyu]

28. Well, it's more the eastern portion and midsection of the nation

that seem entirely comfortable with the complete erosion of due process.

That's another key issue here:

How many "inalienable rights" are cowardly Boomers going to see erased to fight a war against substance abuse?

Boomers hate the fourth amendment, apparently. But they love civil forfeiture when no crime has been proven to be committed. They HATE the concept of innocent until proven guilty, but love the thought of flashbanging toddler's faces off to find a little meth, throwing addicts in prison where corrupt guards keep them addicted, and denying young people a chance.

The eastern US and middle US LOVE that shit. Because none of them have the courage like West Coasters do to stand up and say:


THIS IS WRONG!

[annabanana]

23. And a lot of them are quietly toking

in front of the TV, voting for legalization so they can open their windows.

[Tsiyu]

26. Keep being quiet

as long as you get what you need.

I'm gonna shout from the rooftops about how wrong this is.

I have seen too many hurting people, too many kids whose lives are destroyed, to be selfish.

I may not have long to live at this advanced age, but I won't go out quietly.

The rest of you can cower and let OTHERS fight the battle for you to have the medicine or recreational substance you need or desire.

[hunter]

12. The future is more "Brazil" than Orwell's "1984."

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0088846/

[Rex]

13. Big Brothers insane War on Society continues.

Paychecks must be made, so granny has to suck it up about the pain.

[Tsiyu]

16. They keep cannabis MORE DANGEROUS than heroin

on the DEA schedule for a reason.

Why are so many people dying from heroin overdose? Because YOUR FEDERAL GOVERNMENT - YOUR "INJUSTICE DEPARTMENT" - thinks its just peachy that we arrest someone for marijuana possession every 49 seconds. The United States Government is encouraging the cops to focus on this DANGEROUS AWFUL SINISTER DEADLY fucking plant that kills no one.

"So what," say the FEDS and the DEA, "if we show a medical NEED for heroin? That let's our buddies in the pharmaceutical industry - who support our re-election campaigns - get the whole goddamned country addicted. So what if people are dying in droves all over the nation from heroin? Heroin is still TAME and SANE for use while cannabis use must be demonized."


So the pharmcos get to act like they provide a wonderful medical service, they get to donate millions in profit to help keep the cops arresting someone for cannabis every 49 seconds, and they get to make a couple of generations believe that heroin is safe and cannabis is not.

FUCK THE DEA, and fuck the wannabe special forces who think they're really manly saviors for denying an elderly woman her medicine of choice.

Keep funding those heroes, Boomers! Keep funding those lies! It's fun when we focus on cannabis interdiction even if we can't seem to fund schools, roads or treatment for people who are dropping like flies from heroin overdose.

Fun for our wannabe warriors, anyway. Let's keep paying them to play their fucking sick game, shall we?

[Calculating]

19. It really is evil isn't it...

It's literally all about greed for money. Doesn't matter how many innocent lives are ruined if there's MONEY TO BE MADE! That and bigots who just dislike the whole culture frequently associated with cannabis use.

[Tsiyu]

21. Makes you wish there really were some vengeful god

but alas all we have is us,

I am so disgusted every time I see some sick person hassled and terrorized over a goddamned plant just so some motherfucking CROOKED DA or for-profit prison company or DEA agent can get a big ole' hardon for profits. The DEA agents actually have orgasms when they arrest sick cancer patients and parents who provide CBD oil for babies. (Hey, they can lie, so can I.)

DEA agents and our INJUSTICE DEPARTMENT LOVE to see human suffering, love to railroad and destroy the lives of innocent people, love to see all of these people overdosing on heroin! It gives our DEA agents and our INJUSTICE department a YUUUUUUGE thrill to destroy lives like it's nothing. This MUST be true, because they keep doing the same thing over and over.

I wish everyone in our INJUSTICE department and every DEA agent would suffer some horrific, hideous, painful, debilitating disease and then be denied the medicine that would ease their suffering. I honestly wish the most horrific lives for all of them, because the DEA and the INJUSTICE department cause so much pain, heartache and human suffering, and they don't seem to want to stop.

Anyone who thinks the War on Drugs has not destroyed this nation's potential is someone who is benefiting from that same evil war on Americans.

[workinclasszero]

14. Thank God these brave police

Scared the living shit out of a poor 81 year old lady who couldn't harm a fly if she wanted to!

I'm sure all the child molesters, murders, organized criminals and assorted republicans in the neighborhood appreciate the bust!

Lucky those brave cops didn't shoot first and ask questions later, she must not be black.

If I was her I'd plant the next one in the front yard and let the scum bust me for the free health care, the fascist bastards!

[KK9]

15. Oh, for Pete's Sake!

A single plant!?!

I wasn't aware of this effort by the Mass State Police, but it probably explains the several low flying helicopters we've seen or heard over our property in Mass this fall. We're on 3 acres in an otherwise heavily developed area. Full sun, conservation land screening us from any neighbors and no visibility from the street. Probably a prime location for growing pot in their minds. All we grow are apples and poison ivy, though.

Blechh. I don't much like the idea of the State Police spying on me from the air, even though they won't find anything.

[mainer]

25. Interesting that the local police had no idea of the raid

The police chief said he and his officers didn't know about it. (Knowing the liberal politics of that particular area of MA, I suspect he'd be against any raid on a grandma.)