Marc Emery is to be sentenced Friday to 5 years in US Federal Prison

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Don Skakie, 425-572-0899

Seattle area marijuana activists will gather outside the Federal Courthouse at 700 Stewart Street on Friday, September 10, to protest the sentencing of Marc Emery, the so-called Prince of Pot, who faces five years in federal prison for selling marijuana seeds by mail order to Americans and to call on President Barack Obama to pardon him. The controversial Canadian faced federal charges after DEA agents entered Canada and arrested Emery in 2005. Emery is expected to be sentenced to five years in federal prison under a plea agreement reached with federal prosecutors.

“The Emery case is a prime example of the overreach of the federal government and the need for marijuana laws that match social reality in America,” said Philip Dawdy, Sensible Washington’s co-founder and vice-chair. “It’s crazy that he’s going to prison for selling seeds and that the federal government is willing to spend millions of dollars prosecuting and imprisoning him. President Obama should pardon Emery and get busy with reforming America’s outdated marijuana laws.”

When Emery was arrested in 2005, federal officials described his arrest as a blow to efforts to legalize marijuana in the US. Emery was the publisher of the Vancouver-based Cannabis Culture magazine and planned to use his seed-selling profits to fund legalization efforts in the US.

Activists will gather outside the US Courthouse from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday while Emery, already in federal detention in SeaTac, is being sentenced.

It’s ironic that only last week John McKay, the former US Attorney for Western Washington who originally charged Emery, wrote an op-ed in the Seattle Times in which he noted that marijuana prohibition has failed and that it’s time for new marijuana laws on the federal level.

Sensible Washington is an all-volunteer, grassroots organization dedicated to the repeal of marijuana prohibition in Washington State. The group was sponsor of this year’s I-1068, which failed to gather enough signatures to qualify for the November ballot, and plans to file a new legalization initiative in January 2011. Since June, Sensible Washington has tripled its volunteer network to some 6,000 citizens committed to ending marijuana prohibition.

More information about Sensible Washington can be found at www.sensiblewashington.org.

View Larger Map

ActWithUs is a new web service being built to support large volunteer groups like Sensible Washington’s 2011 initiative campaign.

Q: What will ActWithUs bring to Sensible Washington?
A: Sensible Washington already has thousands of volunteers or potential volunteers, and will only have more by the end of the year. The campaign will need volunteer networking, campaign logistics and decision support, petition control and validation, donation tracking, and phone hotlines. ActWithUs aims to combine these important tools into an easy, fun, and social experience for volunteers using modern Internet technology, volunteer “task jar” style jobs, and rapid positive feedback.

Read more information for Sensible Washington volunteers on the ActWithUs website and check out the ActWithUs blog.

If you are a technology professional, be sure to find out how to help make ActWithUs awesome!

Update, August 28: Melanie Harmon has been located at the Rainbow Gathering in Usk, WA, and her parents have been notified. Thanks to everyone for their help in locating her.

Welcome to the all-volunteer effort to reform cannabis laws in Washington state in 2011.

Last year volunteers failed to get enough signatures to qualify the initiative for the November 2010 ballot. While other factors were against us, we failed because we simply did not put the petition in front of enough people that wanted to sign. They were looking for us, but we weren’t everywhere.

As an all volunteer effort, we could not be out all hours and all places as the paid gatherers were. Our volunteer base was growing but it wasn’t large enough for 2010.

That will not happen again in 2011.

Join our experienced volunteers now so that in early 2011, when we have our I-11XX number and new petitions printed, we can mobilize thousands and get out where we need to be to let the public sign. We need you to talk to your family, friends and neighbors. We need you to host a petition in your business, or ask businesses you support to host a petition so the public can come in and sign and hopefully support your business. We need you to talk to those that sign either at a business or anywhere else and get them to volunteer/host a petition.

We also want you to donate whatever time/skills/talents or other resources you are able to offer the campaign. We have many Areas of Responsibility that volunteers with specific talents can work together on to ensure our success without over burdening anyone who suddenly has other commitments.

What can you do to make sure cannabis is no longer criminal under state law?

Sign-up now and volunteer with Sensible Washington.

2010 Campaign: I-1068

January 2010: After careful legal research, Sensible Washington filed citizens’ initiative 1068, “Marijuana Reform Act”, with Washington state.

February 2010: Starting with only five volunteers, Sensible Washington began gathering signatures for I-1068, using this platform: stop arrests • save taxpayers money • fix Washington’s flawed medical marijuana law • produce industrial hemp.

July 2010: With an all-volunteer effort by nearly 2000 volunteers, Sensible Washington gathered approximately 180,000, or three quarters, of the 241,153 valid voter signatures needed.

Today: Thanks to the efforts of Sensible Washington volunteers, cannabis legalization is at the forefront of grassroots political movement in Washington.

2011 Campaign: I-11XX

Fall/Winter 2010: Sensible Washington reorganizes to maximize the use of its large and expanding volunteer base. Volunteer teams form and prepare for 2011, including media, fundraising, press, recruitment, technology, and more.

January 2011: Sensible Washington files another citizen’s initiative with identical wording, as it is structured in a way that avoids legal complications such as federal preemption or single-subject initiative violations.

February 2011: Starting in earnest with thousands of trained volunteers, Sensible Washington begins gathering signatures for I-11XX, using this platform: stop arrests • save taxpayers money • fix Washington’s flawed medical marijuana law • produce industrial hemp.

July 2011: With well over 241,153 valid voter signatures, the Washington State Marijuana Reform Act of 2011 is approved for the state-wide November 2011 ballot.

Political Landscape

Endorsements for I-1068 included: Norm Stamper Seattle Chief of Police (Ret.) • Jim Kenny Democratic candidate for Snohomish County Prosecutor • Toby Nixon former Washington State Rep. (R-Kirkland) • Washington State Democrats • NORML National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws • Kirk Prindle Candidate for King Conservation District Board of Supervisors • Libertarian Party of Washington

Washington state governor Christine Gregoire, in response to “Legalizing Marijuana” being a top choice in the Transforming Washington’s Budget IdeaScale site:

“It’s a legitimate idea. But we’d have to see how the federal government would respond.” WashingtonStateWire.com, July 29, 2010

“Despite how I may feel about legalizing marijuana, I think very thoughtful people brought that forward and we owe it to them to research it.” KOMO-TV, July 30, 2010

Sensible Washington is gearing up for Hempfest, which is August 21st and 22nd, and we need your financial support! There are 250,000 people at this event and we’ll ask them all to join our 2011 campaign. This an unprecedented opportunity to grow our campaign network and financial resources. We simply need to raise $3,500 by Aug. 18 to cover our initial costs. We’re estimating $500 for booth expenses (rental, supplies, food for volunteers, etc.) and $3,000 to print 4,000 remittance envelopes and about 100,000 flyers. So please give what you can through our secure, encrypted donation page.

We also need volunteers to work the crowds at Hempfest. If you’d like to volunteer for the ‘Fest, please do so at this Facebook event invite page. Thanks and see you at Hempfest!

In other news, Sensible Washington is also setting up an account with PayPal since some people prefer using its services. It should be up and running sometime next week or as soon as PayPal is through reviewing our paperwork.

Justin Prince, well known as the owner of Tacoma Hemp Company (the first above-ground dispensary in Tacoma) and as the founder of Tacoma Hempfest, was arrested by Tacoma police yesterday. He was booked on suspicion of unlawful possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver, unlawful delivery of a controlled substance and unlawful manufacturing of a controlled substance.

We’ve just learned that Prince will be arraigned today at 1:30 p.m. in Pierce County Superior Court in Room 270. The court is located at 930 Tacoma Avenue South in Tacoma.

Prince could use a show of support from the community, so if you are able, please get down to court for his arraignment.

Sensible Washington is moving onward to 2011 when, in January, we will file an initiative to legalize marijuana in Washington State where polls indicate the public is strongly in favor of cannabis legalization. In the meantime, Sensible Washington will be laying the groundwork for that effort–organizing volunteers, beefing up our web presence, raising funds–and spreading the message that our cause is right and that now is the time for legalization.

What can you do to help? If you are in Washington State, please sign up to volunteer. You can join us on Sensible Washington’s Facebook page. If you are anywhere in the US, you can make a contribution of any size to help Sensible Washington move on to 2011 and retire our remaining expenses from this year’s cost-efficient I-1068 campaign (total expenditures were about $40,000), which are mostly mileage reimbursements for coordinators and printing expenses. We are two days into a campaign to raise $10,000 by the end of July and would appreciate your help. Our donation page is secure and encrypted.

Thank you for your support. Let’s legalize in 2011.

Update 5: More videos are now available, and more will be uploaded as time and bandwidth are available. Douglas Hiatt kicks off the meeting, Douglas Hiatt speaks about the history of I-1068, Douglas Hiatt speaks about the history of I-1068 (continued), Douglas Hiatt introduces Donovan Rivers for Congress, Q&A with Donovan Rivers for Congress, Sensible Washington reorganization brainstorming.

Update 4: We have posted slides based on the technology team presentation. A few more videos will be available in the near future.

Update 3: We have posted written notes from the meeting. These will be easier to follow along with audio or video. We are doing our best to get video processed and uploaded in a timely manner. Thanks for your patience.

Update 2: Thank you to everyone who attended today’s meeting in person or online. Despite no power outlets and short notice, we were able to stream and record much of the meeting! We’re processing and compiling footage and notes and will be releasing them over the next several days. For now you can watch the partial recording of the live stream of today’s meeting.

Update: For those who cannot attend, we will be attempting to stream this meeting live at the sensiblewa channel on USTREAM. If you miss the live stream or if there are technical issues, we will be posting video of the meeting within 48 hours.

Volunteers and supporters are encouraged to attend the state-wide meeting and potluck. Meet the leadership, ask questions, get answers, and have your say about the 2011 Sensible Washington initiative campaign.

Tell us what worked and what didn’t, express compliments and complaints, and volunteer your time and talent as we move ahead.

When: Saturday June 17, 2010, 10AM through the afternoon. Meeting agenda begins at 11AM.

Where: Lake Geneva Park in Federal Way, at the corner of 46th Ave S and S 344th St.

Please RSVP to Don Skakie at sensiblenorthwest@gmail.com if you plan to attend. Please bring a dish to share.

This is a family friendly event! The park has a picnic area with a playground for kids ages 5-12, and the lake is a short stroll away.

If you cannot attend, please leave any specific questions or comments you have in the comments for this post. We’ll read them and cover as much as we can on Saturday. We will be recording the proceedings using text and video and will make that available soon after the meeting.

View Larger Map

I just wanted to briefly thank one and all for their hard work on I-1068 and let everyone know that we’re basically taking a breather the remainder of this week. We’ll be back next week with various announcements about what Sensible Washington will be doing over the next six months. One thing should not be in doubt: we will be filing a marijuana legalization initiative next year.

BTW, I do have comments closed on the site right now. This is a temporary move, designed to do nothing more than keep spam comments from piling up.

It’s my sad duty to inform you all that I-1068 will not make it. We’re going to fall short. So I’m asking you all to stand down immediately, relax, regroup and let’s all push on for the future. In the end, we couldn’t overcome this Spring’s awful weather and the ACLU of Washington actively working against I-1068. Douglas and I and everyone else are all humbled by your efforts. The battle may be lost, but the war goes on.

• AP story: “Organizers: Wash. legal pot measure won’t make ballot”

A short time ago, I learned that on a 314 to 185 floor vote, the Washington State Democrats endorsed I-1068 at their convention in Vancouver this afternoon. Everyone at Sensible Washington and I-1068 appreciates this endorsement.

Brandon Hulse, one of I-1068′s very best volunteer signature gatherers, was about to enter the Safeway at corner of South 38th Street and South M street in Tacoma at 5 p.m. this evening when he was stopped by a man asking him to sign the “Marijuana Reform Act.” The man was a paid petitioner and he was with another paid petitioner. The pair were engaging in deception and fraud and were poaching signatures that properly belonged to I-1068.

Hulse said that they had petitions that were clearly not I-1068–the Marijuana Reform Act–wrapped crosswise around a sheet of cardboard so that one could only see the signature lines but not the title and ballot summary language at the top of the petition. Hulse asked them if they’d turn in their signed copies of I-1068 to him, so he could get them into Sensible Washington’s offices.

“We actually don’t have that,” one of the men told Hulse, according to Hulse.

Meanwhile, a woman was signing the petition after being told it was the Marijuana Reform Act. She began saying “Sign it, sign it” to Hulse. Hulse got one of the men to flip the petition around so he could see the top of it and it was clearly marked as I-1107, which would repeal certain taxes enacted by the State Legislature earlier this year. Hulse went into the Safeway, phoned me and explained the situation. I asked him to try and get the men’s names, what company they worked for and to take their pictures on his cell phone.

Photos and details follow.

Note the bottom of the petition page; it does not contain the information printed on I-1068 petitions.

Close-up of I-1107 fraudulently portrayed as I-1068.

One of the persons collecting signatures for I-1107 yet telling citizens they are signing for I-1068 Marijuana Reform Act

Hulse went back outside where the men again asked him to sign the “Marijuana Reform Act.”

“The petition he put in my face was not 1068, it was 1107,” said Hulse. “And I said, ‘Let me see the marijuana reform one’. He was like. ‘Oh, I don’t have that have one. He has that one’. I asked his partner, ‘Can I see I-1068, the one you just asked me to sign?’

“We don’t have that one,” Hulse said the man told him.

“Why are you asking me to sign it if you don’t have it? You’re trying to trick me into signing this one,” Hulse said, referring to I-1107.

Hulse said the petitioner, who was getting anywhere from $3 to $3.50 per signature, told him that he was “told by his organization that they were allowed to say that.”

Hulse replied, “You guys can’t do that. You can’t tell people they’re signing something they’re not signing.”

“We have a right to make a living,” one of the petitioners told Hulse, according to Hulse.

According to Hulse, the pair started talking amongst themselves.

One of them said, “Ignore this guy. We can say whatever we want to say.”

I have left a voice mail for Tim Martin, a beverage industry executive and sponsor of I-1107, but have yet to receive a return call. In the morning, I will call the Attorney General’s office and file an appropriate complaint and ask them to investigate the situation, which on its face would appear to violate a law or two.

Angela Johnson’s signature gathering vigil in Spokane is back on at at a safe approved location on the corner of N. Division and E. Desmet in the old Burgans Furniture lot. She will be on the corner. Everyone spread this fast. People are looking for her to sign 1068. Spokane area vols get down there and help her please. And please help keep this vigil going through this coming weekend to the end of the month. She’s located just north of where Division and Ruby split. A map is here.

For those of you who didn’t catch today’s earlier events, please read this press release describing how Johnson was allegedly assaulted and harassed by a large, angry male property manager.

If anyone wants to do something similar elsewhere in Washington State–hint, hint–let us know about it.

At approximately 8:30 a.m. today, I-1068′s field director for Eastern Washington Angela Johnson was allegedly assaulted and harassed by a man near downtown Spokane. Johnson was five days into a six-day round-the-clock signature gathering vigil on unused commercial property.

Johnson says the man, who identified himself as the property manager,  verbally harassed her and then tired to remove her I-1068 signs which were legally displayed on public property. She and the man got into a struggle over the signs, the presence of which had been approved by Spokane police, and the man grabbed Johnson’s arm and pushed her out of the way. This occurred on public property. I-1068 would legalize marijuana use, possession and cultivation for adults 18 and older in Washington State.

Harassment of signature gatherers is illegal in Washington State and is punishable by three years in prison. Simple assault is illegal too.

“The minute people see signs that say ‘marijuana,’ it brings such hostility out in some people,” says Johnson, who suffered a mild scratch to her hand during the melee.

Johnson contacted police and filed a report with responding officers. She and Sensible Washington will ponder whether to bring harassment charges against the man, whom Sensible Washington is declining to name.

“It’s troubling that a man would attack a woman in such a fashion,” said Philip Dawdy, I-1068 campaign director and an initiative co-author. “We’ve faced far more obstacles than most initiative campaigns ever have, but harassment and assault of one of our volunteers is something we have zero tolerance for. It’s funny too that some in the press have written our campaign off as dead when we’re still actively gathering signatures in the field and now our volunteers are being attacked. That shows that we are very much alive.”

Johnson is currently trying to establish an alternate location to continue her signature gathering vigil through 8 a.m. Friday morning.