FIGHTING BACK GRAND JURY INVESTIGATIONS, MORE SUITS IN THE WORKS IN PLACER DRUG CASES The Placer County Sheriff's Department's controversial marijuana raids on more than 50 residences throughout Sacramento and Placer counties may soon become an issue before a Placer County Grand Jury. Individuals targeted by the raids said they plan to file formal complaints as soon as a month from now alleging wrongdoing by Placer's narcotics deputies involved in a two-year drug sting aimed at busting indoor pot gardens that used hydroponics. [continues 1584 words]
Did Placer County Cops Lie Under Oath To Get Marijuana Convictions? Early in the morning last July 1, Lyman "Sandy" Sanborn and his wife, Grace, were jolted out of bed by the loud banging of the Placer County Sheriff Department's Special Operations Unit. When Sanborn opened the front door of his Roseville residence, he was literally knocked backwards. A group of deputies charged into his home, brandished guns and yelled out "warrant search." Sanborn's 76-year-old wife sat terrified on the couch in the family's living room as police placed handcuffs on her 78-year-old husband, her grown son and her grown granddaughter. [continues 4779 words]
ROTTING FOR POT Richard Maughs Languishes In Jail For Growing Medical Pot A stocky man with deep wrinkles in his forehead and dark, friendly eyes peers through the sheet of tempered glass that separates prisoners from visitors in the Sacramento County Main Jail. He pleads his case on the telephone receiver he holds to his face. Richard Sam Maughs, a former Siskiyou County wrecking yard owner, is there because he planted two large marijuana gardens in rural areas of Siskiyou for the fledgling Redding Cannabis Buyers Club. [continues 2529 words]
While more than two years have passed since California's voters approved the growing and smoking of marijuana as a legitimate medicine for sick people, the Clinton administration and much of the state's law enforcement community is still behaving as if Proposition 215 didn't exist. Dozens of medical marijuana patients have been spied on, arrested, jailed as if they were criminals. Many of the arrests have occurred in the Sacramento region, particularly in Placer County where narcs appear to be specifically targeting these patients. Some doctors are now being investigated by the Medical Board of California for recommending cannabis, actions that were first exposed by an SN&R story on Feb. 18. [continues 356 words]
