Tennessee "Drug Tax" Ruled Unconstitutional -- Pot growers exhale in unison

[Fly by night]

With all of the frustrations attendant to Drug Czar Kerlikowski's Fresno brain fart this week re: "marijuana is dangerous and has no medicinal value", it was good to hear this news as I was weeding my town square's flower beds this afternoon. I got up and drove to a friend's house right away. His small patch was busted last year and, a week later, he received a bill for almost $30,000 (with a $5,000 late fee even though it was the first bill he received) for his $500/plant "drug tax". They even levied the tax on a handful of moldy male plants he had pulled and neglected to remove from the patch. My friend will get his money back next week (I hope, I hope).

Now if I only had something to celebrate with, that would make this news even better.
But that would be wrong ..... (not). Now for the news.
-----

'Drug Tax' Ruled Unconstitutional
Tennessee Supreme Court Decision 3-2

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Tennessee Supreme Court ruled Friday that a state law that taxes illegal drugs is unconstitutional.

The court found in 3-2 decision that the law exceeds the state's taxing power because it isn't a tax on "merchants, peddlers and privileges."

But the court also ruled that the law didn't violate constitutional protections against self-incrimination, leaving open the possibility that the General Assembly could develop a new tax on drugs that would be constitutional.

The ruling differed from some of the reasoning of lower courts that struck down the tax because of the self-incrimination issue and because it seeks to generate revenue from illegal activity.

Justice Gary Wade acknowledged in the court's opinion the "enormous burden" using, possessing and selling illegal drugs places on Tennessee.

"Even under these circumstances, however, it is our duty to dispassionately apply the rule of law in a fair and impartial manner, unswayed by genuine public concerns, partisan interests, or fear of criticism."

[Lars39]

1. 'Bout time...that was the craziest law.

[Fly by night]

2. With our legislature, "crazy" is the new black.

[bertman]

3. I have a friend in North Carolina who was busted for growing four plants in his garden.

Get this: the cops DUG UP THE PLANTS ROOT BALL AND ALL and weighed them with all of the dirt intact on the root balls. Then they levied a $13,000-plus fine on him based on the "street value" of the pounds of non-budding plants, stalks, roots, and soil. And, of course, they charged him with manufacture for sale.

This kind of shit is outrageous and should be against the law. No, not growing pot--using draconian laws against otherwise law-abiding, honest, hard-working citizens who mind their own business.

Yet, we still cannot get the Democratic Congress and this administration to sponsor de-criminalization or legalization bills.

[Fly by night]

5. That is standard operating procedure.

In my own case, the total weight of the plants, root-balls, dirt, etc at the time of the raid on my farm (127 pounds) calculated out to be seven to eight pounds of usable cannabis -- using the DEA's own calculations. However, I was still charged with the higher weight, not the reality-based weight. When, after two years, we got the feds to re-weigh the evidence (again, root-balls and all) and the weight dropped to 37 pounds (which would have placed me in a sentencing range that would have allowed one year of probation), the feds pulled a "bait-and-switch" and changed my charge to reflect plant count, not plant weight. (Unfortunately, I had way too many small clones at the time of the raid.) They can do that. In fact, they can do anything they damn well please.

It's all a racket.

[bertman]

6. So much for law and order. How about customize it as you go--to the worst possible

case for the grower?

Sorry to hear about your travails, Fly by night.

[Union Yes]

4. Kough and Recced!