T
The420Guy
Guest
Lisa Schwarz's long list of troubles was shortened last week when prosecutors
dropped criminal charges against her and her husband, Craig, for cultivating
marijuana.
Using Proposition 215, the voter-approved medical marijuana act, as a defense
against the charges, Schwarz, 44, of Camarillo, was able to convince Deputy
District Attorney William Redmond that the 68 plants found at her home were
necessary to her survival after a serious back injury she endured as a nurse
left her 79 percent disabled.
But the victory is bittersweet for Schwarz and others who opt for medical
marijuana treatment rather than traditional prescription painkillers that
Schwarz claims, in her case, are ineffective and debilitating. In order to
live as normal a life as she can, Schwarz prefers medical marijuana and a
home-based business over disability benefits and a morphine pump.
But because of the ambiguity of the ballot measure passed by voters in 1996,
the smoking, drinking and eating of marijuana with a doctor's recommendation
still carries those who choose that path dangerously close to the front line
of the war on drugs.
The Schwarzes learned that lesson late one night 18 months ago when a dozen
Ventura County narcotics SWAT team officers wearing black fatigues and
carrying assault rifles held her family at gunpoint while her Camarillo home
of 22 years was, as she described it, ransacked.
"They came blasting into my house, it was unbelievable," said Schwarz, who
lived with her adult children and a 3-year-old grandchild at the time. "I
heard my daughter scream. When I walked into the living room, there was a gun
12 inches from (my granddaughter's) head. I picked her up and told them it
was OK, the plants were mine. I knew why they were there, I just never
expected them to come like that."
Pointing a gun at any child is not proper procedure any time or place and
allegations of such are treated seriously, said Chief Deputy Dante Honorico.
But search warrant operations, especially for cultivation and possession of
drugs, are regarded as hazardous operations.
"Our people, when they go in serving a warrant, are ready for anything,"
Honorico said. "Even if you have good intelligence information, you cannot
always rely on what's going to happen after you knock on the door. We are
always ready for anything, just in case there is resistance from inside the
house."
Schwarz always feared that growing marijuana, though she had a doctor's
permission and copies of the law posted at her home, would attract negative
attention. But she said she never dreamed she would be degraded and
dehumanized for six hours, then hauled off to jail and strip-searched --
twice.
"It was very disgusting," Schwarz said, her voice cracking as she broke down
in tears. "I always assumed that when people were accused of something they
weren't treated badly until after they were convicted.
But it was like I was a criminal. They hated that I could grow marijuana
legally."
People from all over the state and a dozen from Ventura County alone called
to offer support and share similar experiences or their fears of being
mistaken for drug dealers.
"I feel like it's a drug war going on and they've blurred the lines," Schwarz
said. "They've blurred the line and they're sucking in sick people. I feel
bad for anybody who has to be part of this system. I hope our attorney
general, Bill Lockyer, will show some leadership and come up with some
guidelines for law enforcement."
By Tina Carlson
Correspondent
Ventura Co (CA) Star
-- Tina Carlson's e-mail address is carlsonw@gte.net.
dropped criminal charges against her and her husband, Craig, for cultivating
marijuana.
Using Proposition 215, the voter-approved medical marijuana act, as a defense
against the charges, Schwarz, 44, of Camarillo, was able to convince Deputy
District Attorney William Redmond that the 68 plants found at her home were
necessary to her survival after a serious back injury she endured as a nurse
left her 79 percent disabled.
But the victory is bittersweet for Schwarz and others who opt for medical
marijuana treatment rather than traditional prescription painkillers that
Schwarz claims, in her case, are ineffective and debilitating. In order to
live as normal a life as she can, Schwarz prefers medical marijuana and a
home-based business over disability benefits and a morphine pump.
But because of the ambiguity of the ballot measure passed by voters in 1996,
the smoking, drinking and eating of marijuana with a doctor's recommendation
still carries those who choose that path dangerously close to the front line
of the war on drugs.
The Schwarzes learned that lesson late one night 18 months ago when a dozen
Ventura County narcotics SWAT team officers wearing black fatigues and
carrying assault rifles held her family at gunpoint while her Camarillo home
of 22 years was, as she described it, ransacked.
"They came blasting into my house, it was unbelievable," said Schwarz, who
lived with her adult children and a 3-year-old grandchild at the time. "I
heard my daughter scream. When I walked into the living room, there was a gun
12 inches from (my granddaughter's) head. I picked her up and told them it
was OK, the plants were mine. I knew why they were there, I just never
expected them to come like that."
Pointing a gun at any child is not proper procedure any time or place and
allegations of such are treated seriously, said Chief Deputy Dante Honorico.
But search warrant operations, especially for cultivation and possession of
drugs, are regarded as hazardous operations.
"Our people, when they go in serving a warrant, are ready for anything,"
Honorico said. "Even if you have good intelligence information, you cannot
always rely on what's going to happen after you knock on the door. We are
always ready for anything, just in case there is resistance from inside the
house."
Schwarz always feared that growing marijuana, though she had a doctor's
permission and copies of the law posted at her home, would attract negative
attention. But she said she never dreamed she would be degraded and
dehumanized for six hours, then hauled off to jail and strip-searched --
twice.
"It was very disgusting," Schwarz said, her voice cracking as she broke down
in tears. "I always assumed that when people were accused of something they
weren't treated badly until after they were convicted.
But it was like I was a criminal. They hated that I could grow marijuana
legally."
People from all over the state and a dozen from Ventura County alone called
to offer support and share similar experiences or their fears of being
mistaken for drug dealers.
"I feel like it's a drug war going on and they've blurred the lines," Schwarz
said. "They've blurred the line and they're sucking in sick people. I feel
bad for anybody who has to be part of this system. I hope our attorney
general, Bill Lockyer, will show some leadership and come up with some
guidelines for law enforcement."
By Tina Carlson
Correspondent
Ventura Co (CA) Star
-- Tina Carlson's e-mail address is carlsonw@gte.net.
