Re: Hundreds March for Jailed Marijuana Activist Rev. Roger Christie
Aloha!
There is a great injustice taking place in Hawai`i that threatens all of our cherished liberties .
Rev. Roger Christie, the founder and leader of the Hawai`i Cannabis THC Ministry, has for many years operated the Ministry openly on the bayfront in downtown Hilo, here on the Big Island of Hawai`i. Roger Christie ministered to homeless and indigent Cannabis patients and others. The local police were all aware of his mission and activities -- as were members of the County Council and the Mayor. Whenever cannabis issues were raised in the news, Roger was always the spokesman for religious, medical and private adult use sought after by the news media, locally, nationally and globally . His words reached millions.
On July 8, 2010 the Federal Government -- in the persons of the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), the National Park Service, the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Postal Inspection Service, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Marshals Service, and the U.S. Coast Guard, arrested Roger Christie along with 13 other individuals (collectively being called the Green 14) -- one of whom was his girlfriend and life partner Share E. St. Cyr. They were then flown over 200 miles to Honolulu in a Coast Guard C-130 for their arraignment and detention.
While the 13 were all released with a simple signature on a personal bond, Roger Christie has been denied bail by four separate Federal Courts on the tenuous ground that he is a "danger to the community." He is being held without bond in lieu of trial, now scheduled for April 26, 2011. What "danger" is this harmonious man to the community? In fact, Roger can only speak the truth, and the Federal Government is afraid that people will listen. This is the clearest definition of a “political prisoner”.
Think about it – locked and sealed away until the end of his anticipated criminal sentence - what is our federal government afraid of? Deprived of his Constitutional right to free and open access to his Federal public defender, and sealed off from his many friends and supporters, Roger Christie remains the “happiest person” in the Federal Detention Center because he knows he will someday get his day in court for the ‘last marijuana trial' .
The government has spent literally millions of dollars and more than two years of investigation, including wiretaps on his phones and other surveillance.
The outrageous flaunting of Roger Christie's Constitutional right to free speech and the free exercise of his sincere religious beliefs, by the Obama Federal government, has angered many in our community here in Hawai`i and across the country. Add to this the denial of due process and a speedy trial, and being held without bail before being found guilty of anything in an alleged crime that has zero victims .
In response to this act of political tyranny, we, the friends of Roger Christie and the THC Ministry here in Hilo, Hawai`i, have started a non-profit corporation: The Cannabis Charity Education and Defense Fund. We have managed to raise some small amount of funds to help Roger in his time of need. In order for Roger to be able to have phone, computer and even commissary privileges, he must pay his jailors $600.00 per month!
Through fund raising at several Rallies for Roger, we have passed on almost $1,000. Of course the government confiscated all of his modest savings and liquid assets, leaving Share out of money and alone, having to sell her truck in order to survive and to help Roger while he remains behind bars.
So there he sits in the Federal Detention Center in Honolulu. Since you are still reading this letter you may be asking what you can do to help. There are a few things you can do. One is to write a letter of support to Roger, or just a letter. Sitting in jail without even a chance to go outside can be a trial in itself and letters are a welcome gift.
You can also write your political representatives in the federal government letting them know of this over-the- top flagrant violation of Roger's Constitutional rights. Write a letter to the editor or friends in the media that could bring light to this dark situation. Letters to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser would be especially welcome.
Finally you can donate to Roger Christie's cause. We have paypal methods of money transfer set forth below. He can also receive use of funds sent directly to his prison account to be used to offset the expenses he incurs in jail. This can be done by sending a money order to the address below.
Finally you can donate to Roger Christie's cause. We have paypal methods of money transfer set forth below . He can al so receive use funds sent directly to his prison account to be used to offset the expenses he incurs in jail. This can be done by sending a money order to the address below.
You can donate through:
The-Last-Marijuana-Trial.com The Last Marijuana Trial
CannabisCharity.org Cannabis Charity
or mail your check or money or to:
The Cannabis Charity Education and Defense Fund
P. O. Box 1323
Pahoa, HI 96778
Ph. 808-430-3924 cannabischarityfund@gmail.com
Mahalo and Thank You
The Board Members of the Cannabis Charity Education and Defense Fund
Dr. Yvonne Conner
Gary Zamber, Esq.
Matt Rifkin
Mike Aiello
Paul Sulla, Esq.
Rev. Nancy Harris
Wolf Braun
Aloha!
There is a great injustice taking place in Hawai`i that threatens all of our cherished liberties .
Rev. Roger Christie, the founder and leader of the Hawai`i Cannabis THC Ministry, has for many years operated the Ministry openly on the bayfront in downtown Hilo, here on the Big Island of Hawai`i. Roger Christie ministered to homeless and indigent Cannabis patients and others. The local police were all aware of his mission and activities -- as were members of the County Council and the Mayor. Whenever cannabis issues were raised in the news, Roger was always the spokesman for religious, medical and private adult use sought after by the news media, locally, nationally and globally . His words reached millions.
On July 8, 2010 the Federal Government -- in the persons of the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), the National Park Service, the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Postal Inspection Service, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Marshals Service, and the U.S. Coast Guard, arrested Roger Christie along with 13 other individuals (collectively being called the Green 14) -- one of whom was his girlfriend and life partner Share E. St. Cyr. They were then flown over 200 miles to Honolulu in a Coast Guard C-130 for their arraignment and detention.
While the 13 were all released with a simple signature on a personal bond, Roger Christie has been denied bail by four separate Federal Courts on the tenuous ground that he is a "danger to the community." He is being held without bond in lieu of trial, now scheduled for April 26, 2011. What "danger" is this harmonious man to the community? In fact, Roger can only speak the truth, and the Federal Government is afraid that people will listen. This is the clearest definition of a “political prisoner”.
Think about it – locked and sealed away until the end of his anticipated criminal sentence - what is our federal government afraid of? Deprived of his Constitutional right to free and open access to his Federal public defender, and sealed off from his many friends and supporters, Roger Christie remains the “happiest person” in the Federal Detention Center because he knows he will someday get his day in court for the ‘last marijuana trial' .
The government has spent literally millions of dollars and more than two years of investigation, including wiretaps on his phones and other surveillance.
The outrageous flaunting of Roger Christie's Constitutional right to free speech and the free exercise of his sincere religious beliefs, by the Obama Federal government, has angered many in our community here in Hawai`i and across the country. Add to this the denial of due process and a speedy trial, and being held without bail before being found guilty of anything in an alleged crime that has zero victims .
In response to this act of political tyranny, we, the friends of Roger Christie and the THC Ministry here in Hilo, Hawai`i, have started a non-profit corporation: The Cannabis Charity Education and Defense Fund. We have managed to raise some small amount of funds to help Roger in his time of need. In order for Roger to be able to have phone, computer and even commissary privileges, he must pay his jailors $600.00 per month!
Through fund raising at several Rallies for Roger, we have passed on almost $1,000. Of course the government confiscated all of his modest savings and liquid assets, leaving Share out of money and alone, having to sell her truck in order to survive and to help Roger while he remains behind bars.
So there he sits in the Federal Detention Center in Honolulu. Since you are still reading this letter you may be asking what you can do to help. There are a few things you can do. One is to write a letter of support to Roger, or just a letter. Sitting in jail without even a chance to go outside can be a trial in itself and letters are a welcome gift.
You can also write your political representatives in the federal government letting them know of this over-the- top flagrant violation of Roger's Constitutional rights. Write a letter to the editor or friends in the media that could bring light to this dark situation. Letters to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser would be especially welcome.
Finally you can donate to Roger Christie's cause. We have paypal methods of money transfer set forth below. He can also receive use of funds sent directly to his prison account to be used to offset the expenses he incurs in jail. This can be done by sending a money order to the address below.
Finally you can donate to Roger Christie's cause. We have paypal methods of money transfer set forth below . He can al so receive use funds sent directly to his prison account to be used to offset the expenses he incurs in jail. This can be done by sending a money order to the address below.
You can donate through:
The-Last-Marijuana-Trial.com The Last Marijuana Trial
CannabisCharity.org Cannabis Charity
or mail your check or money or to:
The Cannabis Charity Education and Defense Fund
P. O. Box 1323
Pahoa, HI 96778
Ph. 808-430-3924 cannabischarityfund@gmail.com
Mahalo and Thank You
The Board Members of the Cannabis Charity Education and Defense Fund
Dr. Yvonne Conner
Gary Zamber, Esq.
Matt Rifkin
Mike Aiello
Paul Sulla, Esq.
Rev. Nancy Harris
Wolf Braun
