Common Sense for Drug Policy Presents: Feds Launch California Marijuana Eradication Season

The state of California kicked off its annual marijuana eradication season for 2008 by joining with federal authorities on a set of large-scale raids in Humboldt and Mendocino Counties.

The Eureka Times-Standard reported on June 25, 2008 ("Feds Launch Massive Pot Sting") that "Motorcades of government SUVs poured through Humboldt County communities Tuesday as hundreds of federal and state agents began their search for commercial marijuana growing operations in a multi-day investigation the FBI has dubbed "Operation Southern Sweep." The bureau's spokesman Joseph Schadler reported 450 agents with several federal agencies would be serving search warrants and collecting evidence on properties where "corporate marijuana growing operations" were suspected."

According to the Times-Standard, ""We're not here to set policy or interfere with California's compassionate use laws," Schadler said. The FBI is investigating "for-profit and corporate grow operations beyond the scope of 215." Those alleged for-profit growing operations total some 2,000 acres of outdoor cultivation, spread across Southern Humboldt and Northern Mendocino counties, Schadler Advertisement said. Additionally, at least one home in Arcata was raided. Federal agents on the scene of the stings were tight-lipped about their work and would not answer media questions; however the agents were observed searching properties throughout the county. Early Tuesday, Arcata police stood ready to assist as federal agents served one search warrant at a house on Virginia Way in Sunny Brae. The federal agents carried grow lights and other equipment, as well as boxes and bags filled with evidence, into the front yard. In Shelter Cove, at least two homes were broken into by authorities - -- the damaged front doors scarred by police battering rams. In the front yard of a house outside Whitethorn, a pile of uprooted marijuana plants was stacked next to rows of grow lights, a computer and an assortment of growing equipment. One agent stood in the doorway of the house, holding a clear plastic bag filled with cash, as other agents scoured the house for other evidence. Schadler said investigators would be taking DNA evidence, seizing weapons and chopping plants as part of their evidence gathering."

According to The Eureka Reporter, rumors had been circulating about the upcoming raid for days, even getting the dates right. In their June 25th, 2008 article "Secret Raids Not Too Secret," they report that "Wherever the anonymous information on the Humboldt Herald blog came from, the timing and accuracy of the anonymous tips turned out to be surprisingly accurate -- as the federal official who confirmed the operation Tuesday admitted. "There was some accuracy to the rumors and the dates were pinned down pretty well," said FBI Special Agent Joseph Schadler Tuesday. But as the tempo of the rumors picked up pace last week, an in-depth story effort launched by The Eureka Reporter staff to verify the rumors proved difficult, as many local law enforcement agencies didn't respond to calls and comments from federal agencies left more questions than answers. Calls to the Humboldt County Sheriff's Office were directed to the Federal Bureau of Investigation office in San Francisco. On Friday, FBI spokesperson Patti Hansen wouldn't confirm or deny that agents would be in Humboldt County this week, although DEA officials told KMUD radio station that the DEA was planning training exercises in northern Mendocino County set for this week, including flyover missions that might cross over into Humboldt County. "Our DEA is conducting annual training in the area next week," said DEA spokesperson Casey McEnry in an interview Friday. The DEA regularly comes to the area to train with other agencies."

According to The Reporter, "This week's operation that brought 450 federal officers to the county wasn't the first time federal law enforcement agents made an impressive showing in Humboldt County to target marijuana with large-scale, coordinated operations. A surprise, nearly two-week-long marijuana eradication raid in July 1990, called "Operation Green Sweep," by an estimated 200 California National Guard soldiers and Bureau of Land Management agents sealed off approximately 640 acres in the King Range National Conservation Area, according to archived Times-Standard articles. It was reportedly the first operation of its kind in U.S. history in which the military assisted in marijuana eradication."

The Reporter noted that "Residents who witnessed the raids reportedly reacted with outrage and anger at the armed soldiers who pointed rifles at residents, which led to a lawsuit by the Civil Liberties Monitoring Project that resulted in guidelines for drug eradication in Northern California. The operation netted 11 arrests and 1,408 marijuana plants worth $4.2 million."

(Editor's Note: California's Campaign Against Marijuana Planting was created by the state of California's Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement in 1983. The Civil Liberties Monitoring Project, a California-based civil rights organization, was created shortly afterward and joined with NORML in a lawsuit intended to rein in abuses by the law enforcers. For background on the case, see this decision by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, an excerpt of which is below:

"CAMP is a law-enforcement program designed to halt the cultivation of marijuana in California. The program involves the use of airplanes and helicopters to locate areas in which marijuana is grown. Once those areas are located, CAMP agents obtain warrants, enter the areas, and destroy the plants. National Org. for the Reform of Marijuana Laws v. Mullen, 608 F.Supp. 945, 949 (N.D.Cal.1985), remanded for consideration of subsequent authority, 796 F.2d 276 (9th Cir.1986).

NORML contends, and has provided declarations to show, that CAMP engaged in warrantless searches and seizures, arbitrary detentions and destruction of property, invasion of privacy, and otherwise disruptive behavior. Id. at 950. The district court in preliminary injunction proceedings found that CAMP had conducted numerous illegal searches and seizures, may have illegally detained various individuals, and had created a hazard by violating FAA safety regulations. Id. at 965. The district court enjoined CAMP from making warrantless searches and using helicopters in various intrusive and unsafe ways and ordered CAMP to instruct its staff as to the terms of the injunction. Id. at 965-66.

The injunction issued on April 12, 1985. In September 1985, the district court heard NORML's motion to hold CAMP in contempt for violation of the injunction. On September 27, 1985, the district court denied the order to show cause with respect to contempt, but amended the injunction to require (1) that CAMP supervisory personnel meet with CAMP local team leaders to plan raids so as to minimize the risk of violating the injunction, (2) that CAMP local team leaders brief each team member before each raid as to the terms of the injunction and the scope of the raid, and (3) that all helicopter pilots involved in a raid be briefed about the injunction and the flight paths and altitudes that must be maintained to comply with the injunction. The September 27 order also announced the district court's intention to appoint a monitor pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 53(a).1 The September 27 order was not appealed.

On March 6, 1986, the district court filed its Order of Reference to Special Master. The court stated that even though NORML had not shown clear and convincing evidence that CAMP had deliberately violated the injunction, "[t]here was nevertheless credible evidence of violations." The district court continued as follows:

Such evidence of noncompliance with an injunction that first issued nearly a year earlier portends continuing violations, especially when viewed in light of the fast-paced and wide-ranging character of CAMP's surveillance and raid activities, the difficult legal issues involved, and the numerous affirmative measures that the Court has ordered defendants to undertake. These circumstances constitute an "exceptional condition," and call for the appointment of a Special Master (hereafter "Monitor") pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 53 to monitor compliance with the injunction."