THE UNION Articles on
Meth -- October
... meth cases not as simple as it seems, Michael Ferguson, October 15, 2005
Feds arrest 6 for pot, Trina Kleist, October 13, 2005
$24K cash seized in pot raid, Trina Kleist, October 8, 2005
Seven arrests made in pot raid, Trina Kleist, October 7, 2005
Scarce meth help for teens, Michelle Butcher, October 6, 2005
Women call meeting to fight meth, Victoria Covell, October 4, 2005
Meth recovery advocates see hope..., Dave Moller, October 1, 2005
Prosecuting meth cases not as simple as it seems
By Michael Ferguson
October 15, 2005
On Sept. 16, a letter by a concerned citizen appeared in this paper asserting the district attorney was too easy on meth, is sending the wrong message to the community, and is afraid to lose cases. His concerns should be addressed. Since perceptions can become the reality, a few comments are in order.
We have to be cautious about black-and-white statements such as the following: If it appears in a newspaper headline or article, it must be the full story. If people are arrested for a crime, that must be what they did. All cases in which arrests are made can be proven in court beyond a reasonable doubt, but the district attorney doesn't want to take them to trial. Let's have no plea bargaining, just jam the courts and try all the cases where "meth freaks" are charged with something more serious then mere possession, regardless of the strength of the evidence and the costs to the taxpayer.
We need to wait for the dust to settle, the fog to clear, a careful evaluation of the evidence, a defendant's history, and the sentencing rules a court must follow before passing judgment on the defendant and the district attorney's handling of a case.
The attorneys in the Nevada County District Attorney's Office are parents who reside in this community and loathe meth dealers as much as the next person. However, they are also trained professionals who, using the resources available, the law as guidance, and their experience as trial attorneys, must evaluate facts on a case-by-case basis.
The first thing you have to keep in mind is that the manufacture of methamphetamine, sales, and possession for sale of methamphetamine are not mandatory state prison offenses. There are sentencing rules courts must follow when exercising their discretion to grant or deny probation. A defendant can enter a conditional plea to the charges for a reduced sentence without the district attorney's agreement. With that in mind, here is a summary of the district attorney's policy regarding these cases:
Manufacture of methamphetamine: If a case is provable, the defendant must plead to the manufacturing charge with exposure to a possible prison term. The selected prison term is determined by applying Determinate Sentencing Law rules. Since manufacture of methamphetamine is not a mandatory prison offense, the defendant is permitted to argue to the court for a lesser sentence.
Sales and possession for sale of methamphetamine: If a case is provable, the defendant must plead to the sale or possession for sales charges. We look at the facts of the case and the defendant's prior criminal history, if any. If, in the opinion of the office (after a review of the criteria affecting probation listed in California Rules of Court), the defendant would not receive a state prison sentence, we will agree to a 12-month county jail lid as a term and condition of probation. Otherwise, we will not join in a plea for less than what we believe will be the appropriate prison term consistent with the Determinate Sentencing Law rules.
If, because of burden of proof issues, any of the above cases are bargained down to a straight possession case, we usually insist on a waiver from the defendant of the protections of Proposition 36 (i.e., no jail).
The deputy district attorney prosecuting drug cases has good working relations with the members of the Narcotics Task Force. When cases are plea-bargained, he works with them to get a "buy in" on the disposition of a case. You need to keep in mind that the standard for arresting a person - probable cause - is far less than the standard for a criminal conviction, beyond a reasonable doubt.
Between January 2002 and August 2005, seven defendants charged with manufacturing methamphetamine had jury trials. Of those, five were convicted. Of the five convicted (one of the five was actually convicted of Penal Code 11383, possession of precursors), two got a prison sentence and the other three got probation and jail sentences.
Since 2002, of the remaining 20 persons convicted of Penal Code 11379.6 through their pleas, seven went to prison, two went to the California Rehabilitation Center, and the rest got a probationary sentence with jail time. So, you can see that with regard to meth labs, the percentage of state prison sentences following a jury trial (40 percent) is not substantially less than the percentage of state prison sentences following a plea bargain (35 percent).
Yes, a judgment call is made regarding the strength of a case. However, that call is based on the attorney's experience and input from the officers who investigated the case.
For example, let's take a possession for sale case tried before a jury in May of 2004 (Nevada County Superior Court Case No. SF03-331A). The defendant was found in possession of two baggies of methamphetamine. One baggy weighed 4.36 grams; the other baggy weighed 7.93 grams. He was also found in possession of a cutting agent, a scale and a pay/owe sheet. The defendant denied the drugs were possessed for purposes of sale. He was hoping for a conviction of simple possession, making him eligible for Proposition 36 and no jail. My office believed a conviction was a reasonable expectation given these facts, so the case was tried by a jury. The jury hung - 10/2 for conviction. That case was factually stronger than many of the possession for sales cases that do get bargained down to simple possession, a probationary sentence with less jail time, and a waiver of a Proposition 36 sentence. That defendant later pleaded to possession for sale for an agreed sentence of probation with six months county jail and dismissal of other drug possession charges.
A review of defendants charged by the district attorney's office with possession for sale of methamphetamine between January 2003 and August 2005 shows the following: Fifty defendants have been charged with that offense whose pleas or trails are not still pending. Of those 50, 31 pleaded to possession for sale or a related drug-dealing charge precluding Proposition 36; five pleaded down to a possession of methamphetamine charge with a waiver of Proposition 36 and received jail time as a condition of probation; two pleaded down to a charge that was not drug-related; four pleaded to possession of methamphetamine and got Proposition 36; six had their cases dismissed; two received Proposition 36 because of court rulings that they possessed for personal use.
Of the six dismissals, one was dismissed because the case was referred to the U.S. Attorney for federal prosecution. Most of the remaining dismissals were of co-defendants in possession for sales cases where another co-defendant pleaded to the charge and there was an issue regarding the sufficiency of the evidence.Please keep in mind, I am not playing the blame game here. The Narcotics Task Force members are dedicated officers who do a good job, given the time and resources they can devote to a given case. The deputy district attorney who handles most of the drug cases has been with the office almost 20 years. He has many years of experience prosecuting drug cases and has attended many seminars on the investigation and prosecution of drug cases. If he considers pleading a possession for sale case down to a simple possession case, he consults with the NTE officers involved.
The attorneys who handled the cases I have referred to in this opinion piece and I stand willing to talk about these case dispositions and the reasons for them with anyone who is concerned about whether or not the Nevada County District Attorney's Office is assertively prosecuting dealers of methamphetamine. Please consider this offer if you have concerns about whether or not this office takes seriously the prosecution of methamphetamine dealers. After reviewing the facts and discussing a case with an attorney, you are free to draw your own conclusions.
What about the demand side of the methamphetamine epidemic? Well, that calls for another opinion piece at another time. For example, any bill sponsored by the California District Attorney's Association to make possession of methamphetamine a nonreducible felony offense (making it just as serious as the possession of cocaine or heroin) never gets out of any legislative committee.
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Michael Ferguson is Nevada County's district attorney.
Agencies raid 'commercial operation'
Trina Kleist,
trinak@theunion.com
October 13, 2005
Federal agents teamed up with officers from four counties in a day-long raid on several properties on San Juan Ridge and elsewhere, resulting in six people being arrested on marijuana-related crimes Wednesday.
Officials also seized 30 to 40 pounds of processed and packaged marijuana, 70 to 80 mature plants and 12 firearms.
Nevada County Sheriff Keith Royal said the properties were involved in a "large commercial operation" that authorities had been monitoring for some time.
"These individuals were doing it for profit," Royal said. "Our interest here is not to go after people who are complying with the guidelines agreed upon by the district attorney's office and the sheriff's (Narcotics) Task Force for growing marijuana for medical purposes."
Investigators arrested Don Sauer, 50; Claudia Sauer, 55; Joseph Sauer, 26; Katie Sauer, 25; Jamison Starr, 27; and Aaron Beyer, 30, all of North San Juan. The relationships among those arrested could not be determined. They were booked into Sacramento County Jail, but the charges were not immediately available.
"Several of these individuals have a long history of contact with law enforcement," including for violent offenses, Royal said. The investigation arose through information provided to the Drug Enforcement Administration by an informant, he added.
Agents from the DEA's offices in Sacramento and San Francisco led the raid. Agencies that assisted were the Grass Valley Police Department; sheriffs' offices from Nevada, Yuba, El Dorado and Placer counties; and the Yuba County Narcotics Task Force.
The California Highway Patrol and DEA flew helicopters overhead to coordinate the operation, in which seven search warrants were served at the same time. Properties searched included addresses on Fawnbrook Road, along Highway 49 and on Pleasant Valley Road.
The DEA will continue to investigate the operation's finances. Investigators found evidence that those arrested had been paying cash to buy and maintain such items as boats and jet skis, Royal said.
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To contact staff writer Trina Kleist, e-mail trinak@theunionl.com or call 477-4231.
Trina Kleist,
trinak@theunion.com
October 8, 2005
Nevada County investigators seized marijuana and more than $24,000 in cash during a search Friday of a South County home connected to a San Juan Ridge garden, Sgt. Bill Evans of the Sheriff's Narcotics Task Force said.
Investigators found several pounds of marijuana in various forms. The cash was mostly in $100 bills, along with scales and packaging material, Evans said.
The home is the residence of Devin M. Torres, 19. The search stemmed from a raid Thursday on the San Juan Ridge property owned by Torres' father, Dionisio "Dan" Torres Sr.
In Thursday's raid on that property, deputies seized 69 marijuana plants, about a dozen firearms and nearly $6,000 in cash.
Investigators also arrested the Torres men and four more people on suspicion of illegal marijuana cultivation, sale, conspiracy and firearms violations.
They are: Dionisio Torres Sr., 54, owner of the property where marijuana was being grown on Cruzon Grade and Tyler-Foote Crossing roads; Norma Jean Whittaker, 45, Torres' common-law wife; Torres' son Devin M. Torres, 19; Torres' brother David W. Torres, 56; Harold L. Hinkins, 22, of Grass Valley; and Hinkins' brother Andrew L. Hinkins, 20, also of Grass Valley.
Dionisio Torres also was charged with having an unregistered Colt-type AR-15 assault rifle.
David Torres also was charged with possession of a rifle with a stock and barrel sawed off shorter than allowed by law. Harold Hinkins was not charged with the crime, as had been previously reported.
All were charged with being armed while committing a felony because investigators found loaded firearms "everywhere," Evans said. "There were guns in the garage, in an upper apartment, in the R.V., hanging from the trees where the pot was being dried and in the main house. And we found another one today" at the Harmony Lane residence, he said.
Most of the weapons were found loaded, he said.
All but Whittaker remained in custody Friday afternoon.
The growers had six medical marijuana recommendations.
County guidelines permit two pounds of processed marijuana for medical needs. Those guidelines allow for 10 plants to produce the two pounds of finished colas.
Guidelines are complicated, however, by doctor recommendations for more than the allowed amount. Growers may contact the Narcotics Task Force at 478-7987 for help determining whether a garden is within permissible limits.
On the San Juan Ridge property, deputies found 98 growing plants. Harvested colas hung from wires strung between the trees in six shaded areas of the property. More dried and clipped colas ready for manicuring sat in large plastic storage bins in various places, Evans said.
In addition, investigators found several half-pound packages of manicured colas in self-closing freezer bags.
"It was everywhere," Evans said, estimating the finished product of the crop already harvested could have topped 30 pounds. In addition, the 98 growing plants contained many more pounds of colas ready to be harvested.
Investigators left 29 plants to fulfill the growers' medicinal needs.
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To contact staff writer Trina Kleist, e-mail trinak@theunion.com or call 477-4231.
Seven arrests made in pot raid
Trina Kleist,
trinak@theunion.com
October 7, 2005
Seven people were arrested Thursday afternoon in North San Juan on suspicion of illegal marijuana cultivation, Nevada County Sheriff's officials said.
Members of the Nevada County Sheriff's Narcotics Task Force found marijuana in various stages of growing, drying and packaging in different sizes, along with scales. At least 20 pounds of dried, trimmed buds also were found at the property at the corner of Tyler Foote Crossing and Cruzon Grade roads.
Nevada County guidelines allow 10 plants or two pounds of processed buds for each medical recommendation from a doctor. Medicinal growers may raise marijuana for five local recommendations and one out-of-area recommendation, Evans said.
"They've got six recommendations that are valid, but way more dope than they're supposed to have," Sheriff's Lt. Ron Smith said of Thursday's bust.
Those arrested were: Harold Lee Hinkins, 22, of Grass Valley; Andrew Hinkins, 20; David Torres, 56; Dionisio Torres, 54; Devin Torres, 19; Norma Whittacker, 45; and Andrea Marzolla, 19.
It was not clear late Thursday how much of the crop would be allowed to remain with the growers. Narcotics investigators were still on the scene in the evening, along with a member of the county District Attorney's office to determine the amount, Smith said.
Harold Hinkins, a tree-trimmer, was booked on suspicion of illegal cultivation, possession for sale, conspiracy and a firearms violation. He had a .22-caliber rifle with the stock and barrel sawed off shorter than legal limits, and an unregistered Colt AR-15 assault rifle, Smith said.
Charges for the others arrested were not clear late Thursday, as most of the suspects were still being booked into Wayne Brown Correctional Facility.
The garden included plants of the variety Cannabis sequoia, which produces unusually large buds. A single plant can produce at least two pounds of trimmed cola, Smith said.
Deputies also found items considered evidence of hashish production, Smith said.
As deputies were transporting some of the suspects, they asked them what medical problems they had that would require marijuana. "They said 'nothing,'" Smith said.One of those arrested told officers that "he read in The Union that people were getting arrested for child endangerment, so instead of drying the stuff in the house, he had it strung up in the woods around the house," Smith said.
trinak@theunion.com or call 477-4231.
The child-endangerment charge was filed in the case of David Fortner and Christine Rutherford, arrested in late September and reportedly found to have marijuana drying throughout his house, including over a baby's bed.
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To contact staff writer Trina Kleist, e-mail
By Michelle Butcher
October 6, 2005
I am just about at my soul's end with all of the slammed doors I've come across in the past two weeks of trying to get help for my 17-year-old sons "drug addiction." Two and a half weeks ago my 17-year-old son came to me, upset and in tears, "Mom, I need help, I am addicted to street drugs, I can't get well, I've tried, I'm afraid of the withdrawals, and what I've seen, I want to stop, but I can't ... is there a place where I can go get de-toxed and not hurt, and not want the drug anymore?"
I of course said, "Yes there are many places ..." Little did I know, that was all a farce ...? Placer County, Napa Valley, Nevada County, Santa Cruz I could go on for a long time. Where? Where are these so-called 'De-Tox For Teens' places? Where, when the children cry out for help, they are received with open arms? Please if anyone knows, anyone really knows, please let it be known to me.
Michelle Butcher, Colfax
Women call meeting to fight meth
By Victoria Covell
October 4, 2005
There is no doubt about it. Our peaceful, friendly mountain community, far away from the Pacific Ocean, is, nevertheless, receiving a direct hit from an approaching tsunami ... one that will flood our small community as assuredly as Hurricane Katrina consumed New Orleans. This impending disaster is not however, natural ... it is man-made ... and right here in homes hidden all across our county. And what is this approaching disaster? It is the drug methamphetamine, more commonly known as meth. This drug is presently and pervasively responsible for destroying individuals, families and businesses; and if we do not rise together to this cause ... our community will be in imminent danger of being overcome. Citizens, it is time to take our "heads out of the sand" and, rising to our Nevada County mountaintops, cry out the wake-up Call to Action!
On Nov. 4, at 6:45 p.m., in the Community Room of the Madelyn Helling County Library, the local chapter of Gather the Women is presenting "A Women's Town Hall on Meth: Education and Activation." The event is co-sponsored by Northern Mines Business and Professional Women, Domestic Violence & Sexual Assault Coalition, the Grass Valley and Nevada City Chambers of Commerce and The Union. This meeting of concerned mothers, grandmothers, teachers, professional women and just plain "good neighbors" will explore, with a panel of knowledgeable women, ideas on how we might keep our community safe.
And why just women? Because it is the women who are most deeply affected ... women all across our county, beaten and attacked by meth users. In our own community: the young mother and wife who lost her husband - a UPS driver - killed by a man "high" on meth. The local woman kidnapped while using a downtown ATM, and later raped, by a man on meth. And most recently, my own neighbor, attacked in her beautiful historic Victorian home in a murder attempt by a meth user, who then proceeded to burn her house down. And then there are the many unknown, unseen women who live daily in fear of their security by a violent family member who is addicted. And if these women are not safe, are any of us? And please, don't kid yourself that because you don't associate with a certain economic strata, you are safe, because unlike other drugs, meth often induces extremely violent, irrational behavior.
This drug is simply evil, prompting normal individuals who might otherwise be kind, productive citizens, (your child or friend even) to come out into the streets and, tragically, endanger us all.
I have been told by some - fearful for my safety - that this work is too dangerous to take on. But I choose instead to listen to my heart, which tells me that this invasive danger is too dangerous to not take on. I have also been told by some that we shouldn't publicly air our darkest county secret ... that in doing so we could endanger our popularity as a tourist spot or even perhaps reduce our real estate values. I say: to not publicly expose an impending disaster, to not cry out a "Call to Action," is to definitely and personally endanger us all. It is to endanger the mother (perhaps your neighbor) attacked by her partner in her home. It is to endanger the children who live literally abandoned in meth homes right here in our county. It is to endanger the firefighter who has to fight a fire caused by a meth lab explosion (where meth is manufactured, "cooked" out of common ingredients, highly volatile, that you can buy at any drug store.) And just as important, it is to endanger the life of the meth user. Can we, as women of honor, stand by and let this invasive epidemic consume our community?
Neighbors, methamphetamine is not only a hidden epidemic that is surging across our nation, it is a growing tsunami about to inundate our own little village! Make no mistake about it ... meth is a killer. Ask any law enforcement person, ask any firefighter, and they will grimly confirm. Meth will destroy the peace of our mountain community as assuredly as the Southeast Asia tsunami devastated nations, as assuredly as Hurricane Katrina destroyed Gulf Coast communities. Women of Nevada County it is time to stop cringing, at best in apathy, at worst in fear, and to step out into the challenge of taking back our community. It is time to exercise our natural rights as citizens to live in dignity and safety. One woman alone may not accomplish much, but united we are unstoppable. Come join us at the Women's Town Hall on Nov. 4 and get educated and activated. It is time to take back our town.
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Victoria Covell is the author of "The Evolutionary Woman of the 21st Century."
Meth recovery advocates see hope on horizon
Town hall meeting 'a great step'
Dave Moller,
davem@theunion.com
October 1, 2005
Two distraught parents were tailing their daughter around western Nevada County Thursday night, trying to figure out how to rescue her from the ravages of methamphetamine and the man who hooked her on it.
They were simultaneously tuned into KVMR 89.5 FM, which was broadcasting a town hall meeting about the drug and what can be done to quash the epidemic use of it here. Seizing the moment, they called in to the show for answers.
An inmate at the county jail took the opportunity to call in and ask how he could get help staying clean after his release.
Such questions can seem daunting on a day-to-day basis, but this week's forum illustrated that the answers were readily available.
"Come see us," said Warren Daniels, director of Community Recovery Resources.
His group finds ways for addicts to clean up. Callers were also urged to contact Progress House, the county's live-in drug recovery residence, and to attend Narcotics or Alcoholics Anonymous.
"We take care of our own," said Bob Rogers, a forum panelist and ex-con once dependant on methamphetamine. Rogers has been clean three years because of treatment in the county's drug court and CORR's new alumni association.
"Come to a 12-step meeting, and you will get help," Rogers said.
Richard Wilcox handles drug court cases for the county public defender's office and urged all meth users to utilize that option if they end up in the legal system.
"It can be treated, and we have a lot of successes," Wilcox said. "Addiction is a disease and not a personality conflict."
CORR family counselor Jim Burnett told meth addicts, "You are not alone and you don't have to do it on your own."
While panel members said success stories already exist and hope is already here, more money is needed to keep the momentum. They suggested county government and business leaders need to pitch in.
"All of my clients want help, but there's insufficient help because there's not enough money (for treatment centers and care)," Wilcox said. "If a program is less than 90 days, it's a waste of money."
Wilcox said more money might be coming from the federal government, because President Bush is a fan of drug courts.
"But we need the community at large to help pay for the treatment," Wilcox said.
Wilcox said Friday that the forum "was a good start and promising."
"They played it over the air at the Wayne Brown Correctional Facility to all the inmates and it was well-received by them," Wilcox said.
Despite feeling successful with Thursday night's town hall, drug-recovery advocates said it was important to keep pushing the discussion forward.
"It was a great step, but great steps are only as good as the next step," Daniels said. "The next time, I'd like to see more community members there. We're in this for the long run."
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