This sort of crime could be eliminated if we would end marijuana prohibition. Visit http://yes390.org to legalize marijuana for responsible adult use.

Theres no such thing as "responsible drug use".

ABC - Why do you support this criminal. Even if pot were legal, he is clearly evading taxes (allegedly). You are most likely a liberal...doesn't it really irk you to think that some guy is not only a filthy rich millionaire that worked to achieve his wealth, but he did it without paying 60% tax rates on his dough?

If he had made that money legally, and paid taxes on it, I would not have a problem with him. But you, as a clearly liberal thinker, should be calling for his head.

YS..the state could have used this guy to produce their bumper legal crops .... that they want to levy a huge tax on to increase tax revenues. We finally locate and find a successful entrepreneur and the first thing we do is lock him up and steal all his property...no wonder all the jobs and companies are leaving the State of California. If we had a progressive flat consumption tax system..then we would not care what people did.. with any of the money they made...in fact we wouldn't even care if they were legal citizens. We would want all visitors in our country to earn and then spend money here in large quantities. There just exists so much that is wrong with the way we do things today...its hard to understand how we got this far as a country...oh wait... we are what.. now about 80 trillion short in our current liabilities and obligations. Apparently what we are doing now... is not working. Maybe we should just blame all the pot smokers from the the 60's for all our problems we have today....how old were you in the 60's YS?

It appears to be a losing battle.....as I see it. You can hide for the truth but that does not make it go away. No defense intended.

ABC390, we could eliminate another crime, bank robberies by decriminalizing the action, maybe we could decriminalize rape next, how about kidnapping, that would set the Garridos free and save countless taxpayer's dollars.

Want to do away with criminal acts, just decriminalize them, then we would live in Utopia with the added bonus of not needing cops around to harass poor innocent citizens.

Loomisresident that was a very common sense way of putting it. What has happened to Logic

Well, the State got what they were going after...the land!

Yosemite - Perhaps if we change the laws, guys like this will pay taxes and the State will get the money. This guy, most likely, would not have minded paying his fair share, but as the laws are now written, it will cost the State just to penalize him and it's obvious his talents in horticulture could be put to better use.

For someone who spends alot of time shouting about your own money, I am suprised you would attack him for being a "filthy rich millionaire."

Loomis - Pot smokers are too "laid back" to go out robbing and raping. You have bought into "the lie"

Observer...ummm doesn't sound like you. ;-) But you hit on the real solution here. Legalize pot, let's all partake and we will all be too stoned to commit crimes. But also too stoned to work and generate income to pay taxes on.

BTW, how are you? I tried e-mailing you.

There are many conscientious users that lead productive, working lives. Why do you all think that everyone will just sit around smoking all day long? I'm sure some would, but we have that problem with alcohol and it's legal! At least if it is legalized, it would be 'controlled' to some extent. And the Government would reap the rewards in tax revenue. People that would want to grow, would need to get a license to do so, with limits on how much. 100 plants cost X, 200 plants cost 2X, etc. Those that object so blantantly have probably never even tried it! You do not 'lose control' like with alcohol. The worst that would happen is you would go to sleep.

I've known a few pot smokers who are highly productive, intelligent people. I've tried it and it makes me unproductive, so I haven't touched it in 20 years. To me, the bottom line is that I won't smoke pot, but as a free man, I'd like to make that decison for myself rather than have the government make it for me. I guess if you feel that the government is here to think for you and make your decisions for you, you might feel otherwise.

Gail - I'm ok. It's been a crazy and hectic week so I have just been taking the path of least resistance. Havn't checked the email, but I will.

No - I don't smoke pot. Tried it, but didn't like it. My observations tell me it does not enhance all that we can be but surely it has it's place in society, just not for everyone. I think it truely has medicinal purposes but like any medicine, should not be taken for recreation or escape. It may have some good benefits for people with some brain disorders and perhaps be a far better alternative than some of the extremely potent psychotropic drugs that are used. We all can be productive in this society and contribute, but not all will be paying taxes. There is value to every man's contribution...

auburntom - ditto

The fool should have paid his taxes. I guess he never heard of Al Capone.

Pharma just HATES competition

Loomis you may be on to something...all I see is laws "all around me" to follow inside my supposed free country? I wonder just how many laws have been eliminated from the law books over say the past 100 years of so. If you could... please come up with the number that have actually been eliminated for us. Like everyone in the 70's I too tried it and did not like it and now I do not even drink alcohol...yet I knew someone that did a bag a day and he still does and he now makes over 150K a year + stock options working for Apple. That would put him in the top 10% bracket of income earners...now would it not. I am not for it and I am not against it...but I do not want to live in a police state where the government has the right to tell me what I can or can not take and do with my own personal body...my body belongs to me...my body does not belong to the police state that appears to be on the way and I am not the states personal property..and therefor I will never take a state mandated flu shot for instance.

We all need to understand change is a rapidly expanding concept that needs acceptance within institutions in order to be educated reasonably within a society. I am now addicted to coffee...so who new those little beans where so dangerous....just a little hyper focused these days....

Obewan, I doubt that any laws are wiped off the books once enacted. I personally don't care one way or the other about pot. I do get a big kick out of people that say decriminalization is the end of the problem. Today we decriminalize pot, tomorrow what will it be? That's why I say to decriminalize all crimes then we would all be law abiding citizens and there would be no need for Law Enforcement, of course I say that tongue in cheek. I really don't see the difference between a pot head and a bar fly, they can both be a danger to themselves or others if stoned or drunk enough. The other thing we have to remember is that the THC content is much higher today than in the 60s, up to 10 times more.

I believe some of the posters here are missing an essential fact, this action is not by the state authorities - it is a Federal prosecution with the indictment in Federal District Court.

As far as marijuana use goes, I note the following: In conversations with local law enforcement, they noted one thing - when they deal with drunks, the question of violence is large in their minds. On the other hand, not one could point to an incident where someone who was only high on pot at the time, was violent. Further, drunk drivers more often than not, also speed while driving (velocity, not the drug). On the other hand, pot users tend to drive slower than the posted limits - no idea why.

Remember that alcohol is a drug - it is a central nervous system depressant. Many people abuse alcohol, and many of those are a burden on the health care system, and run through the legal system for DUI, domestic violence, etc.

Do you like drunks any more than stoners? All other things being equal - the old saw about pot being a stepping stone to other drugs having long ago been disproved - why don't we legalize and tax pot sales? Do you know of anyone who is just waiting for pot to be legalized before using it? If they want to use it, they do so now, but at the cost of feeding criminal cartels in Mexico and here in the States.

Just saying.

We have many problems and mixed signals being sent to the younger generations. Laws are being written to control us all and often these specific laws are forged for the making of huge profits... for a select few. No.... I think we can do much better with our educational systems and with the use of honesty in the overall understanding that "yes or no" in our lives.... is all about personal choices. Young people are much more intelligent than we give credit to.. and often they know more about the realities of life than we do. Our role is to provide information and theirs is to decipher ifr the information is honest and truthful...and as a blank slate...they know when we are lying and they know when we are telling the truth. It is then up to them.. to determine the correct choices. We can not make the choices for them....and all choices have certain consequences that go with them. So when Dad says do not drink.. he had better not have a beer in his hand. When a mother says don't take pills and drugs...she had better not be running to the medicine cabinet 5 times a day...popping pills. As adults we see no problem with the broadcasting of sex all over our TV shows from 6pm-8pm...but pray forbid our children want to do and or experience the same thing. Mom and Dad then wonder why their child is now pregnant or just had an abortion and or is all hopped on pills. Children learn by the examples we set........freedom of choice is what made this country great and if we loose it?

Curious wording on the charges - "manufacturing marijuana". I wonder how one manufactures a plant. I've alway just grown them. I can totally see "manufacturing" meth or cocaine - that requires, I assume, some sort of recipe and blending of ingredients, & multiple steps. Whereas, this is a plant that grows in the soil... nothing "manufactured" about it, really. Pretty natural if you ask me.

And LoomisResident - It amazes me that people can even begin to put a "crime" like growing marijuana in the same class as burglary and rape. Burglary involves breaking into someone's home and stealing what is not yours causing the residents to lose their belongings as well as their sense of security within their own home. Rape is a brutal victimization of an individual that causes lifelong physical and emotional scarring. How can you relate growing marijuana to those crimes? Can you tell me specifically how (aside from the tax issue) Mr. Hilkey harmed someone with his pot farm? He did not steal from anyone. He did not harm anyone. He did not cause anyone lifelong scarring or physical trauma.

And let's not forget that alcohol was one illegal, and cocaine and herion were once legal and sold over the counter. We as a society are ever evolving and updating our outdated laws, as any healthy society should. I think it's time we paid close attention to the facts on this issue; time to ignore the "Reefer Madness"-style propaganda that has been forced upon us for far too long.

wclough, obewan & NiavJoyce

Thank for your very well thought out replies and those are the same conclusions that a large portion of our population has reached. Unfortunately however, it's not about the "War on Drugs" or violent crime or saving kids or anything else. It's about profit. Money. The drug war is probably our country's largest economy. Politicians, judges, lawyers, police officers, deputy sheriffs, jailers, prison guards, social workers, probation and parole officers, a third of the military, Customs, FBI, DEA, IRS, U.S. Marshals. The drug war makes these people’s house and car payments at least in part. The drug war is about continuing to expend taxpayer resources on an issue that will never go away. They'll never legalize it. There's too much money to be made fighting it and too many jobs at stake to make it legal. But it is what they should do, they just won't. It's who they are.

Loomis - People today, would probably throw the stuff away that I once smoked :-)

wclough - I believe that many people go to drugs and alcohol because of underlying issues. We have much more physiological mental health issues today than we had 40 or 50 years ago. The industrial age has brought many chemicals, bad food and pollution with it. There are studies on epigenetics now that are producing shocking information about the genetic damage caused by the Great Depression (famine) on female babies, in-utero. The evidence is produced in the grandchildren. Inability to handle stress is a huge by-product and it may explain why some people turn to self-medication. Drug addicts and alcoholics never set out with that as their goals.

Momof11 - You are so, so right. The "War on Drugs" is barely a war at all. Those who believe it is can not think otherwise and that is why it will never change

"There are many conscientious users that lead productive, working lives." Polly there are many people that are unemployed, pot has been one of the causes as no one wants to hire a person that can be perceived as being lazy and that is the end product of those using the substance. Alcohol, pot and other "recreational drugs" are used for escape from reality. If your reality is that bad find something or somewhere else to do or reside.

pollywog, have you seen the problems associated with alcohol use!? Citing legal alcohol as a reason why marijuana should be legalized is like using the fires across this state to illustrate why we should allow more fireworks in national forests.

Realist: Alcohol feeds the agressiveness in people; pot makes people docile. Like comparing apples to oranges, both fruits, but so different in structure. So which type of addict would you prefer to run into in a dark alley at night? And I did not say because alcohol is legal, pot should be. Quit interjecting words into my statement. Sweden legalized drugs and it did not produce more drug addicts; it did, however, lower the crime rate!

4gen: Some are lazy, most are not. You sound like the media bites, believing all the propaganda you hear. As with any given group of whatever, there will always be the extreme and the 'bad'.

Like it or not we are a nation of laws. Breaking the law has consequences. If you don't like the law try to change it.

Jon...how many of these laws...have you written? I have not written one of them...they are not my laws.

I have smoked pot on a daily basis for a long, long time. In a strange kind of way it helps me with my high pressure, high profile executive position at a faced paced high tech company. It also helped me graduate with a physics degree in four years by making me smarter. I am not currently on any other prescription medication and very healthy. I am a loving family man and I don't drink. In an effort to live forever, I will be quitting soon. But my memories of sweet mary-jane (and I have a memory like a bear trap) will be filled with nothing but joy. Legal or not...I'm smoking it. If it is legalized, I would be more than happy to pay taxes on it.

WhooHoo Obewan! Pot was first made illegal (many, many years ago) because it would interfere with the cotton growers. Seems that pot plant fibers are much stronger and when made into clothing, will last far longer. The cotton grower did not want the competition. Don't remember where I heard/read that.

Sweden has never LEGALIZED drugs Pollywog... Alcohol, on the other hand, is a HUGE challenge to Swedes and families all around the world...

Obewan. We live in a representative republic. If you vote for your representatives they have written the laws for you. They are your laws written by your representative. One can claim that I did not vote for that person and they are not my laws. But in a democracy majority rules and they become your laws. We don't get to pick and choose the laws we will follow. If I could pick and choose I wouldn't follow the income tax laws.

Jon...you and I then belong to "the collective"...since we were born into this current system and we inherited all these laws. Maybe the first order of education... should be the teaching of each and every law on the books.. as soon as any child has first learned to read and write. This process may remove a few of the current laws on the books....as the younger mind will not have the time to be brain washed in the understandings that the money they eventually make will automatically be taken from them... through the taxation process...and then this money will be given to others ...based on their elected officials whims and received political contributions and bribes. This appears to be the solution as our children are now being dumbed down... only to realize they are being set up in a tax and debt trap.....awaiting them later on in life.

We should teach the purpose of the collective and how it actually works truthfully.....

It is a collective in a way. But we have the mechanisms in place to change the rules of the collective peacefully compared to other "collectives" that must be overturned by force of arms.

One of the things that was great about Peer Court was that it provided an education in Juvenile Law to 5000 ninth graders every year. We also helped them understand where the laws came from and the process of changing them.

Consider some of these posters who are or were teachers training children about taxation and government spending. It's all good to them because they get their money from increased taxes and government spending. Someone once said socialism is great until you run out of other peoples money.