Jump to content

Wi: Menominee Tribe Legalizes Marijuana


Recommended Posts

Newshawk: http://www.drugsense.org/donate.htm
Pubdate: Sat, 22 Aug 2015
Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (WI)
Webpage: http://drugsense.org/url/kR62qaME
Copyright: 2015 Journal Sentinel Inc.
Contact: http://www.jsonline.com/general/30627794.html
Website: http://www.jsonline.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/265
Author: Cary Spivak

MENOMINEE TRIBE LEGALIZES MARIJUANA

Members Must Now Design Operation on Reservation That Avoids Raids, Arrests

Now that Menominee tribal members have told their legislators to
legalize marijuana, the difficult task begins of designing a
profitable weed operation that does not result in the tribe or its
customers getting busted.

"Tribes are treading on very dangerous grounds" when it comes to
growing and selling marijuana, warned Dorothy Alther, director of
California Indian Legal Services. "If I was representing tribes out
there (in Wisconsin) I would say it might not be such a good idea."

Just last month two California tribes were raided by federal and
state authorities who said they seized at least 12,000 marijuana
plants and more than 100 pounds of processed marijuana.

Members of the Menominee tribe this week voted 677 to 499 to legalize
marijuana for recreational purposes and 899 to 275 to legalize
marijuana for medicinal purposes on its 360-acre reservation near Shawano.

"This is new ground," Gary Besaw, Menominee chairman, said in an
interview Friday shortly after the results were announced. "We have
to start looking at developing best practices and draft ordinances to
maximize the benefits we believe are possible and minimize the
consequences we believe also are possible."

Legalizing marijuana on reservations has become a hot topic since
late last year when the U.S. Department of Justice released a memo
discouraging federal authorities from prosecuting tribes for growing
or selling pot on their reservations.

The memo also listed eight scenarios that could result in
prosecution, including selling to minors or distributing the product
to a state - such as Wisconsin - where weed remains illegal.

State law enforcement authorities do not have criminal jurisdiction
on the Menominee reservation but could arrest people who leave the
tribal land with marijuana. Federal authorities do, because when the
Menominee had its tribal status restored in the 1970s, it became the
state's only non-Public Law 280 tribe.

"As a white guy I would fully expect that I'm getting pulled over if
I drive off the (Menominee) reservation" if marijuana sales there are
legalized, said R. Lance Boldrey, a Michigan Indian law attorney.

State and local authorities have jurisdiction over the 10 other
tribes in Wisconsin, and at least three of those are seriously
looking at legalizing marijuana or a derivative on their reservations.

Still, Indian law experts say the Menominee, which has about 9,000
members, must deal with several hurdles.

Since marijuana is not legal in Wisconsin, the tribe may be
restricted to selling weed only to Native Americans. Still, Besaw
said, it could be worthwhile to begin growing and selling weed. He
predicted that it won't be long before marijuana is legal throughout
the nation and "when it does become legalized we'll be ready to
launch," he said.

The Justice Department memo is a policy directive that could change,
especially in 2017 when a new president takes office, Boldrey said.
Rep. James Lankford (R-Okla.) this month sponsored a bill that would
take away federal funding from any tribe that cultivates,
manufactures or sells marijuana.

The tribe must consider the impact of legalizing a drug on an
impoverished reservation that has long been plagued with substance
abuse problems. "It's a huge concern," Besaw said.

It's not clear what to do with money generated from marijuana sales,
since federally insured banks generally shun accepting marijuana
money for fear of violating federal money laundering laws. Besaw said
the tribe would likely avoid that risk by licensing and taxing a
business to run the weed business. The tribe's revenue would be
"clean money" because it would be tax revenue.

Besaw said he has met and will continue to meet with state and
federal law enforcement to determine the guidelines the tribe must
operate under to avoid the kind of trouble with the law that occurred
in California.

Alther, the California lawyer, noted that even when federal
prosecutors meet with tribes they are providing little guidance. In
Wisconsin, Gregory Haanstad, the new acting U.S. Attorney for the
Eastern District, has only said that marijuana remains illegal under
federal law.

"They are supposed to be consulting with the tribes," Alther said.
"That just is not happening."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Be extremely careful have friends from shawano. Just over a year ago shawano county spent a couple hundred grand trying to prosacute me for less than a half oz but 2 bags. Being a medical marijuana lisenced patient from mi means 0. Lots of snintches and under covers working there. The district attorney is anti medical marijuana in open court said it was a joke. Im pretty sure the DA in shawano has a picture of nancy Reagan above his manntle.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1ST shawano charged me with 3 mistas 2 poss and 1 para. Went back week later to get my car and they charged me with 2 felonies now 2nd time in 2 weeks i have to bond out. Almost a year later 25 grand lighter in the pocket book i took a plea half way through a jury trail to 2 mista 1 poss otjer para. No probation even got a check for a few hundred a few weeks after trail/plea entered.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...