The other TN pot head wants a pardon for his pot conviction

[Tucker]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x307262

Last week, on the DUmmy moving his boat to CA thread, I wondered if he was the one who had part of his farm seized by the Feds for his pot bust. As luck would have it, he makes an appearance, answering my question.

Fly by night Donating Member (1000+ posts) Click to send private message to this author Click to view this author's profile Click to add this author to your buddy list Click to add this author to your Ignore list    Sun Jan-30-11 09:38 AM
Original message
I am applying for a Presidential pardon for my medical cannabis conviction. Will you help?
   
Edited on Sun Jan-30-11 09:43 AM by Fly by night
Good morning from my Tennessee deep hollow home. As most of you long-time DUers know, I have been engaged in a nine year battle for my freedom and my farm for the “crime” of growing medical cannabis for myself and four terminally ill neighbors. I pled guilty to a single count of manufacturing 100+ cannabis plants (mostly clones, the total usable weight of which was a little over seven pounds.) For this offense, I was sentenced to four years probation (later cut in half by my judge) and no fine. However, the government continued to try to confiscate my 187 acre farm until last year when I agreed to give them 25 acres in exchange for keeping the rest of my farm. To date, this case has cost me over $1 million in lost income, legal fees and the value of the land I surrendered.

Ever since I was released from the federal Bureau of Prisons halfway house in May, 2007, I have attempted unsuccessfully to become re-employed in my field as a public health epidemiologist. It appears that my voluntary admission of my crime and the resultant felony conviction is preventing me from ever becoming gainfully employed again. In addition, the accelerated deterioration of my hip joints, caused in part by not being able to use cannabis for the five years I was randomly piss-tested, resulted in hip replacement surgery last May from which I have still not recovered.

Persons convicted of a federal crime must wait a minimum of five years to apply for a Presidential pardon. My waiting period has passed and I am moving forward to file the necessary application. Here is where you might be able to help. I am allowed to submit as many letters of support as I would like to the President with this application. I must designate three primary character references and those will be Mickey Gamble, the former Commissioner of Corrections for both Wyoming and Montana (with whom I worked to create the largest substance abuse treatment center in Wyoming near the Wind River Indian Reservation); David Earnhardt, the director/producer of the much-acclaimed documentary "UNCOUNTED: The New Math of American Elections"; and Senator Beverly Marrero, the sponsor of Tennessee's Safe Access to Medical Cannabis legislation. However, I would like to submit as many letters of support as possible with this application. Thus, those of you who have gotten to know me and the circumstances of my case here at DU over the past seven years are in a position to assist this process by submitting a letter on my behalf. In addition, those of you who don't know me yet but who have strong and well-reasoned opinions about our current medical cannabis prohibition laws can learn about my case at the links below and write letters also.

To my knowledge, NO person who has ever been convicted of a federal medical cannabis-related offense has ever received a Presidential pardon from any President. Murderers, embezzlers, warmongers, election thieves – yes. Pot growers and users – no. (This was confirmed for me on Friday by the legal staff of the Marijuana Policy Project.) It is long past time to change that and I’d like to do my small part. Perhaps if I can obtain the first pardon for a medical cannabis offense, that might accelerate the much-needed changes in our country's drug policies in favor of science, common sense and compassion that are long overdue. Who knows, we might reach a day where everyone who has shared my sentence (and my fate) for similar reasons might receive a blanket pardon, just as Jimmy Carter pardoned all those other felons of conscience who fled this country in the 60s and 70s to avoid supporting the war in Vietnam with their bodies and their blood.

Again, many of you know my story as it has played out here for many years. For those of you who do not, here are four quick links:

In April, 2007, as I was about to be released from a federal Bureau of Prisons half-way house, the Nashville Scene did a cover story on my case entitled "Marijuana Martyr".

http://www.nashvillescene.com/nashville/marijuana-marty...

In January, 2010, the Nashville Scene did another cover story to endorse the Tennessee Safe Access to Medical Cannabis Act, a bill that I wrote and helped shepherd through the legislature last year. (The bill was approved in all House committees, including a 20-4 vote in the House Health and Human Resources committee.)

http://www.nashvillescene.com/nashville/a-proposed-medi...

My case has also been highlighted in two nationally syndicated columns, several additional cover stories in Tennessee and national media and two documentaries. Here is the link to a CNN profile on my case that ran (multiple times) back in October.

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2010/10/14/dnt.harr...

Finally, I posted an OP here on DU last year entitled “Witnessing our government sell my land for the ‘crime’ of growing pot”. That piece was published in its entirety on the NORML home page and on six dozen other internet sites.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.ph...

Here are the instructions posted regarding character references on the instructions for a Presidential pardon:

“At least three character affidavits must accompany the petition. If you submit more than three, you should designate the three persons whom you consider to be primary references. The affidavit forms provided are preferred. However, letters of recommendation may be substituted if they contain the full name, address, and telephone number of the reference, indicate a knowledge of the offense for which you seek pardon, and bear a notarized signature. Persons related to you by blood or marriage cannot be used as primary character references.”

If you are willing to write a letter of support for my Presidential pardon, I would be deeply grateful. Address your letter to President Barack Obama, be sure to follow all the instructions above and mail your letter to me (no later than March 1) at the following address:

Trace View Farm
5985 Fly Hollow Road
Santa Fe, TN 38482.

My full name is Bernard H. Ellis, Jr., and my federal Bureau of Prisons number is 16502-075.

Thanks in advance to any of you who choose to K&R this thread today and a special thanks to those of you who decide to submit a letter to the President. Before I was sentenced, my judge received 300+ letters of support and there were 60 people in the courtroom supporting me on the day of my sentencing. I know that these letters carry weight if they are well-written and respectfully submitted. I hope that the weight of my Presidential pardon submission will help take the weight of oppression off the backs of millions of sick and dying Americans who would like safe access to medical cannabis NOW and to the thousands like me who would like to help them obtain it.

I hope all y’all have a restful Sunday. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for.

a la izquierda Donating Member (1000+ posts)  Journal Click to send private message to this author Click to view this author's profile Click to add this author to your buddy list Click to add this author to your Ignore list    Sun Jan-30-11 09:55 AM
Response to Original message
2. K & R
   
I think you should go for it! Heck, it'll give me hope when I turn around and ask the President to get some rich person to whom he gave tax cuts, to pay off my student loans for me.

And obama will say "How much did this DUmbass donate to my campaign?"

TheKentuckian Donating Member (1000+ posts)  Journal Click to send private message to this author Click to view this author's profile Click to add this author to your buddy list Click to add this author to your Ignore list    Sun Jan-30-11 10:24 AM
Response to Original message
7. I'd be honored to write in your support and in a way the support of many others run over
   
by our "Drug War".

I wouldn't want a character reference from DU.  

OneGrassRoot Donating Member (1000+ posts) Click to send private message to this author Click to view this author's profile Click to add this author to your buddy list Click to add this author to your Ignore list    Sun Jan-30-11 10:45 AM
Response to Original message
10. K&R. I will absolutely do this within the next 24 hours.

Would that be business hours?

It's going to be a great day.

[thundley4]

Obama has already shown a willingness to pardon drug users, so now is a good time to apply.

[Tucker]

Obama has already shown a willingness to pardon drug users, so now is a good time to apply.

Especially those who he sold to.

[JohnnyReb]

So, 10 years ago he had the good life....and then it all went up in smoke....and now he lives in a junk sailboat...  I'm not crying for your situation, I'm crying for your stupidity and your family.

[Chris_]

So, 10 years ago he had the good life....and then it all went up in smoke....and now he lives in a junk sailboat...  I'm not crying for your situation, I'm crying for your stupidity and your family.

Wrong DUmmy... this one lives on a farm somewhere.

[JohnnyReb]

Wrong DUmmy... this one lives on a farm somewhere.

Oh........Half brothers maybe?

[DumbAss Tanker]

I can't say I follow how the lack of medical marijuana accelerated the degeneration of his hip, since its purported medicinal effects are only really documented for glaucoma and pain control, if he has such a quack approach to medical marijuana and it is known in his area ('It makes me feel good, so it must be fixing the illness') then I can see the felony conviction may not be the only thing keeping him from getting a job anywhere near his home.

And seriously, if he had enough of it that they pressed a felony case and property seizure, it wasn't just for his personal use.  Get real, DUmmies.  He's amazingly lucky they didn't just seize the entire farm.

[NHSparky]

Good morning from my Tennessee deep hollow home. As most of you long-time DUers know, I have been engaged in a nine year battle for my freedom and my farm for the “crime” of growing medical cannabis for myself and four terminally ill neighbors.

Seven pounds for five people?  And how many people here who DON'T work in a nursing home or hospital have FOUR "terminally ill neighbors"?

[GOBUCKS]

He has been locked out of the booming public health epidemiology field in Fly Hollow. That's shocking, considering that little Fly Hollow Road has four terminally ill residents, plus Bernie, who is rotting away before our eyes. Bernie and those four neighbors could have really partied on seven pounds of weed, and by Bernie's accounting, he could have made a million bucks selling dope if the government hadn't interfered.

There's obviously an epidemic of something in Fly Hollow, but still they won't hire Bernie as their epidemiologist. I wonder if munchies qualifies as an epidemic. They won't even hire him as their latex salesman.

Bernie Ellis is the epitome of the arrogant democrat DUmbass.

[Tucker]

What kind of stupid posts this info on line?

Trace View Farm
5985 Fly Hollow Road
Santa Fe, TN 38482.

My full name is Bernard H. Ellis, Jr., and my federal Bureau of Prisons number is 16502-075.

This is interesting.

http://www.google.com/search?q=5985+Fly+Hollow+Road&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&client=firefox-a&rlz=1R1GGLL_en___US382

http://clickscape.com/5985-Fly-Hollow-Road-Santa-Fe-TN

[thundley4]

. The defendant will enter a plea of guilty to Court One of the information and will agree to the Forfeiture Count. Count One will charge a violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1) of manufacturing in excess of 100 marijuana plants. The parties agree that the total number of marijuana plants is 300 and that their weight is a total of 37 pounds or 16.8 kilograms. The government will take no position on whether the guns seized during the execution of the consensual search had any relationship to the manufacturing of the marijuana. The forfeiture count will seek the forfeiture of $212,500 cash.
. . .

http://ftp.resource.org/courts.gov/c/F3/470/470.F3d.275.05-6551.html

[Chris_]

300 plants and that their weight is a total of 37 pounds...

He's a regular Johnny Appleseed.

[AllosaursRus]

What kind of stupid posts this info on line?

This is interesting.

http://www.google.com/search?q=5985+Fly+Hollow+Road&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&client=firefox-a&rlz=1R1GGLL_en___US382

http://clickscape.com/5985-Fly-Hollow-Road-Santa-Fe-TN

So he's sellin' the whole place! Wonder if the DUmmies know he's one of those millionaires they always bitch about? After all, he's owns property worth mil, so he must be one of the "rich"!

Uh........didn't he say "7" ponds???????? I guess he forgot about those other "30" huh? He only got probation for 37 pounds????? I know of one gal up here that got busted for transportin' 12, and she got 10 years in the Federal Pen! He was manufacturin', for cripes sake!

This puke got off easy! He ain't gettin' no ****in' pardon! I'll put together a written protest!

Lyin' sack 'o shit!

[BattleHymn]

So he's sellin' the whole place! Wonder if the DUmmies know he's one of those millionaires they always bitch about? After all, he's owns property worth mil, so he must be one of the "rich"!

Uh........didn't he say "7" ponds???????? I guess he forgot about those other "30" huh? He only got probation for 37 pounds????? I know of one gal up here that got busted for transportin' 12, and she got 10 years in the Federal Pen! He was manufacturin', for cripes sake!

This puke got off easy! He ain't gettin' no ****in' pardon! I'll put together a written protest!

Lyin' sack 'o shit!

Although the government avers that Defendant was growing a "substantial amount of marijuana," (J.A. 239), the exact amount of marijuana seized from the farm is unclear. It appears that the government reported several different marijuana plant counts and weights. An initial report indicated that five hundred thirty-seven marijuana plants were seized from the farm. The government amended this submission to clarify that "[a] total of 300 marijuana plants were taken from the farm." (J.A. 76, 174) Later, the government indicated that four hundred marijuana plants were seized. The plant weight is similarly unclear and dropped from one hundred twenty-seven pounds to thirty-seven pounds. Excluding unusable parts of the plant like root balls, dirt, stems and stalks, Defendant estimated that the usable plant weight "was between seven and eight pounds." (J.A. 211-12)

How the heck does this work?  Do they only charge you for the usable weight, or the total weight of all plants? 

Maybe he should have told them he was starting a rope factory. 

[TexasCop]

Holy crap, that's a HUGE grow operation!!!  Him saying it was the personal use of him and 4 of his terminally ill neighbors would only work if every other person on this planet were DUmber than him, which I don't see is possible.

[GOBUCKS]

Even at the low figure, Bernie and his four pals could have had a super duper buzz from SEVEN POUNDS of bud.
Of course the clear, certain fact is that about 6.9 pounds of that weed would have ended up in dime bags all over the democrat wards of Nashville.

[AllosaursRus]

How the heck does this work?  Do they only charge you for the usable weight, or the total weight of all plants?  

Maybe he should have told them he was starting a rope factory.  

That's some funny shit right there! ^5!

Far as i know, total weight is the plant not includin' the root ball. Just cause this asshat says he wouldn't smoke the "stems and seeds that you don't need", don't mean someone else won't!

[Varokhâr]

I can't say I follow how the lack of medical marijuana accelerated the degeneration of his hip, since its purported medicinal effects are only really documented for glaucoma and pain control, if he has such a quack approach to medical marijuana and it is known in his area ('It makes me feel good, so it must be fixing the illness') then I can see the felony conviction may not be the only thing keeping him from getting a job anywhere near his home.

And seriously, if he had enough of it that they pressed a felony case and property seizure, it wasn't just for his personal use.  Get real, DUmmies.  He's amazingly lucky they didn't just seize the entire farm.

That's exactly what I thought. There is no way that being unable to smoke pot has led to his hip getting worse.

And, four whole "terminally ill" neighbors? OK, it's possible, but... just how possible?

Also, that's quite a piece of land he's got there. How much has he got in the bank? Betcha it's waaay more than I have. Typical DUmmies, they only hate the rich who aren't fellow DUmmies.

This is a very fishy story.

[longview]

That's exactly what I thought. There is no way that being unable to smoke pot has led to his hip getting worse.

Oh, sure it did.  By not having the pot he wasn't stoned and vegging with his bag of Cheetos.  He probably moved around more, poor critter.

[GOBUCKS]

The first thing to consider in Bernie's case is that there's no such thing as "medical marijuana".

[AprilRazz]

If only the scientists would invent this stuff they could call Marinol or even Nabilone. Instead of having to grow your own and risk going to the pokey it would also be better for you because you would not have to smoke it and stuff.

If only!


Oh wait, they did.

[NHSparky]

If only the scientists would invent this stuff they could call Marinol or even Nabilone. Instead of having to grow your own and risk going to the pokey it would also be better for you because you would not have to smoke it and stuff.

If only!


Oh wait, they did.

One of the meds they gave my dad when he had cancer.  Nice catch, Doc.

^5.

[AprilRazz]

One of the meds they gave my dad when he had cancer.  Nice catch, Doc.

^5.

They wouldn't like it though. It doesn't get you high.


Hope dad had a full recovery.

[NHSparky]

They wouldn't like it though. It doesn't get you high.


Hope dad had a full recovery.

Thanks for your wishes, but unfortunately, he didn't.  Long-term smoker, lung cancer.  It was Stage 4 when he finally went in and had it diagnosed. 

Eight months to the day from diagnosis to his passing away.  Christmas 2009 was not a good time for me for more reasons than one.  That was the biggest.

[AprilRazz]

Thanks for your wishes, but unfortunately, he didn't.  Long-term smoker, lung cancer.  It was Stage 4 when he finally went in and had it diagnosed. 

Eight months to the day from diagnosis to his passing away.  Christmas 2009 was not a good time for me for more reasons than one.  That was the biggest.

My condolences to you and your family.
DH's mother had to go into the hospital on Christmas eve and passed away on his birthday two weeks later. They were pretty close and it took him a few years to even want to put up a tree. I know how something like that can wreck the joy of the holidays.