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| Pot Grower, 75, Given Year in Jail |
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Posted by FoM on June 27, 2001 at 08:46:38 PT By Jeff Cole of the Journal Sentinel Staff Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel 
A 75-year-old marijuana farmer was sentenced to a year in the Ozaukee County Jail Tuesday by a judge who said he was trying to balance the needs of society against the fact that the man had never before been in trouble with the law.Ozaukee County Circuit Judge Walter J. Swietlik also ordered David Burmesch to serve five years' probation, pay fines totaling $2,957 and perform 200 hours of community service. "I am sorry for everything," Burmesch said to Swietlik. "It was my fault because it was on my land. I am sorry for the trouble I caused." State officials said Burmesch and his brother, Eugene, 80, were operating one of the largest marijuana operations ever uncovered in Wisconsin. The men were also two of the oldest perpetrators they could remember. Eugene Burmesch is scheduled to be sentenced Thursday. Agents from the state Justice Department's Division of Narcotic's Enforcement went to David Burmesch's farm Sept. 1, 2000, after they received an anonymous tip. In an 80- by 40-foot plot, they found 498 marijuana plants averaging 6 feet high. In a building next to the garden, they found 98.5 pounds of marijuana in bundles averaging between 1.5 pounds and 2.5 pounds. Money used to help son: David Burmesch told the agents he had been growing the marijuana since 1975. He said he had used the proceeds to pay for the costs of raising a developmentally disabled son. In March, David Burmesch pleaded no contest to charges of manufacturing marijuana and maintaining a drug trafficking place. His brother pleaded guilty to the same charges. Defense attorney Kirk Obear asked that David Burmesch be granted Huber-release privileges during the day to take care of his wife, his mother-in-law and property. Swietlik said he wanted to see a written argument from Obear before he decides whether to grant the request. Obear said he might appeal the jail portion of the sentence. He argued that Swietlik had the discretion to sentence Burmesch to only probation with no jail time. He was supposed to have been sentenced June 19. However, when Swietlik said then that he believed state law required that Burmesch be incarcerated, Obear asked for the extra week to research the issue. After the hearing Tuesday, Obear said other judges in Wisconsin have read the law as allowing them to sentence convicted dealers to probation without incarceration. He said he has to discuss the idea of an appeal with his client before making a final decision. In sentencing Burmesch, Swietlik said that by imposing time in the county jail, he was deviating somewhat from what the state Legislature wanted when it passed the drug laws. "If I followed the legislative intent, Mr. Burmesch would be going to Waupun," Swietlik said. Prior to the sentencing, David Burmesch's wife, Delores, asked Swietlik to go easy on her husband. "He is my right arm," she said. "We have both gone downhill quite a bit in the last four years." Delores Burmesch said her mother will soon be coming home from a nursing home and she will need help in taking care of the woman. She said she can no longer carry heavy bags of groceries and sometimes has trouble opening doors. "I know he is sorry for everything," Delores Burmesch said. "I need him very much." David Burmesch has severe arthritis, glaucoma and diabetes, Obear said. He has raised 10 hard-working, law-abiding children, the attorney said. David Burmesch cooperated completely with authorities, Obear argued. He said it is clear from the dilapidated state of the Burmesch farm that this was no large-scale drug dealer. Obear also argued that Burmesch had not actively grown marijuana for several years. He said that the packaged marijuana was rotting and the plants had grown on their own in a plot once used to grow the drug. District Attorney Sandy Williams noted that there were records found at the farm that showed marijuana had been sold in 1999. The Ozaukee County Jail is equipped to handle prisoners with health problems, jail administrator Lt. David Lorenz said. "I don't see any problem with housing someone in their 70s," Lorenz said. Note: Younger of two brothers charged may appeal sentence. Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (WI) Related Articles: Man's Statements Will Be Allowed at Pot Trial Brothers To Be Tried in Marijuana Case Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help |
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| Comment #4 posted by freedom fighter on June 27, 2001 at 16:23:38 PT |
| my friend Sudaca, what do you think? Two old men and they are deaf as well..
Nothing gained and just alot of disrespect for the government.. If anything, a pure disappointment for the people who works for the government. Be you a cop or a public servant cleaning the street, you smell pretty bad! [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #3 posted by Abby on June 27, 2001 at 16:20:11 PT |
| Plain and simple the government doesn't seem to care who is incarcerated as long as they can keep arresting people. We as concerned citizens of this country need to tell more people about the injustices still being served. Marijuana Proabition is the worst case of descrimination in the history of the world. The war on drugs is a war against our founders. We need to make this clear to the world. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #2 posted by rabblerouser on June 27, 2001 at 10:38:46 PT |
| If the judge had an ounce of decency he would have volunteered to serve the sentence for the defendant. The guy was doing mankind a service by helping his disabled son the best way he knew how. Col. Hiatt and his wife should be shipped to china pronto. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #1 posted by Sudaca on June 27, 2001 at 09:10:56 PT |
| ". trying to balance the needs of society against the fact that the man had never before been in trouble with the law. " " David Burmesch has severe arthritis, glaucoma and diabetes, Obear said. He has raised 10 hard-working, law-abiding children, the attorney said." He's 75. Society I guess needs to incarcerate sick old men. [ Post Comment ] |
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