cannabisnews.com: Bail Upped for Suspect in Pot Case Bail Upped for Suspect in Pot Case Posted by FoM on December 06, 2001 at 22:05:57 PT By Brian Anderson Source: Contra Costa Times A Dublin man who police arrested with help from a San Ramon Valley teacher and a tipster was jailed Wednesday after a judge upped his bail on charges accusing him of growing nearly a dozen marijuana plants.Joseph Ratto, 66, was taken to Santa Rita Jail after Judge Ronald Hyde raised his bail to $150,000 from $25,000, citing two felony charges of cultivating marijuana and possession of the drug for sale. "This is a major, major, major deal," Hyde said during a hearing. "That's a lot more than personal use."Ratto, who pleaded not guilty Wednesday but later withdrew it, is scheduled to be arraigned Friday.The case began in September after a regular informant offered to tell Dublin police about a local pot grower in exchange for some of the confiscated drugs, according to a police report. When officers declined the offer and again asked for information, the tipster requested $4,000 to point detectives in the right direction, records showed.Officers again turned down the proposal and the informant, who admitted to stealing plants from the grower before, told them of a personal plan to steal the plants and sell them on the street, records showed. Officers said that was not the best idea and the location of the house in the 8100 block of Hollanda Court was eventually revealed.Police staked out the house and ultimately followed a woman who was seen leaving. Officers stopped her for speeding on San Ramon Road, where the San Ramon Valley teacher admitted to smoking marijuana earlier and having a small amount of the drug in her car, a police report stated."I smoke marijuana about once a week because I don't drink and because I like it," the 41-year-old woman said in a statement to police.Ratto, who she told police was a former neighbor, grew marijuana and had smoked it with her on several prior occasions, she said in court records.Detectives went back to the house with a search warrant, discovering the plants in the garage, a bedroom and elsewhere, records showed. Officers also found a loaded .38-caliber revolver on an ironing board in a bedroom.Ratto showed police an ID card from the Oakland Cannabis Buyers' Cooperative and a prescription giving him permission to grow up to six plants, police said in a report. He said he suffers from chronic nausea, post-radiation therapy and chronic degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, according to records.A Berkeley doctor had signed a prescription for marijuana.Police estimated the street value of the marijuana at as high as $171,000.Note: A judge raises the bond for Joseph Ratto, 66, to $150,000 for marijuana cultivation charges. Source: Contra Costa Times (CA)Author: Brian AndersonPublished: December 6, 2001Copyright: 2001 Contra Costa Newspapers Inc.Website: http://www.contracostatimes.com/Contact: http://contracostatimes.com/contact_us/letters.htmOakland Cannabis Buyer's Cooperativehttp://www.rxcbc.org/O.C.B.C. Versus U.S. Government News http://freedomtoexhale.com/mj.htmCannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #21 posted by null on December 08, 2001 at 11:19:48 PT i can name that thought in one guess you can guess my thoughts...yes, word for word even if they aren't in the same order...I feel for your kids too. I hope they understand you were doing the right thing regardless of what the misguided law may say. [ Post Comment ] Comment #20 posted by lookinside on December 08, 2001 at 11:06:15 PT: null... good luck...when the cops came to our door, there were 6 of them...the asked (demanded) to look around...my wife attempted to protest, but with no witnesses except cops, she realized that it didn't matter what she did...she never gave permission, but didn't fight the inevitable either...the cops testified that she gave permission...you can guess my thoughts... [ Post Comment ] Comment #19 posted by null on December 08, 2001 at 10:54:04 PT meatgrinder i feel your pain lookinside. i'm going through the Georgia meatgrinder myself. Even though the lower court feels the police violated the 4th ammendment, the DA wants to fight it all the way to the Supreme Court if necessary.As a reminder to everyone here: If you are carrying any while traveling then be extra extra careful. Follow every traffic rule. And NEVER give consent to search your car. If you give consent, you have no right to contest the findings in court. DO NOT GIVE CONSENT. That is what is making all the difference in my case. The officer asked to search and I said No. So... Just say NO to Searches. ;) Court Upholds Search of Passenger's Belongings [ Post Comment ] Comment #18 posted by lookinside on December 08, 2001 at 10:26:15 PT: having... been through the california "justice" meatgrinder, i can attest to the criminal nature of the cops, da's and judges behavior here...when i was arrested, i was charged with cultivation, intent to distribute, and child endangerment...the only time my kids have ever felt endangered was when all those cops came and arrested their mom, and later, me...i was NOT selling...i was providing my wife with the only medicine that gives her relief...we didn't have a doctor's recommendation because, altho aware of her use and the help it provided her, the doctors were intimidated by the fed's threats to their licenses..they said that i could do 3 years in state prison if convicted of cultivation...no attorney would recommend going to trial..(i wasn't rich enough..)i pled guilty to one felony count of cultivation..4 months on an ankle monitor and 4 years probation...i'm a great believer in a purpose to every event...i believe in karma...if i were one of those cops or deputy DA's or judges, i'd be hiding under a table, permanently...it will all come back on them...a heavy debt to pay... [ Post Comment ] Comment #17 posted by FoM on December 07, 2001 at 18:31:51 PT Six Plants Since he had permission to grow up to six plants they shouldn't even count should they? That would be over $25,000 a plant if it is only six plants. Unbelievable. [ Post Comment ] Comment #16 posted by mayan on December 07, 2001 at 18:05:37 PT Math Skills Not Required 12 plants even at $1,000 apiece is only $12,000! How did the pigs arrive at the $171,000 figure? Boy,are they dumb! [ Post Comment ] Comment #15 posted by FoM on December 07, 2001 at 09:53:01 PT Here you go! I have this posted and I thought maybe you all missed it so here is the link. Area Man Sues Over Marijuana Photos http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread11512.shtml [ Post Comment ] Comment #14 posted by freedom fighter on December 07, 2001 at 09:45:09 PT A sick man, two plants, a life sentence Miller did not pose with his plants, said Fred Witherspoon, who is representing him in the criminal matter. "This individual did not appear in them and there was no relation to where he lived," he said. Miller is scheduled to be arraigned Dec. 11 on one felony count of possession of marijuana and two felony counts of possession for sale. If convicted, he could spend the rest of his life in a state prison, said Lisoni. "He wasn't selling it," Witherspoon said. "There were only two plants." This is wayyyy too crazyy!! http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/ [ Post Comment ] Comment #13 posted by puff_tuff on December 07, 2001 at 09:17:33 PT Nadelmann / Johnson Here's some good readin' On Nov 5, the Canadian Senate heard from Dr. Ethan Nadelmann of the Lindesmith Center and Governor Gary Johnson and is now online at the Senate Website.http://www.parl.gc.ca/37/1/parlbus/commbus/senate/Com-e/ille-e/38398-e.asp?Language=E&Parl=37&Ses=1&comm_id=85 [ Post Comment ] Comment #12 posted by E_Johnson on December 07, 2001 at 09:10:30 PT Another marijuana grower in the news Montebello man sues over backyard pot photos: http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/ [ Post Comment ] Comment #11 posted by FoM on December 07, 2001 at 08:28:09 PT Just a note I'm looking for news but I haven't found any yet. I'll keep looking though. [ Post Comment ] Comment #10 posted by Sam Adams on December 07, 2001 at 07:15:46 PT Disgrace I want to be patriotic but at times like this the sight of the American flag makes me shudder - I'll bet the cop car in this case was flying the flag, and it was probably displayed on their uniforms as well. Sig Heil!This incident neatly encapsulates everything wrong with the US and the drug inquisition. What is missing are the stories of the many people in this area of the state who called police recently to report a house robbery, or a rape, or an assault, who were just told by police "Oh, we're working on it". Police don't do sh*t to investigate or solve most low level crimes - the FBI says 50% of rapes are solved - 50% of REPORTED rapes. Muggings and assaults are laughed off as the cops head to Krispy Kreme. I'm serious - a woman in my neighborhood was assaulted on the sidewalk, and the cops basically told her they weren't going to do a damn thing. Now, 6 months later, 2 more incidents of sexual assault - one of them an actual rape - by a man with the same description has occurred. Real police work is TOUGH. Busting MJ users is EASY. We're not really criminals, so often we'll just give ourselves up voluntarily (as the woman in this case did) because we're not aware of the vindictive, cruel nature of our police, DAs, and many judges. We assume they actually try to protect public safety.I hope this guy has the sense to demand a jury trial, I don't see how they'd ever convict him. [ Post Comment ] Comment #9 posted by goneposthole on December 07, 2001 at 06:02:44 PT major, major, major deal In LA, 100,000 containers are docked at the harbor each and every year. Only 3% are checked and inspected. Maybe some drugs are getting through at that point, or maybe not. Who knows?It is like the cartoon of an officer of the law searching a car on the side of the highway, and while he is doing so, a tractor-trailer zooms by at highway speed. Emblazoned on the side of the trailer is the word 'MARIJUANA'.A man sees what he wants to see and disregards the obvious. [ Post Comment ] Comment #8 posted by Dark Star on December 07, 2001 at 05:28:27 PT Juxtaposition How can it be that 12 plants are a major big deal, when just up the road in Berkeley, until recently, local law allowed 144 plants for medical use?The authorities are brain-dead ideologues, and the journalists are aiding and abetting them. The truth is being raped. [ Post Comment ] Comment #7 posted by E_Johnson on December 07, 2001 at 03:40:35 PT More ranting and raving Reporters who won't do math don't have the slightest understanding of what their jobs are supposed to be about.Let's just all be Pravda and trot out the figures from the next five year plan.Hey guess what, Pravda is actually a good paper now, well, better than a lot of what we get here.http://english.pravda.ru/ [ Post Comment ] Comment #6 posted by E_Johnson on December 07, 2001 at 02:59:40 PT Where the heck are the J-professors these days??? What ARE they teaching in journalism school???Has everyone completely abdicated from the principles of the trade?Like the part about dealing in facts and not legends or myths or wild assertions that can't be backed up with physical evidence?Oh and wasn't there something about not believing that something is true simply because a government offcial told you it was true?Boy, that last great tradition in journalism really got tossed aside and forgotten in the War on Drugs.I guess that makes the math easier, as in not even bothering to do it. [ Post Comment ] Comment #5 posted by freedom fighter on December 07, 2001 at 01:49:38 PT 171,000$ divide by a dozen plants equal 14,250$ a plant...sheesh!!ff [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by freedom fighter on December 07, 2001 at 01:42:16 PT Gary, One would think that Calif. is such a hip trend setter state. In reality, people there are going to jail for life over little things like stealing a bread from a store, passing a 7$ buck check, for breaking into an abandoned house to sleep, for possesion of 3 dollars worth of controlled substance. http://www.resin-themovie.com/ Check that link, browse thru and find the link to F.A.C.T.S I think 120 people per month head out to prisons for life down in Calif.. Majority of them are non violent... Looks like to me that with this case, he is going to jail for life.. Only rich people can get out of this, if you are poor, awww shucks, you are out luck in that state..ff [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by herbdoc215 on December 07, 2001 at 01:21:41 PT: This is a lie, and media are in on it! No what's going to happen is same that has happened to bunches of our patients, he's going to jail until they wear him down then he will plea for 5 years for something HE THOUGHT WAS LEGAL. No shining lawyer is going to ride up on a big white horse, because they don't exist... He got no money now and I haven't met a lawyer in Cali in 5 years of hiring them who would piss on their mom if she was on fire for free, but everyone sure could ask for free pot from me while I was paying them cash to defend my ass. this burns me when people are oblivious to the facts. I could name you over 10 fine folks rotting in jail for trying to ease their pain, over half of them screwed by those who were supposed to be looking out for them, ie. worthless club certs from clubs who wanted patients weed cheap but who left them high and dry when it hit the fan! The very lawyers who we run to now are laughing all the way to the bank puffing our weed and taking insane chances with our lives, money from people they should never have met in a sane world. We all were niave and thought it was cut and dry- law passed so it's legal, isn't that the BS they taught us in school? Well I for one am sick and tired, of all the lies, all the BS, all the pain, all the fear, all the doublespeak, and most of all peoples unrealistic world view of whats going on in California, patients are being killed all over state by denying their medicine and we need not pretend it's magically going to get better. steve tuck [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by lookinside on December 07, 2001 at 00:17:08 PT: cops... the things i'd like to write here would get me banned from cannabisnews....just assume that each dot you see is a reduced page of thoughts on the usefulness of cops................................................... .......................................................... .......................................................... .......................................................... ..........................................................and in conclusion, take the last one to a good taxadermist so that our descendents can see a specimen of the last precivilized man... [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by Gary Storck on December 06, 2001 at 23:10:21 PT Sad state of justice Justice in America. A senior citizen patient's medicine is ripped off several times, then the thief conspires with the police who steal the rest of his medicine and put him in jail.Twice victimized, because he was sick. I hope he finds a good lawyer and sues the cops. One would think with San Francisco and Oakland nearby, that they might be a little more enlightened. Is My Medicine Legal Yet? [ Post Comment ] Post Comment