cannabisnews.com: Kin Still Have Doubts





Kin Still Have Doubts
Posted by CN Staff on September 02, 2002 at 11:55:07 PT
By Lou Mumford, Tribune Staff Writer 
Source: South Bend Tribune 
Ruby Batey's memories return to the night of Aug. 31, 2001. That was when police permitted her to visit her son, Grover "Tom'' Crosslin, at Crosslin's Rainbow Farm Campground at 59896 Pemberton Road, Vandalia.At the time, Crosslin, 46, and his 28-year-old companion, Rolland Rohm, were nearing the end of the first day of what would turn out to be a five-day standoff with police and the FBI.
Batey drove to the farm with her minister, the Rev. Clinton Douglas of Eddy Street Church of Christ in South Bend."Tom was afraid for me to be there,'' Batey recalled. "He told the preacher to get me out of there. He grabbed me by the shoulder, hugged me and put me back in the car."When I went back there the next morning, they wouldn't let me see him. But an FBI agent -- I don't remember the name -- said they wouldn't harm Tom, even if it took four weeks or four months.''Just three days later, Crosslin was dead.Crosslin was fatally shot the morning of Sept. 3, 2001, by FBI Special Agent Richard Salomon as he returned from taking a coffee pot from neighbor Carl McDonald's home, according to FBI reports obtained by The Tribune using the federal Freedom of Information Act.Crosslin, accompanied by 18-year-old friend Brandon Peoples, was walking on a path through a wooded area on the perimeter of his Rainbow Farm Campground farmhouse when Crosslin spotted the agent and raised his rifle to take aim at the marksman.Before he could get a shot off, Crosslin was dead from a shot in his forehead, his head shattered by a round from Salomon's .308-caliber rifle. Special Agent Michael Heffron also fired, with a .223-caliber round from his rifle passing through a small tree, striking Crosslin in the hand and side, according to FBI reports.The next day, Rohm, too, was killed, after setting fire to the farmhouse and leaving it while brandishing a rifle. Rohm was fatally shot through his chest by Michigan State Police Sgt. Dan Lubelan's .308-caliber sniper rifle, according to state police reports.Trooper John Julin shot at Rohm eight times with his semiautomatic rifle, hitting Rohm once in the leg. Lubelan shot at Rohm once more, but did not hit Rohm with his second attempt.Batey is among family members and supporters of Crosslin and Rohm who argue that the standoff didn't have to end as it did."They could have shot him (Crosslin) somewhere else without killing him,'' Batey said.As to what triggered the standoff, no one knows for certain. Some say Crosslin simply was pushed too far, when he was notified his property could be confiscated for his alleged drug activities and facing possible jail time on drug-related charges.Others say Crosslin couldn't cope with the loss of Rohm's then-12-year-old son, Robert, who had been removed from the farmhouse by a court order. He had been raised by the pair since age 4.Although Batey said Crosslin loved his farm enough to die for it, she said it was probably Robert's removal that pushed him over the edge."When they took Robert away, that really hurt him. Robert was like his son,'' she said. "He (Crosslin) was more like a father to him than Rollie.''The siege began on Aug. 31, when Crosslin and Rohm set fire to buildings on the farm property. Fire personnel responded but were turned back after a tip was received that Crosslin and Rohm were dressed in camouflage and had weapons at their disposal.The FBI was summoned after Crosslin allegedly fired at a news helicopter from South Bend's WNDU-TV, Channel 16, flying over the campground. Firing at a helicopter is a federal offense.Despite Cass County Prosecutor Scott Teter's official statements about the standoff, family members and supporters of Crosslin and Rohm continue to question his findings, which ended up clearing FBI and Michigan State Police of wrongdoing in the shootings.Rohm's stepfather, John Livermore of Rogersville, Tenn., has questioned nearly every aspect of Teter's report, from the initial fires at the farm to the shot fired at the helicopter and the way Crosslin and Rohm died.Livermore said that based on reports of private investigators he hired to look into the case, he believes someone other than Crosslin and Rohm set the fires at the campground and fired upon the helicopter. And he said he can prove Rohm was handcuffed before he was shot execution style, although police claim that happened afterward."He was handcuffed and was on his hands and knees when he was shot,'' he said.Rohm was handcuffed, but the prosecutor and Michigan State Police continue to claim the cuffs weren't applied until after Rohm was shot as a precautionary measure. At that point, Rohm was most likely already dead, but Teter points out that police didn't know that for certain as they approached. The state police marksmen had shot Rohm as he raised a rifle to fire at an approaching armored vehicle.Livermore claims Crosslin and Rohm were victims of a conspiracy to steal their farm property. It's a claim Teter has heard before, and one he considers ridiculous.He said the bottom line is that Crosslin and Rohm put themselves in jeopardy when they took up weapons and flaunted the authority of law-enforcement agents."Despite what some people are saying, it was never about money, and it was never about taking away property,'' he said.Still, Elkhart resident Beth Holmes, Rohm's sister, said she believes Rohm not only was unarmed but was trying to give himself up when he was killed. Had she been allowed to talk to Rohm at the farmhouse, as Batey had been allowed to talk with Crosslin, he might be alive today, she said."My brother has always listened to me,'' she said. "Granted, he might be in jail, but he'd be alive.''Another Elkhart resident, Shirley DeWeese, the sister of Crosslin, believes Crosslin and Rohm were set up by someone who wanted their property. She continues to doubt Crosslin was even carrying a gun when he was shot."My brother was carrying a walkie-talkie and part of a coffeepot. ... How could he raise a gun?'' she asked.Family members agree Crosslin and Rohm enjoyed smoking marijuana on occasion, but Batey argued that's where Crosslin drew the line. She said he even had a sign on the farm that read, "No hard drugs.''"One group showed up there once with hard drugs and he put them on the road,'' she said.Batey lost her husband, Luther, to cancer three months after Crosslin's death. It was a bittersweet year for her.But her memories come racing back about the sweet days.She recalls how Crosslin bought Christmas presents for underprivileged children in Vandalia.Holmes said Rohm, too, had a generous nature, referring to him as "a very kind person who would do anything for anybody.''They said they're still hoping to hear the truth about what happened a year ago at Rainbow Farm Campground.For his part, Teter says the truth has already been printed, in the form of his report. His report is backed up by investigations done by the FBI, Michigan State Police and the Cass County Sheriff's Office.For Livermore, it is all not enough.He says he is still contemplating a multimillion-dollar wrongful death suit.Note: Official reports leave them with questions on standoff.Tribune staff writer Adam Jackson contributed to this report.Source: South Bend Tribune (IN)Author: Lou Mumford, Tribune Staff Writer Published: September 2, 2002 Copyright: 2002 South Bend TribuneContact: vop sbtinfo.comWebsite: http://www.southbendtribune.com/Related Articles & Web Site:Tom & Rollie Memorial Pagehttp://freedomtoexhale.com/rb.htmRainbow Farm Going Up for Auction http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread13959.shtmlRainbow Revisited http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread13950.shtmlFBI Agent Kills Rainbow Farm Ownerhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread10809.shtml
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Comment #1 posted by john wayne on September 04, 2002 at 23:16:35 PT
scoff
> Crosslin, accompanied by 18-year-old friend Brandon Peoples, was walking on a path through a wooded area on the perimeter of his Rainbow Farm Campground farmhouse when Crosslin spotted the agent and raised his rifle to take aim at the marksman.yeah, sure. What a convenient story for the murdering state. Crosslin aimed first.   I believe it as much as I believe any other tooth-fairy story about the benevolent government that I read in the corporate press.
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