cannabisnews.com: Standoff Continues at Campground Owned by Suspect










  Standoff Continues at Campground Owned by Suspect

Posted by FoM on September 01, 2001 at 22:49:51 PT
By The Associated Press 
Source: Associated Press 

A standoff between police and a southwest Michigan campground owner facing drug and weapons charges continued Saturday night, authorities said. A news helicopter from WNDU in nearby South Bend, Ind., was struck by a bullet Friday as it flew over the Rainbow Farm complex, but it landed safely and there were no injuries, the station reported. Cass County sheriff's deputies went to Rainbow Farm -- which describes itself on its Web site as an "alternative campground & concert arena" -- about noon Friday after neighbors said the owner, Grover T. Crosslin, 47, was burning buildings on the property. 
Deputies evacuated six nearby houses and watched from a distance as three buildings burned, Sheriff Joseph Underwood said. About 20 shots were fired from within the campground, he told the South Bend Tribune. The pilot and a cameraman were unaware a bullet had pierced the helicopter's horizontal stabilizer but left the area after police radioed a warning, WNDU news director Ellen Crooke said. "They flew back to South Bend to refuel, and when they did so, the pilot looked at the ship and realized it had been hit," she told The Herald Palladium of St. Joseph for a Saturday story. Police said Saturday that they were not sure about Crosslin's involvement in the fires or the gunplay because a number of other people are on the property, WNDU reported. "This is his home here at Rainbow Farms, and he has no intention of leaving it," Dori Leo, identified by WNDU as Crosslin's attorney, told the station after speaking with Crosslin. "He doesn't intend to hurt anyone. He basically, at this point, just wants to be left alone." Authorities arrested Crosslin and five others on drug charges in May after a two-year investigation into allegations of marijuana use at the 34-acre campground, Underwood said. Crosslin was charged with felony possession of a firearm, growing marijuana and maintaining a drug house. On Friday, he was facing a $150,000 bond revocation hearing because police believed he was violating the terms of his release. Crosslin's property is also the target of civil forfeiture proceedings. "I assume he's upset about the court hearing," Underwood said Friday. The May arrests were made just before Hemp Aid 2001, a Memorial Day weekend event promoting legalization of marijuana. A statement on Rainbow Farm's Web site says it "supports the medical, spiritual and responsible recreational uses of marijuana for a more sane and compassionate America." The FBI will try to determine whether Crosslin or someone else inside Rainbow Farm shot at the helicopter, Special Agent Dawn Clenney said Saturday. "If he shot at an aircraft, that's a federal violation," she said. Crosslin's sister, Shirley DeWeese, of Elkhart, Ind., said her brother wants to be left alone. "I can't talk to him ... he was very angry with the government and the way they have done things," DeWeese told the Tribune. "I just hope he remains cool and calm. He doesn't want all the violence." As many as 30 Crosslin supporters have camped out near the standoff scene since late Friday night, some holding signs reading "Free Tom," and passing out Rainbow Farm t-shirts, WNDU reported. A message posted Thursday on Rainbow Farm's Web site said the campground's Labor Day Weekend Camp-Out was called off. "Bad government has intervened, once again, and closed Rainbow Farm Campground," the message read. Source: Associated PressPublished: September 1, 2001Copyright: 2001 Associated PressRelated Articles & Web Site:Rainbow Farm Campgroundhttp://www.rainbowfarmcamp.com/Standoff Near Vandalia http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread10782.shtmlNews Copter Hit by Bullets in Standoffhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread10781.shtml

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Comment #10 posted by Statesville_NC on September 02, 2001 at 14:03:31 PT:

todays paper
The Sunday paper here in Statesville, NC has the headline "Crime pays--- a rather hefty tax. It is called theunauthorized substance tax and is a state law. When they passed the tax it gave them access to drug money and hence property seizures. I would think there are several ways they can approach confiscation such as proving/saying income tax evasion on drug sales.Anyway in a County of about 110,000 peoples eyes light up when they think they can get $600,000 from someone else. It has a chart on the front page of how much the tax is. For marijuana other than separated stems and seens it is $3.50 for each or fraction of a gram and is imposed if above a minimum of 42.5 grams. Our government sure knows how to serve us alright. End the black market and the corruption of our public institutions. Apply the MJ litmus test. One of the people below commented we need more slogans. That ARMU stuff over at marijuana.com has "I toke & I vote." I submit: "Listen to us or we will litmus you." How did we let this happen?
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Comment #9 posted by rabblerouser on September 02, 2001 at 10:15:15 PT

narcs
I know of an individual who shot and killed a truck driver. He also worked as an informant for the local police deparment. The ammunition used was police issued. Just another murdering thug is what he was and is.
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Comment #8 posted by The GCW on September 02, 2001 at 09:10:12 PT

War Lord.
The Ministry of Christ God is Love. What is the ministry of the War Lord?
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Comment #7 posted by Patrick on September 02, 2001 at 08:59:25 PT

So let's get this straight…
"Crosslin was charged with felony possession of a firearm, growing marijuana and maintaining a drug house."All of these cops and judges and prosecutors must really want his 34 acres. Law enforcement is not a for profit enterprise, unless of course you are talking about the SS troops who seized the wealth of Europe during WW II.I own a gun, I smoke marijuana, and I live in a house that I smoke pot in where the gun is kept or possessed. Oh Sh*t! Everybody I know is a criminal? This is some kind of crime? This forfeiture nonsense was and is a huge mistake. It is nearly as large a mistake as prohibition itself. I pray this situation is resolved without bloodshed.
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Comment #6 posted by Duzt on September 02, 2001 at 08:51:17 PT

Shooting at an aircraft is a violation????
The FBI will try to determine whether Crosslin or someone else inside Rainbow Farm shot at the helicopter, Special Agent Dawn Clenney said Saturday. "If he shot at an aircraft, that's a federal violation," she saidFunny how when an American citizen protects their property like this, it's a violation of federal law. When the Feds help shoot down a plane that has innocent Americans (2 of which are now dead), nobody is charged with anything. Why is it that the laws don't apply to the Feds? It's time to take our country back.
http://www.wonderbuds.com
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Comment #5 posted by Lehder on September 02, 2001 at 08:43:46 PT

America the Psychoward
I read here of people who have been to Rainbow Farm and describe it as "a paradise". There was no trouble there until the police and the feds arrived. They went there out of an irrational hatred for a culture different from their own. It's a hatred exactly akin to Hitler's insane hatred for the Jews, and it needs to be exposed for what it is. But as long as our media are controlled by the Haters, we will hear of nothing beyond "a federal violation." That's as deep as it needs to go for TVland.Understanding the psychological source of their hatred - whether it is some form of resentment, an intellectual incapacity in a technological society, monorchism or whatever - would give us a great edge in discovering how to expose it and render people ashamed to buy into it. But I am convinced it is something like that, some psychological problem fixed in the childhoods of the leading warriors and, like the Hitler phenomenon, resounding with a deficiency or perversion rooted in mass culture.Firing bullets at helicopters only plays into the feds' hands: it is sufficient then for them to display a couple of "druggies" and limit their reports to how authorities are dealing with "a federal violation." We need to dig into the sick brains of these warriors, diagnose them and expose their disease. No one wants to be aligned with perverts and maniacs. 
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Comment #4 posted by lookinside on September 02, 2001 at 08:01:21 PT:

don't be surprised...
if the murders start soon...the drug warriors are desperate...juries won't convict, sowhy have a jury? just kill the evil pot smokers...the mediawill play along and report the incidents as justified...it's gonna get worse before it gets better...
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Comment #3 posted by Lou Vee on September 02, 2001 at 06:55:05 PT:

Which buildings burned?
Can anyone tell me which buildings burned?Presumably the house did not.That leaves the main building (store, lounge, showers and etc), several mobile homes used as offices, the old wooden stage...
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Comment #2 posted by Lou Vee on September 02, 2001 at 06:27:10 PT:

Tom Crosslin is a hero
I know Tom Crosslin, and I have been to Rainbow Farmmany times.Rainbow Farms was a paradise and Tom Crosslin is anAmerican hero much like Paul Revere or Thomas Jefferson.These terrible problems at Rainbow Farm just adds moremotivation to those of us who are working so hard collecting signatures for the PRA ballot initiative.For those not familiar with it (due to the nearly total media blackout of our efforts) when it is passed by the voters of Michigan, the Personal Responsibility Ammendmentwill allow:Medical Marijuana, under a doctor's care, for people of any ageReform of asset forfeitureIndustrial hemp for Michigan's farmersThree ounces, three mature plants and unlimited seedlingsfor adults in the privacy of their home away from children, cars and the public.Pot smokers harm no one - not even themselves. Why are they so persecuted? Upon careful examination, the present American War on Drugs is nearly identical to what Germany did to Jews in the 30's and 40's. The only part that has not happened in Amerika yet is the mass murder.
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Comment #1 posted by George Washington on September 02, 2001 at 06:03:31 PT

stand off
I would have and did do the same. Hang in there Tom, you will win. With the help and support you've got, you can't lose. As my other good friend Tom J. said, "We hold these truths to be self evident." Your good and trusting friend, George Washington
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