My name is Bill McManus and I have been battling pot in Calaveras County for over three years. I am a ZERO TOLERANCE activist to rid our county of all commercial cultivation of pot. I know we have to deal with PROP 64 (California’s Recreational Pot Initiative which passed 11/16), but even that law allows for banning outdoor grows based on a county’s jurisdiction to regulate land use.
(Please join those trying to Save Calaveras County. Here is a previous article on the problems and the crime.)
I have seen this criminal enterprise up close and personal. Hundreds, if not thousands of residents are considering leaving our county because of the abuse of the pot cartels. I myself have been assaulted twice and had both of my vehicles vandalized. One thing is crystal clear, if you allow any of it, you get all of it and according to the latest info from Central Valley HIDTA, Calaveras county is rivaling the Emerald Triangle for illegal pot production.
Crime Went Way Up!
In the last two years, crime has gone up 400%. The District Attorney is handling 18 marijuana-related murders in our county, a county with only 45,000 residents!
Our small county has somewhere between 1500 and 2000 illegal grows. We have had human trafficking problems, illegal timber harvests, illegal grading, illegal stream diversions, water theft, destroyed rural roads from water trucks hauling stolen water out to pot grows, one family in the Federal Witness Protection Program because the husband serviced porta potties at a pot grow………the list goes on and on.
If you want to see the ugly side of the pot cartels, give me a call. I will show you what is going on and introduce you to people who are afraid to leave their homes because of nearby pot grows. Identified cartels in this county include, Hmongs, Motorcycle gangs from the valley, Mexican mafia, Russian mafia, Jamaican Cartels, Asian cartels, and refugee cartels from the Emerald Triangle. BAN it, BAN it all. If even one hair’s breadth of opening is given to them, you will LOSE the battle, your lifestyles, your security in your home, and all sense of community.
Grab a flak vest and come visit Calaveras County. By the way, county Code Compliance officials are not allowed to enter any pot grow without a sheriff escort……what about the citizens who remain behind after the inspections?
Check out our website www.bancommercialcultivation.com
Bill McManus, Chair – The Committee to Ban Commercial Cultivation
PS: don’t contact me regarding compromise……the IS the hill I will die on. Join the team on our Facebook page: Ban Commercial Cultivation