Tag Archives: Emerald Triangle

Crimes in Marijuana Country: Exploitation, Rape and Murder

Reveal, the Center for Investigative Reporting records riveting stories about the victims of sexual abuse in the Emerald Triangle.

Reveal has an expose of the abuses and the sexual exploitation of workers who go to the Emerald Triangle to find work.  Among the most horrific stories were:

  • a 12-year-old girl given meth to make her work faster. At age 14 she ran away to a Eureka homeless shelter, “only to discover that pimps were using it as a hunting ground.”
  • Another woman fled a local grow scene on foot after the owner started pressuring her for blow jobs and sex.   (Some people like this end up homeless, having no place else to go.)
  • the rape of 22-year-old by a grower twice her age.  The article recounts the difficulty of prosecuting in a region surrounded by secrecy.   Everyone protects the leaders of the pot industry

We previously published a story about the marijuana and the vulnerable street kids.

No one really knows how deep and wide the sex trafficking is in the Emerald Triangle, but it’s clear that “trimmigrants” go there from around the world and many face exploitation and/or abuse.    Law enforcement is spread thin, and those who are abused don’t feel safe reporting incidences.  Reporting a crime may expose an illegal marijuana grow and jeopardize future job opportunities.

However, Hezekiah Allen, leader of a growers association, wrote a letter to dispute this characterization of the marijuana culture.

Murder Mayhem adds to Crimes

Humboldt County, the sparsely populated county of only 135,000, leads the state in cultivation in marijuana.   It’s murder rate has spiked over the past three years.

In 2014, there were 16 murders.  Last year, 15 people died by homicide.  Two men were gunned down at a marijuana grow over the recent Labor Day weekend.   With the death of another victim on September 5, homicide has claimed the lives of 14 people this year.   The frequency of murder and property crimes may be another reason that police don’t spend as much time on sex crimes.

Those who live in Humboldt County frequently cite drug use and fights over marijuana as the source of this violence.   Marijuana is the drug most often linked to crime.  A study showed that 54% of the criminals arrested in Sacramento tested positive for recent marijuana use.

That idea that legalizing marijuana frees up the police to concentrate on more serious crime is purely bogus.   In fact, it’s marijuana use and marijuana cultivation which make it impossible for the police to keep up with crimes and investigate.

Environmental Damage and Homelessness is also Caused by Marijuana Growers

While these crimes go on, Humboldt County’s marijuana boom is destroying a unique redwood forest and drying up the fishing streams.

California has 21 % of the nation’s homeless, but the problem is particularly strong in Humboldt County.  Homelessness grows when “trimmigrants” come from around the world and try to get into the marijuana industry.  Sometimes they’re stiffed, abused and exploited.

There are nearly 1,300 homeless people in southern Humboldt County and the number may triple with the marijuana harvest each fall.

The Emerald Triangle, America’s Top Pot-Growing Region

Emerald-TriangleThe Emerald Triangle…A Devastating Scene

People who smoke pot may envy the power of the marijuana growers in the Emerald Triangle. Marijuana controls the economy in Humboldt, Trinity and Mendocino Counties of Northern California. Shasta County also has a huge marijuana industry, often hidden in its dense forests. Sometimes the police forces and local governments buy into the trade. But for residents who don’t use pot or drink or use other drugs, the growers and dealers are a major threat to safety and security.

Child abuse and neglect problems are rampant in this area which boasts that it supplies 60% of our nation’s marijuana supply. Many children grow up knowing that no one really cares about them. The violent child murders by marijuana grower Shane Miller is not so surprising in this area.  Last July Marijuana-wax user Matthew Graham, also from Shasta County died in a shootout with police, but he is suspected of killing his baby. It seems like each new case of child abuse is worse than the last, such as the recent discovery in Eureka of two children who died in a storage unit.

The state legislature is afraid to put teeth in any legislation to control the marijuana growers, and right now the Federal Government is providing no funds to go after medical marijuana providers, although so many of these providers cross the line into drug dealing (most of the medical marijuana industry in California).

People who grow marijuana or who have lots of marijuana can make the most money, so the fight for control of this money drives the crime. Here’s news from the Humboldt County Sheriff Department’s about a recent hash oil explosion in Eureka and how it effects other people.

In addition to hash oil explosions, there are many home invasions such as the one that happened on the night of February 28, 2016 in Weitchpec. Welcome to the world of marijuana.

“Victims told deputies at about 9:30 p.m. three males, one armed with a pistol and two with shotguns, entered their residence. The suspects were wearing jackets with Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office emblems. The suspects tied up the victims with zip ties and the suspects demanded marijuana, cash, and guns. The three suspects stole cash and a 2014 white Toyota Tundra pick-up truck prior to leaving the scene.”

Here’s some charts to show a comparison of the crime rate in Humboldt County compared to the rest of the country.

Recently, Time Magazine listed Redding (population about 90,000) in Shasta County as one of the worst places in the country for its growing crime rate:

“There were 1,298 violent crimes in the Redding metro area in 2012, up from 851 violent crimes in 2007. On a standardized, per 100,000 resident basis, violent crime rose more than 53% in that time. Additionally, property crimes rose by more than 50%, the most of any metro area reviewed, despite a nationwide 12.7% decline in such crimes during that time. According to the Redding Record Searchlight, some area residents believe that the area’s high crime rates may be related to marijuana cultivation. Officials in Shasta County — which makes up the Redding metro area — recently elected to ban outdoor growing, although the city of Redding is not included in the ban.”

The Emerald Triangle provides insight into what will happen if the marijuana groups get to control of California and the rest of the United States and Canada.

California Marijuana Impacts on Environment

Negative Ecological Impacts Caused by Illegal Marijuana Grows

Dried out rivers and displaced wildlife is only the beginning of the devastating marijuana impacts on environment.

In this blog we bring to light the damage illegal marijuana grows are causing to the environment. Environmental impacts are widespread in California and Colorado.These problems include the killing of wildlife and aquatic life, illegal use of private land, a rapid increase in energy consumption and the worsening of drought conditions. If we don’t act now to reverse marijuana’s impact on the environment, our ecosystem will be soon be beyond repair.

Continue reading California Marijuana Impacts on Environment