Steve from Cleveland Posted September 20, 2005 Report Share Posted September 20, 2005 Thought I'd share this with you guys... This happened just outside of Toledo, Ohio, about 2 hours from my house. One of my favorite small festivals, and a terrible shame... As you might imagine, the landowners and promoters of the festival are DEVASTATED... Toledo Blade Article 14 arrested on drug charges at RipplefestBLUFFTON, Ohio - This year's September Ripplefest, an open-air concert held in a field on State. Rt. 103, was interrupted last week by a team of undercover police officers who arrested 14 people for drug possession and trafficking.They were arrested after they were seen with or caught attempting to sell drugs.Two were arrested after they tried to sell psilocybin mushrooms to an undercover officer. Three people were arrested for possession of the same narcotic after uniformed officers spotted them sitting around a campfire; two others were arrested for possession of ecstasy when they told an undercover officer about their stash.One person was arrested for having an illegal drug prescription and six others were arrested for possession of marijuana and marijuana paraphernalia.After a few roundups, police officials said the concert organizers announced the presence of undercover police agents at the concert, and the open drug usage dropped significantly."That made everyone a little more careful about what they were doing, not being so open about it," said Sgt. Scott Lowry, unit supervisor of Hancock METRICH, a county-wide drug task force that consists of investigators from the Hancock County Prosecutor and Sheriff's Office, and officers from the Findlay Police Department who performed the operation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpaceWrangler Posted September 21, 2005 Report Share Posted September 21, 2005 Same thing happened at the Haymaker Festival in Virginia last year - largest ecstasy bust in the state ever. This year when we went there was a road block (with dogs) by state police before you even made it to the festival site and once we got in that lineup they did a light search of cars then too. It was crazy and a little unsettling when you're only talking about a festival with a few thousand people, but I guess it's to be expected at this point in time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lazlo Posted September 21, 2005 Report Share Posted September 21, 2005 Shit like this makes me want to go down there with a car full of dog shit bricks. Bust me pigs. I'll gold seal them and everything. Just imagine opening one of those bags up after 8 hrs in a hot trunk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
backbacon Posted September 21, 2005 Report Share Posted September 21, 2005 Wow, that really sucks. Glad you made out okay S from C. Gotta be careful at these damn things now a days. Sneaky little piglets ruining everyone's fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr_Evil_Mouse Posted September 21, 2005 Report Share Posted September 21, 2005 Why is it that I have so few happy memories from Ohio? My first memory there, when I was 14, is of some jackass at an evangelical conference telling a doe-eyed bunch of kids how Janis Joplin died from injecting peanut butter into her veins (seriously - I wouldn't make that up). Then I missed a Dead show there back in the early 90s where my friends were given the third degree by some over-zealous private campground owner. Is Johnny Fever really the best thing (apart from SfC) to come out of there?Sorry, that's facetious, of course - stupidity knows no borders... I'm just unnerved thinking how much of the last election was decided there.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve from Cleveland Posted September 21, 2005 Author Report Share Posted September 21, 2005 Welp, I dunno... I actually kind of LIKE Ohio... And believe it or not, we have some of the most LAX marijuana policy in the country... Posession of under 100grams is a $100 waiverable ticket (Menaing you don't have to go to court or anything, just mail 'em a check)... That said, there was a bunch of speculation that the landowners set up this huge bust to happen... I'm sure that's not true, and as a matter of fact, I am sure that they themselves are facing charges... I emailed them, and was responded to with a THANK YOU for my support, and for posting messages basically telling people to THINK for a second, about why they would sabotage their own DREAM... And how it just wouldn't make ANY sense WHATSOEVER... But that they simply can't talk about it... Only one reason I can think of why that'd be... Anyhow, it sucks... For all involved, really... Funny thing is that it was one of the friendliest, most family-oriented fests around... Anyhow, argh! Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr_Evil_Mouse Posted September 21, 2005 Report Share Posted September 21, 2005 Sorry, SfC, didn't mean to impugn your home turf or anything. I've always thought of it as another Ontario, for what that's worth, and Ontario's been taken over from time to time by conservatives of different stripes, though it be a place to love.What fuckery? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr_Evil_Mouse Posted September 21, 2005 Report Share Posted September 21, 2005 Btw, are you thinking of Czechoslovakia when it was invaded by the Russians, and Utah by the Mormons ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Velvet Posted September 21, 2005 Report Share Posted September 21, 2005 Some of my favourite American memories come from Ohio. Beautiful spot of the world, that. This disturbs me:"Three people were arrested for possession of the same narcotic after uniformed officers spotted them sitting around a campfire"Betcha they have the bummer story of all bummer stories when bummer stories come around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve from Cleveland Posted September 21, 2005 Author Report Share Posted September 21, 2005 Yep... Just sittin' around divyin' up a bag, probably... Anyhow, I guess they were going into people's tents (unzipping them, looking around with flashlights) and when people weren't doing anything, the'd say "Oh, sorry... You're not who we're looking for..."I can only imagine the charges that the people throwing the festie are facing now, too... Which I just thought about. Pretty sorry state of affairs, but from what I heard, undercovers BOUGHT tickets, unbeknownst to the staff, and went in. They then obtained the 'visual evidence' required to get, in effect, a search warrant for the entire premises, and everyone/everything on it...What's different here (as opposed to in Canada, if I'm not mistaken) is that cops don't even NEED a reason to search one's person. They can search someone just walking down the street after approaching them, to ensure that they don't have any weapons, etc... So once on premises, random searches of people become legal too... Ugly...Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Velvet Posted September 21, 2005 Report Share Posted September 21, 2005 Homeland Security. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve from Cleveland Posted September 21, 2005 Author Report Share Posted September 21, 2005 I wish I could blame it on that. Pat down searches, have to my knowledge always been legal here... Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now