Texas teen could get life in prison for allegedly making pot brownies.

[liberty2897]

This guy could use some help right about now.

Texas... not a good place to be for pot smokers.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/texas-teen-life-prison-allegedly-making-batch-pot-brownies-article-1.1799914


A Texas teen faces life in prison after he allegedly mixed in some hash oil along with marijuana in a batch of pot brownies.

Jacob Lavoro, 19, faces a felony charge and five year to life in prison as punishment after cops in Round Rock busted him last month with a pound of weed, 1.5 pounds of the laced baked goods, digital scales, some $1,675 in cash and baggies of marijuana and 145 grams of hash oil.

Because he used hash oil in the brownies, prosecutors can aggregate the total weight of the treats in the charge. And hash oil is prosecuted more harshly because it has a higher THC content the normal, leafy pot.

"It's outrageous, it's crazy! I don't understand it,” the teen’s father, Joe Lavoro, told KEYE-TV after a recent court appearance. "Five years to life? I'm sorry, I'm a law abiding citizen. I'm a conservative. I love my country. I'm a Vietnam veteran, but I'll be damned ... this is wrong, this is damn wrong!"


Joe Lavoro says his son may have committed a crime — but does not deserve life in prison for a relatively minor offense.
The drug - in any form - is legal, of course, for recreational use by adults in Colorado. But strict laws in Texas could make Lavoro, who has a clean record, a felon.

"I was outraged,” the teen’s attorney, Jack Holmes, told the news station. “I've been doing this 22 years as a lawyer and I've got 10 years as a police officer and I've never seen anything like this before."

The county prosecutor told the Associated Press that other factors, like someones prior record, can affect how a case is prosecuted and a plea deal is always possible.

Records show Lavoro bonded out of jail earlier this month after three weeks locked up. He’s next due in court June 19.

"If he did something wrong he should be punished but to the extent that makes sense,” Joe Lavoro told KEYE. “This is illogical. I'm really upset, and I'm frightened, I'm frightened for my son."

[kcchiefs6465]

If only he had the 40 grams of freedom others are blessed to see!

Then he'd only be facing, well, life in jail.

[kcchiefs6465]

Bump for freedom.

http://i.imgur.com/MKH2Lkf.jpg?1

[Anti Federalist]

"It's outrageous, it's crazy! I don't understand it,” the teen’s father, Joe Lavoro, told KEYE-TV after a recent court appearance. "Five years to life? I'm sorry, I'm a law abiding citizen. I'm a conservative. I love my country. I'm a Vietnam veteran, but I'll be damned ... this is wrong, this is damn wrong!"

Joe Lavoro did this to...his son.

[specsaregood]

./

[kcchiefs6465]

The title of this thread is inaccurate and misleading. He isn't facing those penalties for simply making pot brownies; obviously he was dealing drugs and that's the reason for the stiff penalties.
'Obviously'? It isn't obvious to me from what you've quoted.

And furthermore, what would it matter if it were?

And yes, some [fucked up] states will sentence you to decades for mere possession of a plant or plant derivative.


Texas: Possession of more than 400 g of hash and hash concentrates: Felony, 10 years-life, Fine of up to: $ 50,000

From the article:


Because he used hash oil in the brownies, prosecutors can aggregate the total weight of the treats in the charge. And hash oil is prosecuted more harshly because it has a higher THC content the normal, leafy pot.

[specsaregood]

'Obviously'? It isn't obvious to me from what you've quoted.
Well its damn obvious to me.



And furthermore, what would it matter if it were?

The pot brownies are not the primary reason he is facing such a stiff sentence. The guy was dealing drugs; its not like he didn't know it was against the law. He took his chances and got busted.

[fr33]

Well its damn obvious to me.


The pot brownies are not the primary reason he is facing such a stiff sentence. The guy was dealing drugs; its not like he didn't know it was against the law. He took his chances and got busted.

He's being charged for having more cannabis than he was caught with. They are prosecuting him for an amount of cannabis that his amount of hash oil would come from even though he was not caught with such an amount. Me personally, I think all cops and prosecutors involved should be shot in the head and the defendant let loose. People were willing to buy his product. He's a hero to those people. The cops and prosecutors are the enemy. May they die in a horrible one car accident on their way home.

*edit: And yes I felt the same way about Ariel Castro. Kill the kidnapper and free the victim.

[tod evans]

These bastards have been doing this exact same thing with other "drugs" for decades..

Thousands of good people have died in prison cells so some POS prosecutor could make headlines.

Hope this kid's not another...

[kcchiefs6465]

Well its damn obvious to me.
This reminds of the press making a big deal when Tommy Chong got busted with a pound. His interviews were pretty telling on the matter. You have a pound of sugar in your home, correct? Now who is going to need a pound of sugar at any given time. You're a sugar seller. A notorious one at that.

The fact remains that having a pound of a commodity is not in itself evidence of anything. He could be preparing for the future. He could have gotten a good deal if he bought in bulk. He could live with people who smoke. He could be a heavy smoker. A pound is negligible. Whether it's cannabis cookies or buds.

And I care not of what the average person smokes or has the resources to keep on hand.

Tommy Chong made the statement that he was surprised that that was all they found. Normally they kept a few pounds on hand. Needless to say, Tommy Chong wasn't selling weed.

So then I'd move onto the baggies found. What kind of baggies were there? And furthermore, who doesn't have baggies in their home? I certainly don't partake in any drugs yet guess what, I've got sandwich baggies, quart freezer bags, gallon freezer bags, and bags to separate meats. This isn't the USSR. Plastic containers have more of a use than simply being convenient for drug sales. Not only that, I'd be surprised of someone not having sandwich baggies. This adds nothing with regards to evidence. They might as well introduce a lighter, or matches to the trial. Or the gasoline in his tank.

I suppose I'll move onto the scale. First, aside from the fact that many have digital scales for cooking/baking, and uh.. he was baking things, he had a pound of cannabis. How was he to know when he purchased said pound, that the weight was what it was supposed to be? That it wasn't short an ounce or two? Having a scale is not indicative of someone selling drugs. It is not even necessarily indicative of someone using drugs. Only when it is convenient for a fascist's photo-op is this factoid thrown in, same as the grand presenting of plastic bags as evidence.

As to the money, this 'drug dealer' [allegedly] had a pound a cannabis, 145 grams of hash oil, and 1.5 pounds of baked goods (which to be clear, since they weighed the entire baked good, we could just be talking about one cake, or a pan of brownies) and $1,675. A whopping $1,600 dollars. $1,600. Forgive me for being frank, a McDonald's worker could well have $1,600 dollars. Maybe this gentleman was robbed one too many times by the bank? Maybe it was easier to keep track of purchases and the amount of money he had when debit card fees (as well as the other random things they charge you for) aren't randomly subtracted?


The pot brownies are not the primary reason he is facing such a stiff sentence. The guy was dealing drugs; its not like he didn't know it was against the law. He took his chances and got busted.
The primary reason is because they weighed the baked good and charged him in that equivalent as if the entire thing was (or could possibly be) hash oil. THAT is the reason.

And furthermore, I don't care if he was selling crack cocaine. He shouldn't be put in a cell for it. He offered a service (simply assuming for argument's sake that he did... though what you've quoted proves nothing). People wanted what he offered. He violated no one. The police, using admittedly shady tactics to exaggerate what he really had, abducted him. They put him a cage. They violated his rights.

Now we can argue whether or not if what the fascists in Texas have been brainwashed to vote for in opposition to the minority's rights could be some sort of guidance for how the jackboots who abducted him acted, but I'd feel rather remiss if I didn't point out that 'just following orders' is no defense for criminal action. I'd also feel rather remiss if I didn't point out that the statutes he violated were enacted largely because of a racist culture and the want to 'protect' white women from Mexican drug users/sellers.

[TomtheTinker]

I'm looking at a year in and a year out and I think that's ridiculous. 5 to life is pure insanity.

I'm pretty stressed about losing my gun rights because of it but that's another story

[PaulConventionWV]

Joe Lavoro did this to...his son.

The cognitive dissonance is strong in this one.

[PaulConventionWV]

Well its damn obvious to me.


The pot brownies are not the primary reason he is facing such a stiff sentence. The guy was dealing drugs; its not like he didn't know it was against the law. He took his chances and got busted.

Yeah. He did this to himself, right?

[asurfaholic]

how can someone get life in prison for something that is legal a few states away?

kinda says something about whether or not something is "criminal." Where's the victim, show the evidence that someone was harmed. JUSTIFY the stiff penalty with real facts, not simple possession or "intent" to distribute crap. Distribution of anything is not a crime.

[specsaregood]

./

[specsaregood]

Randal mentioned this case in his interview with Greta last night.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Os48tcXarjU&feature=player_detailpage#t=147

[dannno]

I guess the slaves in the south shouldn't have taken the underground railroad knowing that they might be shot, afterall, what they were doing was illegal.

We should all just submit to slavery and accept the consequences. Have I got that right specs?

[specsaregood]

I guess the slaves in the south shouldn't have taken the underground railroad knowing that they might be shot, afterall, what they were doing was illegal.

We should all just submit to slavery and accept the consequences. Have I got that right specs?

We should make up inane accusations and form them as a question. Have I got that right dannno?

[dannno]

We should make up inane accusations and form them as a question. Have I got that right dannno?

Why do you make excuses for kidnappers? Is there really any difference between what is happening to this guy and what a serial killer does when they put somebody in a cage in their basement?

[specsaregood]

Why do you make excuses for kidnappers? Is there really any difference between what is happening to this guy and what a serial killer does when they put somebody in a cage in their basement?

Huh? Where did I make excuses for "kidnappers"? For that matter, where did I come out in favor of these laws or sending him to jail? I simply pointed out that the headline and article are misleading and stated the facts as I see them. He was dealing drugs and got busted. He wasn't entrapped as far as I can tell, he wasn't abused, blackmailed or forced to break the law.

[Slave Mentality]

Crimes against the state are no crimes at all. THERE IS NO VICTIM HERE, so there is no crime, unless you count violation of state penal code C6.2-4a.1. When it happens in other countries it is called "political prisoners" I think, or is he a prisoner of war in the war on drugs? Which is it?

Who was harmed here, other than the evil drug dealer, who is part of the machine now? It is bullshit. Trying to defend it is no good. Throwing words around like "laws" and "felony" are a horrible way to defend the charges against the state he now faces. All it does is validate the barbaric laws to begin with. You either support the war on drugs and think this stuff is cool, or you don't. It is not logical to say "I think the laws suck, but he did commit a felony and knew what he was doing". Like said above, the underground railroad would be a good subject for you to study, or alcohol prohibition, or the Salem witch trials maybe. I have NEVER been bothered by a drug dealer, but I have been accosted by the state goons many times.