Mendocino(California) County now selling zip ties for MMJ legal plants

[Lazyman]

Hmm, but is this progress? Taken from http://drugpolicycentral.com/bot/article/ukiahdailyjournal3957.htm (highlights and bolds are part of the bot, not mine)

Zip-ties to identify medical marijuana plants grown in Mendocino County went on sale for the first time at noon Wednesday. About 1 p.m., a man arrived at the sheriff's headquarters and paid $150 to buy the first six zip-ties sold by the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office.
The voluntary zip-tie program for medical marijuana has been in the works since 2007, when the Sheriff's Office provided free identification ties.
"If law enforcement shows up and these are attached and everything else is in compliance," Sheriff Tom Allman said, "the plants will not be eradicated."
The blue zip ties with a serial number sell for $25 each; they will be available to veterans and Medi-Cal qualified medical patients for half price. Medical marijuana zip-ties will be available at Sheriff's Offices in Ukiah, Willits and Fort Bragg.
Because of needed approval from the county Board of Supervisors and finalization of the details, the program was not able to start before now.
"I wish we could have been selling these in April," Allman said.
To buy six zip-ties like those sold Wednesday afternoon, bring a California medical marijuana card or a physician's recommendation to the Sheriff's Office front desk.
Zip-ties or tags expire either at the end of the calendar year they were sold in or when a medical marijuana card expires, is taken away, or surrendered, according to the Sheriff's Office policy. Zip-ties cannot be transferred from person to person or to next of kin.
The policy
also states that some or all zip-ties can be given to a designated care giver. Zip-ties are not good in other counties and cannot be replaced if they are lost or stolen, according to the Sheriff's Office.
Confidentiality has been one concern for the program and at one time it looked as though the county's Health and Human Services department would sell zip-ties.
The Sheriff's Office makes a copy of a medical marijuana card, but name, address, phone number, driver's license or medical condition are not asked.

 

[bterzz]

If they want people to stay in compliance give them the fucking zip-ties for free.
Sounds like a cheap-ass way to make some extra cash.

 

[FreedomFGHTR]

All of you people that are in favor of have "legal grows" with plant count limits take note of this garbage. The plant count police, how lame.

 

[DoobieDuck]

"If law enforcement shows up and these are attached and everything else is in compliance," Sheriff Tom Allman said, "the plants will not be eradicated."

So what is the alternative...it should be like this ^^ even if these zip ties are not used..shouldn't it? Or does this mean that if you are not using zip ties they eradicate your plants then check to see if you are in compliance? I'm not in favor of this...and that's putting it nicelly! DD

 

[Ocean Grown]

It's a rip off. To charge this much in an area that has such a low per capita income is also pretty ugly business.

Plus why do you have to buy your "innocence"?? Tags aren't required by law to receive protection under the law. It's a "protection racket" same as paying the mafia money not to burn your business down.

 

[Lazyman]

Yep, I think we should all consider this a medicinal MJ tax, plain and simple. The Sheriff and DA should know where 90% of their counties money comes from (no shit!) and leave it alone unless they want to join the other bankrupt counties!

 

[Open Eyes]

Just another way of "stealth taxing" the plant all the while STILL keeping it under wraps and illegal. This is a bad idea and i do not support it at all.

Post your documentation in highly visible places and they will still leave them alone and you wont need to pay the "MAN".

 

[10k]

It's a rip off. To charge this much in an area that has such a low per capita income is also pretty ugly business.

Plus why do you have to buy your "innocence"?? Tags aren't required by law to receive protection under the law. It's a "protection racket" same as paying the mafia money not to burn your business down.

I agree, this is just like a mafia pay to play racket !

Like Open Eyes had mentioned about legal documentation.
If you already have all the legal paperwork covered, then why would one need to pay for the zip ties.

Are they using this silly zip tie thing as an excuse to enforce a plant count limitation ?
Is there a plant count limitation in the mmj laws in Mendocino county ?
If so, then the tags should be free or at a very very cheap price, like ten cents each.

You folks need to organize a petition and complain at the public county board meetings asap.

 

[JWH-018]

It's not a rip off, it's meaningless. Buying the zip ties is 100% voluntary as the Sheriff seems to have to point out in every interview - only this time the high integrity journalism at the ukiah daily journal left it out. The solitary benefit having a zip tie might give is that the sheriff's department would be out of your legal grow even faster than before. Tear down an otherwise legal grow without one? Not on your life. Not only is it meaningless and voluntary, it's based on measure b, a ballot item that was considered unconstitutional a month before it was voted on and mendo's never considered trying to enforce it. And yeah, the Sheriff got his buddy to come in and pretend to buy a couple on the first day for the press... since it'd be the only ones they ever sold.

I understand why people might still be upset even after all those meaningless and voluntary caveats, but personally it cracks me up. I started out helping with a few decent indoor grows in the area a couple of years before 215. Fast forward to today when a frustrated old sheriff's three year master plan to harass growers by charging them about twice what their clone cost couldn't be put into place until every bit of it was gutted and rendered useless.

His anti-grow enforcement plan for next year will be to sit in a chair on his front lawn and shake his fist at passing traffic until it's nap time.

It seems like a fitting eulogy for the old guard to me.

I’m not sure if I want to participate in this program. If I don’t participate, do I give up any rights? Will my non-participation be considered suspicious?

This program is entirely voluntary. We aren’t required to provide it, and you aren’t required to participate. You don’t give up any rights if you decide you don’t want to participate. We’ve specifically told our deputies that non-participation in the zip-tie program will never be used as evidence of any crime.

http://www.mendocinosheriff.com/services/medicalmarijuana/MMProgramPoints.pdf

 

[ddrew]

Just another way of "stealth taxing" the plant all the while STILL keeping it under wraps and illegal.".

Yes

 

[HarryNugz]

If i was in that county i'd say thanks, but no thanks! The cops just want to make their job as easy as possible. Post your recommendation and let them make the call to verify with your Dr. I'd be curious to hear from someone without tags and is legal what the outcome was after a LE visit for whatever reason. Are they still calling to verify? What if your Dr. is only in on tue and thurs. like mine and the cops can't verify the same day. What will they do? Tear your grow down because they don't want to wait an extra day to verify?
What's the rush?

 

[headimonster]

...its very up in the air - it seems--, ....and when they see the zip-ties is it a welcoming to "check out" the garden....i've known many people who have been harassed by meaningless visits by the Mendocino Sheriff regime, bustin out the measuring tape and measuring canopy size 10x10....and threatening to destroy everything for the plant that was outside the 10x10....face it, California is broke, and its a good way for them to try to tax the herb---but until there is actually some action FOR THE PEOPLE, i don't see anyone rushing to zip-tie their ganja stalks....imo