22-Year Prison Term for Modesto Marijuana Seller

[vta]

URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v08/n1055/a09.html


22-YEAR PRISON TERM FOR MODESTO MARIJUANA SELLER

FRESNO -- A Modesto man was sentenced in this afternoon to more than two decades in prison for operating a medical marijuana dispensary.

Luke Scarmazzo, 28, was sentenced to 262 months in prison -- 21 years, 10 months -- in U.S. District Court in Fresno. His co-defendant, Ricardo Ruiz Montes, 28, was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

Both were convicted in May of manufacturing marijuana and distributing the drug, as well as operating a continuing criminal enterprise. The two men operated a medical marijuana dispensary known as the California Healthcare Collective that was raided by law enforcement officials in September 2006.

 

[Greyskull]

fuck this isn't really good news.
Is Obama gonna pardon him?
thanks for te 411 vta

 

[okwildfire]

fuck this isn't really good news.
Is Obama gonna pardon him?
thanks for te 411 vta

lol..ummm fuck no he wont....man..thats so screwed up...22 year's MY ASS! you got kid didler's getting off with a slap on the wrist! MURDER...oh about 2-5 year's...make's me wanna PUKE!

 

[FyahBlaZe]

This sentence is f_cked up ,the feds are just making an example out of this guy. He wasnt your typical dispensary owner though, he was a rap artist too and not a good one in my opinion.

He was on 60 minutes a while back check it out..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0vGOOpXi1M

Heres the rap video .Check the 20 to life thread.
http://krazmusic.com/video.swf

 

[inflorescence]

Luke got caught up in a lot of the hype that a lot of the users here are caught up in.

Let this be a lesson.

20 ain't no joke.

Be happy with your 6 mature/12 immature.

 

[kmk420kali]

Luke got caught up in a lot of the hype that a lot of the users here are caught up in.

Let this be a lesson.

20 ain't no joke.

Be happy with your 6 mature/12 immature.

Fuck you!! Sorry, but damn man...why are you always on the other side?? He was not doing anything except making $$ off weed-- Can you please tell me anything else, that is legal...but you cannot make $$ from??
It seems funny that all the "Bad" drugs...are the untaxed ones...eh?

 

[inflorescence]

It seems funny that all the "Bad" drugs...are the untaxed ones...eh?

Yet, it's reality.

I didn't write the rules.

The only way they were gonna give Mj to the populace was with the condition that no profit was going to be made.

They wouldn't have accepted anything else and you were in no position to tell them them otherwise.

You've got a better chance at democracy if you move to A'Dam.

 

[Greyskull]

Fuck you!! Sorry, but damn man...why are you always on the other side?? He was not doing anything except making $$ off weed-- Can you please tell me anything else, that is legal...but you cannot make $$ from??
It seems funny that all the "Bad" drugs...are the untaxed ones...eh?

BRAVO!
Quit being a hater 'flo!

 

[FyahBlaZe]

Fuck you!! Sorry, but damn man...why are you always on the other side?? He was not doing anything except making $$ off weed-- Can you please tell me anything else, that is legal...but you cannot make $$ from??
It seems funny that all the "Bad" drugs...are the untaxed ones...eh?

BOOO this man!!! You sound like a total prick or a cop or both.
We should all stick together no matter what or youll be next maybe inflor.

 

[kmk420kali]

Yet, it's reality.

I didn't write the rules.

The only way they were gonna give Mj to the populace was with the condition that no profit was going to be made.

They wouldn't have accepted anything else and you were in no position to tell them them otherwise.

You've got a better chance at democracy if you move to A'Dam.

No, it is not "Reality"...and you don't even understand the rules...I never thought you wrote them--
You CAN charge for MMJ!! You can recoup your growing costs and materials..AND you can make a salary!!
And...dude...I just don't understand why you always seem to be on their side...saying, "That's how it is"-- Damn, if everybody did that, it would still be a felony for a joint everywhere!! It is called, Fighting for our common Cause...but you seem to be happy with whatever bone they toss ya--
I will not be satisfied, until Marijuana is re-classified...AS AN HERB!!! And every person in the Country is able to smoke AND build a business out of Marijuana (if they so choose)--

 

[AndreNicky]

I will not be satisfied, until Marijuana is re-classified...AS AN HERB!!! And every person in the Country is able to smoke AND build a business out of Marijuana (if they so choose)--

Amen, K+ brotha

 

[GET MO]

he used ta make raps in his alphabet soup tho!

 

[G4life]

Luke got caught up in a lot of the hype that a lot of the users here are caught up in.

Let this be a lesson.

20 ain't no joke.

Be happy with your 6 mature/12 immature.

Hmmmm.....Do I smell Bacon????...Sounds like somethin a PIG would say....Who's fukkin side are you on???...

 

[Rainman]

People! While I am loathe to be mistaken for being a PIG or on Flo's side, he has a point. As long as you ignore the reality of your situation you are doomed to fall victim to it. He didn't write the rules or enforce them but your gov. does! Until your gov. changes them they are the rules 'you' have! You had better start paying attention to every side of this fight or you will begin to see an upwelling of events like the revocation in Arcata and mass closings of dispensaries. As long as you only look at this issue from a single perspective and degrade and ignore all whose stance differs, you will accomplish nothing and will end up losing more than you ever gain. Is Flo hard to deal with and abrasiveness in his approach? Hell yes! Is his argument/stance any less legit than any of ours? Hell no! So lets stop calling people who disagree with your stance cops. That helps no one and looks childish to all. Last I checked, you all had the same thing to lose.

 

[Pops]

As much as I dislike the attitudes shown by Inflorescense, he has a right to his viewpoint(though it is not generally welcome here). He does,however, need to read up on his law and learn that the Mendocino Appellate Court ruling threw out the 6 mature and 12 immature law as being unconstitutional. However,the new Cali Supreme Court ruling very narrowly defined the standards to be considered a caregiver, so as to eliminate everyone that is not spending a large amount of time taking care of someone. you can no longer consider yourself a caregiver if you merely grow pot for a medical patient. That will open the door for law enforcement to raid many who consider themselves or claim to be caregivers. It will not affect me as I spend many hours each day caring for a son afflicted with ALS, but it may affect many others.

 

[G4life]

Yeah that new ruling sucks about the caregiver situation...I dont think it will effect me at all either since I caregive for My Wife and my Mother-In-law....

 

[Mossad]

You would of thought he would of had a heads up and some money stashed overseas to fly the coup.

I can't say I am all for giving it to anyone in large ammounts, some people don't need it; they just become more arrogant....(not a far stretch for any person).

It's a personal thing but people want to make a religion out of it and that is devistating to control.......which is always needed but flexible remains the main issue at hand.......things that flex to much slap back and hit you in the face!

I hate hearing about people getting rich off of others...others that are usually to always suffering. I also hate hearing about young kids going away for so long, cannabis is deeply political so being young really has less to do with it than you would of thought......that is just way to long and not a fair use of the three strike law, drugs shouldn't be a part of that.....it's mostly time to redesign the crime and "punishment" system.......punishment is usually about establishing a pattern of control and Idol worship (uncle sam).....not about real human behaviors.......there is no such thing as extreme human behaviors, we all experience the whole package...some just get to look like the toughest or the "saints" and nobody is one or the other but in fact both.

It's a really bad situation, my state won't pass it.......might after some time but it's a real issue about people riding on the backs of the "medical" term.......not like pharmi's being dolled out to young kids isn't the same deal either......things just get serious in court and outside of that realm really quite "human".

 

[Tony Aroma]

There are times when I'm embarrassed to be an American. This is one of them. I don't care how many plants this guy grew or how much money he made. Going to jail for 20 years for growing and selling a plant, a non-violent victimless crime, is ridiculous. It's the definition of cruel and unusual punishment. This is in a country where the average federal sentence for murder, sexual abuse, or kidnapping is 7 years. Where you can endanger the lives of others by driving under the influence of alcohol (2-3 times) and not go to jail at all. What's happened to our priorities?

 

[smokn1]

I could not agree more Tony. Sometimes embarrassing being an American. To be punished for a plant that has never been proven to be harmful and has been proven to be benificial is an absolute joke.

 

[Rainman]

Peoples these guys were not runnin a disp. to take care of the sick or too contribute to the well being of patients! They were making tons of money which they used to create rapper lifestyles and super flashy personas. If you have been to Modesto you know it is tiny and very conservative. How long do you think it took the pigs to zero in on these two and what was goin on? Yes they were kinda young but they were basically running a drug house from a business location. Dont be mad at your country for enforcing the laws we voted in to existence. Be mad at jackasses that want to pay for big homes, drive expensive cars, and drop rap albums with their drug profits. Then when arrested hide behind mj laws designed to help the sick. The same sick that they are charging ridiculous prices. In my eyes they got what they deserved by doing it the way they did. The laws weren't designed for clowns to make loads of cash off the sick but to help the sick. Think about it we already had a section of the community doin that job. The same dealers we were trying to break free from have now simply opened dispensaries. And they raised their prices on us to boot!

Murder = 7 year sentence? I dont think so my friend. Embarrassed to be American? Over a two drug dealers getting what they deserved? You two have love for Kraz "the businessman" so he can take his stacks of your cash to help him pay for his appeal it looks like!