Rev. Roger Christie
On July 9, 2010, Hawai`i Cannabis Ministry founder, Rev. Roger Christie, was arrested (along with 13 other brothers and sisters of the Ministry) by federal agents. The Green 14 were charged with various counts of Marijuana farming and trafficking. The homes of many of the accused have been seized, and slated for police forfeiture.
The Federal Trial is expected to begin in August, 2012. Thirteen of the accused were released on bond almost immediately. Roger Christie has been denied bond and remains imprisoned at the Honolulu Federal Detention Center.
The purpose of this website is to track the unfolding of the Last Marijuana Trial….
Now meet the Green 14…
- Pakalolo promoter indicted along with 13 colleagues
- 14 plead not guilty, 8 held after Big Isle pot arrests
- Officials Unveil Big Island Marijuana Case
- Drug bust nets leader of Big Island marijuana ministry
- Cannabis Minister Roger Christie Refused Bail in Religious Freedom Case
- Hawaii Cannabis Ministry founder ordered held without bail
- Marijuana Minister Arrested & Deemed “Too Dangerous” For Bail
- Big Island March Held For Jailed Marijuana Activist
Paul Stanford
on Aug 11th, 2010
@ 7:59 am:
Roger Christie is an honorable, peaceful and brave man who is being persecuted for speaking the truth to power for our freedom. The forces of ignorance, evil and darkness are afoot. We know that cannabis is the most sacred gift of the Creator to humanity. Let our people grow! Let our people go! Free Roger Christie! Stop the lies about cannabis that cause so much suffering in the world! Cannabis is the healing of the nations! Hemp for victory!
Never give up. Persistence pays. Never doubt that we can do it. Our time is going to come. Freedom isn’t free. We can set the captives free, just like we ended apartheid in South Africa.
Cannabis hemp catalyzed civilization. All archeologists agree that hemp was among the first crops purposely cultivated by humans, and may be the first. Over 12,000 years ago, people began growing hemp and its cultivation spread from its indigenous home in the Himalayas of Tibet, Nepal & Kashmir, to the Yellow River valley in China and the Tigris/Euphrates River valley in Iraq, the cradles of agriculture.
The key to so many problems in our world today is cannabis, the Tree of Life. Cannabis hemp will displace petrochemical & pharmaceutical corporations that dominate our politics today, and decentralize wealth and influence at a time of growing technological advancement. Stop the drug war before they kick in your door. For those facing execution for anti-cannabis laws in Malaysia and elsewhere, work for global cannabis freedom. For those languishing in jails and prisons for anti-cannabis laws everywhere, work for global cannabis freedom. For our forests, the web of life and the Mother Earth, which suffers from extraction of her resources and poisoning of our environment, work for global cannabis freedom. For economic and political justice, work for global cannabis freedom. For our brothers and sisters and all that have fallen along the way, work for global cannabis freedom. Amen.
Tomas Belsky
on Aug 27th, 2010
@ 8:00 am:
Thomas Jefferson said and lived “…Political realism trumps Political theory.” Keep the latter in mind while we work within the former. A blanket has been tossed over the spirit of Hilo (if not all Hawai’i Are there rogue elements at work? If there is no validity to the First Amendment the social contract is null and void. I understand the Hawaiian Kingdom accepts the use and cultivation of cannabis as legitimate, legal and protected as a fundamental right of citizens.
spence.deborah87
on Aug 28th, 2010
@ 7:02 am:
I came to Hilo 5 years ago, from Kaua’i. to help Rev. Christie.
My first website is The Growing Hemp Debate Business growinghempdebate.biz
Should We Grow Hemp To Save Our Economy OR To Save To Our Souls ?
I am the artist known as the “Tree of Life” Matron Saint Josephine Beatrice Jesus Christ I Am Anointed with My Sacramental Herb Sweet Maryjane So To Be Closer To The Holy of Holies
I am now running for Lt. Gov under the new FREE ENERGY PARTY.
freeenergyparty.net
I am the only candidate (70+) who is talking about Hemp !
A VOTE FOR ME - IS A VOTE FOR ROGER
The Last Marijuana Trial » Cannabis Charity Plans New March for Roger Christie
on Sep 6th, 2010
@ 1:46 am:
[…] Meet Roger Christie and the Green 14 […]
Paul J. von Hartmann
on Sep 8th, 2010
@ 2:28 am:
An Open Letter to Hon. MICHAEL B. SHAPIRO, FLORENCE T. NAKAKUNI! and MICHAEL K. KAWAHARA,
http://californiacannabisministry.blogspot.com/2010/09/open-letter-to-hon-michael-b-shapiro.html
Our freedom to farm ” every herb bearing seed” is the first test of religious freedom. The imprisonment of Reverend Roger Christie, AND REFUSAL OF BAIL, is clearly a threat to national security.
Roger’s incarceration insults historical sacrifice and retards the evolution of respect for the ancient Cannabis culture, which is essential for resolving compounding crises we are facing in the 21st Century. While it is true that the failure to act in defense of national security is a crime known as “misprision of treason” perhaps the best way to effect Roger’s release is to simply ask politely…
Please, effect the Release of Reverend Roger Christie immediately. Roger is not a threat to his community. Reverend Christie is in fact of enormous value and benefit to the people of the Big Island and the world. When people learn what you have done, the punishment for your actions will be severe. It is no small thing to take away the freedom of a champion of freedom. The work of the Hawaiian THC Ministry, in teaching spiritual regard for ‘marijuana,’ is helping to balance abuse of hard drugs and alcohol in Hawaii. You must know this.
The world is quickly growing into realization of the true value of the Cannabis plant. If you don’t know what that is by now, in observing the activities of Roger Christie, then it can be concluded that you are not qualified to serve the best interests of the people of Hawaii, and will be asked to step down from your position of responsibility in the very near future.
for peace, with Aloha,
Paul J. von Hartmann California
Cannabis Ministry
Project PEACE
Paul J. von Hartmann
on Sep 8th, 2010
@ 2:47 am:
I pray that there is enough love and legal purchase in the following documents to effect the immediate release of the right Reverend Roger Christie. Love is the Limit of Law, and the entire world that is soon to know of Roger, is about to love him dearly, all the way out of prison…
“Essential Civilian Demand” in the form of A Formal Individual Complaint to the U.S.Government
1. Formal Individual Complaint to the U.S.Government
http://formalcomplaint.blogspot.com/
“Cannabis prohibition is transcended by understanding Truth.”
“A Federally empowered global electronic document to challenge the prohibition of Cannabis, a unique and essential natural resource.”
2. “The Fundamental Challenge of Our Time”
http://fundamentalcoot.blogspot.com/
“The Natural Right to farm “every herb bearing seed” is immutable, beyond morally accountable government jurisdiction.”
3. The Limit of Law
http://projectpeace.blogspot.com/
“At what point does a law become so transparently perverse that it ceases to command respect? When do truth, morality and reason over-rule an unjust, environmentally, economically and socially degenerative law? In the absence of accountability for the truth, is there an obligation to obey such a law, or is there a moral obligation to disobey it?”
Drugs don’t make seeds, herbs do. The legal distinction is profound in determining what is afforded by commonly regarded scripture. Substantive due process and strict scrutiny apply.
Set Roger Christie free or the full breadth of legal reason will be applied — in and of itself, sufficient and ample to enforcing the supreme Law of the Land.
Zen Yogi
on Sep 9th, 2010
@ 4:35 pm:
I have GREAT CONCERN SINCE ROGER IS THE MAN W/ MORE INTEGRITY N ALOHA THEN MOST ON THE PLANET.!!-
NOW HE’S DOING TIME 4 ALL OF US.
I HAVE BEEN JAILED 3’XS 4 THE GREEN HERB 1 IN MONTH IN NEPAL INDIA 4 HASH THAT ALMOST KILLED ME
1 TIME IN HONOLULU 4 A FEW 6 INCH TALL PLANTS. YEA 4 REAL ” IT TOOK 3 WEEKS FOR A 1 MINUTE TRIAL TO TELL ME THAT THAT WAS NOT KOOL 2 GROW GODS HERB.
AN 1 TIME 4 HALF A JOINT!!
SO IT SHOWS HOW SCREWED THE GOV CAN BE
IM BEHIND U TO THE END ROG. I WILL GIVE AS MUCH SUPPORT AS I CAN JUST TELL ME WHAT 2 DO!
[email protected]
Becky
on Sep 14th, 2010
@ 10:47 pm:
Karl Denninger has a great post today on the “Drug Wars” and I thought you guys would appreciate it.
http://market-ticker.org/akcs-www?post=166589
From the WSJ:
The growing tendency here to question U.S. drug policy has nothing whatsoever to do with ideology or an affinity for drugs. Rather, it is an acknowledgment that while the “war on drugs” has done nothing to curb the U.S. appetite for mind-altering substances, its unintended consequence has been to empower organized crime networks. These gangs, which aggressively target children as customers and low-level employees on both sides of the border, are undermining the economy and the quality of life in the binational El Paso-Juárez metropolitan region.
Right. Just like Prohibition did nothing to curb the people’s desire to take a drink, but it sure did provide lots of money for Capone and his pals to run around shooting up Chicago and other cities with Tommy Guns.
In point of fact “The War on (certain) Drugs” was never about drugs at all.
There’s plenty of evidence that Harry Anslinger, widely-credited as the “father” of drug prohibition in America, was effectively bribed by Dupont, the Hearsts and various pharmaceutical companies. DuPoint (chemicals to, among other things, make paper) and the Hearsts were very interested in suppressing Hemp, which happens to produce a better-quality paper than trees, and is both cheaper and faster to grow. The Hearsts had a very nice vertical monopoly not only in newspaper publishing but also in forests - the source of their paper, and which would have been severely damaged in value had hemp-based paper come to the fore. “Coincidentally” Harry’s interest in this substance coincided almost to the day with the granting of a patent on a “decorticating” machine, which allowed the stalk to be mechanically separated from the pulp - necessary to make the aforementioned paper. Gee, such a coincidence.
Then there was racism. The original stated reason for marijuana prohibition was that “those evil mexicans” liked it. (Ever seen the original Reefer Madness? Watch it some time and note who’s doing the smoking!) We were a bit more blatant in those days with our racism - now we try to hide it.
Then, not so much.
The real issue however, especially today, is money. The DEA is a monstrous federal machine, as are the federal and state prison systems. A huge percentage of the people incarcerated are there for non-violent drug offenses. Repeal the laws and you have fewer prisoners, less money, and no DEA. Pretty simple to figure that one out.
The simple fact of the mater is that the “War on Drugs” cannot be won. People will not stop wanting to get high. Alcohol sales do quite well, even in Depressions. Gee, that’s hard to figure out too, right? NOT!
All of this would be academic except that the gang-bangers we enable with this war shoot people. In Mexico’s border towns, they shoot a lot of people. 2,200 in Juarez alone this year so far. On a per-capita basis this would be over 22,000 murders in New York City. What would be our reaction to that sort of murder rate on this side of the border?
Then there’s the fact that Mexico’s government has effectively failed. There’s simply too much money in the drug trade; the police are corrupted and so is the military. Drug traffickers roam the nation with impunity, cutting off the heads of rivals or those who they think might “out” them and engaging in brutal ambushes through the northern part of the nation. In some border towns bullets have struck buildings on our side of the border from “spray and pray” episodes inside Mexico a couple of miles away!
Incidentally, those guns aren’t coming from the US, as is often claimed. Oh sure, those that can be traced are to a material degree. We don’t bother sealing our border, so why would you think we would stop someone carrying a pistol over it - even though it’s illegal for someone who is not a citizen or legal resident to buy a gun in America. But most of the guns can’t be traced. Specifically, it has been illegal to possess or manufacture a machine gun (any weapon which fires more than one round for a press of the trigger) for civilian sale or use since 1986. Pre-86 weapons can be (and are) owned privately and legally in most states in the US (with a very-complete background check and fingerprinting, plus a $200 tax stamp from the BATFE), but with a tiny supply prices are outrageous ($10k and up) and as a result those who do legally own them take very good care of them and their security. Nearly all of the automatic weapons used in Mexico are coming from places like Venezuela, Afghanistan and China - where they are both cheap AND there are no serial number requirements - thus they’re untraceable. We can enforce all the laws we want over here, but it won’t stop anyone in Mexico from getting a gun made in China or Afghanistan!
It doesn’t end there of course. When you have lots of money and you buy guns and ammunition with that money you then find other “good” things to do with your new-found “power”.
Things like kidnapping, extortion and similar gangland criminal activity. This of course makes genuine entrepreneurship too dangerous to bother with, as anyone who “makes it” becomes an instant target for the gangs to seize and hold for ransom (or worse.)
All of the above has been empowered and in fact caused by our drug laws.
Repeal the laws and legalize the drugs, let the people do what the hell they want with their own bodies, and the money flow into the criminal gangs disappears.
So do the gangs, the guns, the kidnappings, and the murders.
But so do the prisons, the DEA agents, the cops, the judges, and the courtrooms here in the US, and that makes people sad. After all, if they weren’t arresting all these people for consensual adult activity and locking them up (thereby destroying their economic futures!) they’d have to go get real jobs and actually produce something of value in the economy instead of destroying productive labor!
We’ve made murder a business, and there are over a million Americans who directly profit from this insane “war.”
If there was any evidence that we could “win” that war and eradicate drug abuse, all of this might be worth it.
But we’ve blown more than seventy years on the attempt, and more than 40 in our current “push” that started with Nixon. We’ve won nothing, we’ve empowered criminal gangs all around the world, we’ve been directly responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people over that time, and all the money we’ve spent on this has been utterly wasted, when we could instead be selling the drugs at pharmacies to anyone who can present ID, collecting a tax stream from the desire of the people to “sin” (as we do with booze and tobacco.) With that tax stream we could fund treatment for those who become addicted and have money left over, while the gangland shootings - both in the US and Mexico - would immediately cease.
El Paso tried to pass a resolution on this matter and was threatened by Congressman Sylvester Reyes with loss of Federal Funds. That’s right - for expressing an official opinion a city was threatened by our federal government.
Do we still live in a nation where we have a Constitution setting forth a limited Federal Government, or do we live in a nation where a city’s right to speak officially on a matter it deems important is intentionally suppressed with threats?
How much more will you tolerate America, and how much of this violence has to come here, across our borders and into our nation, before you put your foot down and recognize this for what it is - a huge scam and revenue game, not a matter of public health and welfare?
Paul J. von Hartmann
on Nov 28th, 2010
@ 5:47 am:
Problems are profitable.
Redistribution of essential resources is critical to national security.
End prohibition or become extinct. Those are the choices.
Google “global broiling” to understand why Cannabis is critical to mitigating climate change.
We have nothing to fear but the atmosphere itself.
Fred Paul
on May 7th, 2011
@ 2:28 am:
Read the Good News article on the website. Roger is on the right track. My trial for simple possession is on May 23, 2011 in Williamson County, TX. My argument is my first amendment rights are being violated.
Jonathan Kemp
on Jul 20th, 2011
@ 4:11 pm:
An off duty prison guard on vacation told me that cannabis would never be legal because organized crime profits and their political influence would suffer. For the 8 yrs of religious conservative Pres. Bush , the THC Ministry openly worshiped in Hilo. No federal problems. But, as soon as the beloved by Hawaii Obama is in office, federal investigation and arrest happen. Perhaps, this current Pres. just an Obamobster from gang town Chicago, protecting the mobs $Billions marijuana profits?