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Isleton's Ire: How A Tiny California Town Got Tangled In The Complex Web Of Cannabis Laws
First Posted: 07/28/11 12:21 PM ET Updated: 09/26/11 06:12 AM ET
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"We asked: Is it state or federal law you're concerned with? She
wasn't really clear," Larsen said. "I've been a city attorney for 30
years. We're not hayseeds here. But all we could get from them was that
they were going to conduct an investigation."
"We tried to cooperate," added Pope. "We kept asking 'What's your issue here? Let's work to resolve it.'... We never got an answer."
'THERE'S NO INDUSTRY HERE'
Isleton, a tranquil settlement along the winding Sacramento River surrounded by cornfields and pear orchards, has had more than its share of troubles with the law over its 88-year history. The labyrinths of the river delta's sloughs and tributaries have long provided privacy to smugglers and other kinds of people looking to live below the radar. Locals still mention the former brothels on the two-block long Main Street, which today features only few restaurants, shops and art galleries.
More recently, the city's failure to file annual audits and charges of corruption in the police department and city government have resulted in other grand jury investigations -- until Pope and Sullivan were hired a few years ago to straighten things out.
"There is nothing we've done that has not been fully public," said Pope.
The economy now victimizes Isleton more than any criminal activity. Half the storefronts on Main Street have "For Lease" signs in their windows, and businesses elsewhere in the city limp along with the patronage of loyal locals and a limited number of tourists, bikers and boaters.
"Isleton is not a river stop anymore. The canneries are gone. Asparagus is being grown elsewhere," said John Romero, a boater and Bay Area telecommunications specialist who lives in an unincorporated part of town. It was no wonder, he said, that a city with no remaining economic foundation saw in the cannabis project a hope of survival.
"We're really bummed it's not happening," said Karen Franscioni, a stained glass artist and gallery owner. "All the people we know in town were in favor of it. Because it was going to bring money into town. There is no industry here."
Hair stylist Maria Vasquez, proprietor of The Hairloom on Main Street and the mother of two school-aged children, said that not everyone in Isleton initially supported the cannabis farm.
"I was concerned at first. None of my family or friends do drugs, and my children are young, so I didn't really know what this proposal was going to do, and whether it would create a drug environment here, or what," she said.
But as she found out more about the nature of the project, "I came to agree that it would do a good thing for this town," she said. "Because of the money, and also those people who really need it."
"Where was the harm? Who was going to be hurt by it? No one," said Pace, sitting in her bar among sparse customers on a recent weekday afternoon. "All the money would've been put to good use."
While it was too soon for any sort of allocations to have been devised, Pope said that every department in the city government would have benefited from the increase in funding, from the volunteer Fire Department to youth recreation programs. More than 50 Isleton area residents would have found employment on the project, including a local architect and contractors.
Pope disputes the grand jury's characterization of DAG as an "elusive" company that "exploited" a city "highly vulnerable to a seemingly lucrative proposal." He said that the jury's charge that DAG came in and offered to beef up the local police department with new computers and video surveillance equipment to secure the grow facility -- and the town -- was also false.
"They didn't offer -- I insisted on it," Pope said.
Sullivan felt particularly angered by the grand jury investigation's implications that he stood behind the proposal for personal or departmental gain.
"Some media have painted me as being blinded by greed for these things," said Sullivan. "It's not greed. It's reality ... Here we've always been poor. But when the economy tanked, this place suffered even more."
Sullivan added that revenue from the project could have been used to pay his reserve officers, who currently volunteer, an hourly wage. "We could have a state of the art police department here," he said.
As a former enforcer of marijuana law, flying helicopter patrols with the California Highway Patrol, Sullivan explained that things look different to him now, on the ground.
"I've educated myself: What's a collective, a dispensary, that there are people already growing medical marijuana within our city and around the state," he said. "I also know about the Mexican cartels and the white boy grows up in Humboldt County. I know there are people in it for the money. The real problem is we have people who are legitimately ill and need it. I'm not opposed to that; I am opposed to abuses of a system that permits it."
"I think the D.A.'s and the A.G.'s concern is that it's going to get so big -- we're talking beaucoup bucks," he added. "And they haven't figured out what they want to do about it."
"We tried to cooperate," added Pope. "We kept asking 'What's your issue here? Let's work to resolve it.'... We never got an answer."
'THERE'S NO INDUSTRY HERE'
Isleton, a tranquil settlement along the winding Sacramento River surrounded by cornfields and pear orchards, has had more than its share of troubles with the law over its 88-year history. The labyrinths of the river delta's sloughs and tributaries have long provided privacy to smugglers and other kinds of people looking to live below the radar. Locals still mention the former brothels on the two-block long Main Street, which today features only few restaurants, shops and art galleries.
More recently, the city's failure to file annual audits and charges of corruption in the police department and city government have resulted in other grand jury investigations -- until Pope and Sullivan were hired a few years ago to straighten things out.
"There is nothing we've done that has not been fully public," said Pope.
The economy now victimizes Isleton more than any criminal activity. Half the storefronts on Main Street have "For Lease" signs in their windows, and businesses elsewhere in the city limp along with the patronage of loyal locals and a limited number of tourists, bikers and boaters.
"Isleton is not a river stop anymore. The canneries are gone. Asparagus is being grown elsewhere," said John Romero, a boater and Bay Area telecommunications specialist who lives in an unincorporated part of town. It was no wonder, he said, that a city with no remaining economic foundation saw in the cannabis project a hope of survival.
"We're really bummed it's not happening," said Karen Franscioni, a stained glass artist and gallery owner. "All the people we know in town were in favor of it. Because it was going to bring money into town. There is no industry here."
Hair stylist Maria Vasquez, proprietor of The Hairloom on Main Street and the mother of two school-aged children, said that not everyone in Isleton initially supported the cannabis farm.
"I was concerned at first. None of my family or friends do drugs, and my children are young, so I didn't really know what this proposal was going to do, and whether it would create a drug environment here, or what," she said.
But as she found out more about the nature of the project, "I came to agree that it would do a good thing for this town," she said. "Because of the money, and also those people who really need it."
"Where was the harm? Who was going to be hurt by it? No one," said Pace, sitting in her bar among sparse customers on a recent weekday afternoon. "All the money would've been put to good use."
While it was too soon for any sort of allocations to have been devised, Pope said that every department in the city government would have benefited from the increase in funding, from the volunteer Fire Department to youth recreation programs. More than 50 Isleton area residents would have found employment on the project, including a local architect and contractors.
Pope disputes the grand jury's characterization of DAG as an "elusive" company that "exploited" a city "highly vulnerable to a seemingly lucrative proposal." He said that the jury's charge that DAG came in and offered to beef up the local police department with new computers and video surveillance equipment to secure the grow facility -- and the town -- was also false.
"They didn't offer -- I insisted on it," Pope said.
Sullivan felt particularly angered by the grand jury investigation's implications that he stood behind the proposal for personal or departmental gain.
"Some media have painted me as being blinded by greed for these things," said Sullivan. "It's not greed. It's reality ... Here we've always been poor. But when the economy tanked, this place suffered even more."
Sullivan added that revenue from the project could have been used to pay his reserve officers, who currently volunteer, an hourly wage. "We could have a state of the art police department here," he said.
As a former enforcer of marijuana law, flying helicopter patrols with the California Highway Patrol, Sullivan explained that things look different to him now, on the ground.
"I've educated myself: What's a collective, a dispensary, that there are people already growing medical marijuana within our city and around the state," he said. "I also know about the Mexican cartels and the white boy grows up in Humboldt County. I know there are people in it for the money. The real problem is we have people who are legitimately ill and need it. I'm not opposed to that; I am opposed to abuses of a system that permits it."
"I think the D.A.'s and the A.G.'s concern is that it's going to get so big -- we're talking beaucoup bucks," he added. "And they haven't figured out what they want to do about it."
Related News On Huffington Post:
Huge Marijuana Farm Planned In Isleton, California
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A grand jury says the lure of easy
money led a cash-strapped California town to approve a giant medical
marijuana farm. A...
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Around the Web:
Isleton, California - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Isleton Chamber of Commerce Located in the California Delta
California Delta Chambers and Visitor's Bureau - A Guide to the ...
Isleton insists planned pot farm isn't dead yet
Isleton History - Isleton Chamber of Commerce Located in the ...
Insight: Isleton's Marijuana Project / Medical Marijuana Testing / SacPress ...
Insight: Isleton Marijuana / 70 in 70 / Poetry Benefit
Isleton Pot Farm Plan Blasted by Grand Jury - 420 Magazine
Isleton pot farm plan blasted by grand jury - SFGate
Grand jury condemns Isleton's pot farm plan | News | West Stockton ...
Isleton Pot Farm Plan Scrapped After Federal Warning « CBS Sacramento
Proposed Isleton pot farm up in smoke | Staff report | Dim Bulb ...
Isleton defends itself from grand jury's pot farm criticism ...
Isleton defends itself from grand jury's pot farm criticism
New federal memo on medical marijuana stirs angst
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U.S. Warning Shuts Down Isleton Medical Marijuana Farm Project ...
Isleton city officials summoned over marijuana farm « The Humboldt ...
Sacto 9-1-1: Isleton fires back at grand jury over marijuana farm
Proposed Isleton pot farm up in smoke | Staff report | Dim Bulb ... Isleton city officials summoned over marijuana farm « The Humboldt ...
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12:45 PM on 08/01/2011
It's actually more straight forward , the government rather see 40
000 mexican killed in the most horrific condition than legalize
something that would put all these cartel out of business , it is to the
point when one must wonder how far in the political ladder drug made
it's way .
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03:49 PM on 07/31/2011
check out the plaque in the fifth photo.there's yer problem town. built on an indian burial ground.
hahaha!
03:08 PM on 07/31/2011
Great reorting! Thank you for keeping Californians informed about
what's happening to our fellow citizens and neighbors. Isn't it funny
(not funny ha ha; funny predictable) that first, Oakland approves four
industrial medical cannabis growing locations then Isleton does it and
they move to put a stop to it real quick. Typical. What happened to
equal protection under the law? Sounds like the tyranny of the majority
strikes again. 
09:24 AM on 07/31/2011
It's really a win-win; the people of Isleton are spared the evil of
marijuana and the Mexican cartels keep their market share. 
04:21 PM on 07/30/2011
We may have won the day in WW2; but it did not put an end to the fascists, or those that think as they do. 
03:09 AM on 07/30/2011
Anti-Cannabis people are either ignorant, stupid sheep, racist,
support corruption, and/ or greedy. They would rather have a person
locked up for possession of a plant than to spend the money on capturing
murderers, rapists, child molestors, & other dangerous criminals.
These fools lack Spirituality because they are controlled by corruption.We know better, but we don't have the corrupt money that these anti-Cannabis fools have. We must use our networking skills to reach a wider audience and vote out all these corrupt individuals and defeat the enemies of Freedom and Justice.
02:13 AM on 07/30/2011
You got slapped around by California? I'd have seized the Model Home titles
after taking criminal evidence found
hidden in the garages. I'd ask courts
to sledgehammer city government as
it would criminal organizations. I'd
ask for Federal Zip Code removal.
12:39 AM on 07/29/2011
The feds are overwhelmed by weed. Random busts of major growers
isn't a means of operation that will bring victory against the
increasing amount of weed being grown in N. America.
10:14 AM on 07/29/2011
And it grows wild in the midwest, you can see it growing by the roadside in Iowa.
02:18 AM on 07/30/2011
What you see isn't the bred big money versions that knock your socks off.
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09:37 PM on 07/28/2011
I do not understand the evangelical frothing at the mouth that
occurs every time the federal government talks about marijuana, yet the
two biggest trouble-makers and citizen-killers, alcohol and tobacco, are
allowed and encouraged. This country, steeped in a tradition of drinking and smoking, is also steeped in a tradition of Joe Citizen paying a high price for stepping over the line. Cancer and DUI's go hand-in-hand in the great country that is America. The misery and mistakes, profited on, by the government, courts, lawyers, doctors and anyone else who can make a buck on the addictions of the drinkers and smokers.
That's all good though. These are Americas “government approved” intoxicants. Drinking and smoking is hardwired into everything we do and it reeks devastation across the landscape. But don't smoke a joint. That's illegal. That's a gateway drug.
What a load of crap the populace is fed by our incompetent, ill-intentioned government.
02:30 AM on 07/30/2011
I want a drug testing required for any state or federal license.I want zero tolerance for failures and six month wait to detox.
I want vehicles immediately impounded for DUI and auctioned
if zero tolerance fails second license application testing. Any
other drug testing failure is good for two years in State Pen.
or The Funny Farm.
01:37 AM on 08/01/2011
Attempting to control people is never more efficient, in the final
analysis, than creating the conditions necessary for the development of
healthy, intelligent and compassionate human beings. If external control
was effective and more efficient it would have been successful in
totalitarian states that have failed. It would also produce prison
populations that are models of civility, but the failure of that system
is obvious. You may be moved to such proclamations for control for good
sentiment but where such a strategy would be restrained from becoming a
stop and search fascist state is problematic. Eventually we would
require an elite group of controllers for the controllers, and so forth
in ever increasing spirals of paranoia and grandiosity. Developing an
understanding for the contextual environment necessary for proper human
development into a citizen who feels hopeful, meaningful and
significant, may not be as simplistic in its formula as we have become
accustomed to assuming. But sometimes tacking is more efficient than
stubbornly sailing into the wind. Of course such a perspective requires a
sense of the limits of human will and a healthy respect for both the
external and internal biology of becoming human. Otherwise, the control
everyone with enforcement and threats approach is doomed, in my opinion,
to producing the similar failures of prohibition and "just say no". 
09:22 PM on 07/28/2011
Dang I wish I had known what was in those garages. We drive by
there every couple weeks or so, under cover of night I could have
scored. Just kidding but those houses look so lonely just sitting there
half done. I always wondered why someone could not finish them, they
were very close or sell them as is. It would not take much to finish
them off. Pity
10:16 AM on 07/29/2011
Interestlingly the last house on the right hase windows in the door,
wonder if they blacked them or obscured them, otherwise it woulda been
obvious that something was going on, all they had to do was look thru
them.
11:45 AM on 07/29/2011
So, you actually got close to the houses? How funny. We drive by
maybe every other month when we are coming bck to Rocklin from Antioch
picking up our grandchild andI always felt the houses looked so lonely
sitting there. The town maybe should have kept their plan a little
quieter or perhaps there ws a filing of some kind that alerted this
Scully lady. Oh well I hope they come up with another plan I thought it
would be kind of nice to live there now that we are retired.
07:58 PM on 07/28/2011
This troubles me that Isleton is foreshadowing what would come of a
state level legalization of marijuana. After two hundred years of
implementing constitutional law, we have still not decided how federal
legislature should affect state legislature (a catalyst for the American
Civil War), as well as state leg. vs. city laws. If marijuana is ever
legalized in California, I have little faith that the state government
will do anything to protect its citizens' rights against the federal
government drug war machine. Proposition 215 is a Catch 22, as in you
can legally grow medical marijuana in large, industrious sized farms,
and sold in clinics state-wide, but both farms and clinics can be raided
and shut down at any time because the D.A is suspicious of the money
changing hands, or because it conflicts with federal laws. It seems that
inevitably government entities' own agendas trump common sense every
time.
02:45 PM on 07/31/2011
Cry HAVOC! And unleash the dogs of war! ; No government or other
entity will ever give up any power they have gained without a fight.
Since it was ratified, the 10th Amendment has been either ignored or
wrongly interpeted. The federal government DOES NOT have the authority
to regulate ANY business that is conducted within any state, only
importing and exporting with another state or country and, thanks to the
13th Amendment, slavery and involuntary servitude. Congress can pass
any law they want but they have no constitutional authority to enforce
those laws. Congress can't even amend the constitution, the states get
to do that. In short, the federal government does not have the right to
do anything unless expressly stated in the Constitution. The States and
the People HAVE the right to do anything they want unless expressly
prohibited by the Constitution.
07:39 PM on 07/28/2011
I liked this report. I have visited Isleton several times over the
last twenty years and it has always felt like a ghost town. The town
deserved the financial opportunity. At some point soon this state
seriously needs to get its act together! Working with town and city
officials to help improve the local and statewide economy is the
solution - not fighting against them!
10:18 AM on 07/29/2011
What with global warming and such it might be better to pay folks to
'GET OUT' and break the levees and let it return to river bottom
marshland. 
04:31 PM on 07/28/2011
You can't pick and choose what laws you want to follow. You can't
say, "Hey, it's legal by California law, so that is all that matters".
How naive. Of course Federal Law overrides state law - that is the way
it works. Don't like it - change it. Or, if you don't have the votes,
then suffer. But this isn't newsworthy - this is a bunch of folks who
thought they could do whatever they wanted to do, and it doesn't work
that way. I fi supported legalization, I'd be uppset with these people.
First, it gives people like me someone to scoff at for their stupidity,
and that is what it is here, make no mistake. But think of the money
that could be used by PAC's and speical interest groups to go to
Washington and get these laws changed, instead of blowing it on law
suits and legal costs that, at the end of the day, they know they will
lose.
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