Reflections ►
All I want for Christmas
Is for all of us to be able to use our medicine without the fear of being treated like a criminals . by Dolores Halbin , contributing writer
Tis the season for generosity and giving , and there are few communities more giving than the cannabis community on both sides of the state lines . Last month , Eddie Smith , owner-operator of Into the Mystic in Mission , KS , had a fundraiser and educational event for Kansas NORML , Bleeding Hearts Kansas , and included the Missouri-based Canna Convict Project , raising $ 300 for our incarcerated inmates .
If you haven ’ t been to Eddie ’ s store , you are missing a cultural opportunity . Into The Mystic is my little granddaughter ’ s favorite place to hang out . There is a little something for everyone from CBD to rocks and dragons and a great opportunity to “ Buy Local ” this holiday season !
Kansas is a full-on prohibition state , so clean out your car before you go . It ’ s not for lack of trying . Unlike Missouri , Kansas does not have a petition process . Change requires legislation that must pass the House first , then the Senate .
After years of submitting , activists finally got a halfway decent reform Bill through the House of Representatives in Topeka during the last session . But , like the Federal MORE ( Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement ) Act , both state and federal legislation has stalled in their respective Senates . So , as much as I was hoping Kansas and the Feds would do the right thing and I could retire this Christmas , alas , this is not the case . It would appear they have doubled down instead .
Kansas did file charges against me for possession of marijuana and paraphernalia , I am assuming , for a pack of rolling papers , four Delta 8 gummies ( both available for sale in Kansas ), and an old tired , worn-out roach . I found out about the warrant because not only did the DA issue a warrant for my arrest but also filed extradition papers with Missouri , sending the Barry County Sheriff out to the family farm in search of me . Had I been there that day , I would likely still be sitting in that crappy little Barry County jail waiting for Johnson County , KS , to come get me — over a roach .
Back into Battle
Kansas is a relatively empty state . I can count the activists on my fingers . Most of the Kansas activists we worked with the past six years had to move on for health , economic , or safety reasons , mainly for their kids , to canna-friendly states .
After finding out about the warrant , my first impulse was very publicly to turn myself in surrounded by court supporters and “ stir the pot ” in Kansas . Talking it over again with my dear friend and attorney , Dan Veits , reminded me of what I tell others ...
Don ’ t kick the rattlesnake nest when you ’ re in it .
Many moons ago , on a summer trip to the family farm , my husband and I took the kids on a hike to the back edge of my grandparents ’ farm to see the old Blue Bell mine .
It is quite a hike over a big hill , down into a ravine , across the creek , and up another hill , but worth the effort . The old structure , which looks like an abandoned ancient city of steep concrete towers and the remains of the light rail cars elevated twenty feet in the air , still holds some magic of days gone by .
As we entered the ravine , my husband ordered us to halt , so we did . Then to be quiet , which we also did . With the quiet , we heard the rattles . Not just the rattle of a snake , but as our frozen eyeballs followed the sound , we were roughly ten feet from a whole nest of rattlesnakes .
Always the boy-scout , Gene instructed us to softly take steps back together on his count . Later he explained how snakes ’ ears are in the bottom of their jaws , so they have very poor hearing but are very sensitive to sound vibrations , which is why we all stepped together . The snakes could not pinpoint us individually .
My husband taught us the needed strategy and teamwork to avoid being in the center of a rattlesnake nest .
The day our farm was raided by the DTF ( Drug Task Force ), it did not arrest my husband and told him they wouldn ’ t issue an arrest warrant but would send a summons when the prosecutor had charges set .
We were contacted days after the raid by KC Star reporter Don Bradley for an article about medical marijuana . Bradley had local ties and had seen the layout in the Adrian newspaper of our garden and our guns ; all fanned out for effect . Gene and I discussed going public . I was furious , and I felt strongly we should come out swinging and get his medicine back .
He said , “ I don ’ t know , honey . Maybe we shouldn ’ t kick the nest until we see what they ’ re going to do . I don ’ t want to piss them off .”
We ultimately agreed to the interview . For some reason , Mr . Bradley ’ s KC Star article that March 30 , 2014 , hit a worldwide nerve . The article went around the globe to eight countries and was translated into nine languages . On Thursday morning , four days later , my husband and I were arrested at our home with a $ 25,000 bond each . Bond reduction hearings are only on Wednesdays in Bates County , so by issuing the warrants on