Categories
Medical Marijuana

Arizona Up Next for Recreational Marijuana Use

recreational marijuana

Arizona Next Up for Battle of Legalizing Recreational Marijuana

Oh, how far recreational “pot” has came… from the 70’s partying days to now becoming part of medical marijuana miracles. If anything cannabis has been fighting the fight to become legal for a very long time. Arizona is one of the next states to work on perfecting the laws on how to make this happen.

Not long after Arizona has decided to take the leap of faith into legalizing medical marijuana, they will begin the journey and trials of the legalization of recreational use of marijuana.

Laws of the similar nature have been passed in several states already, including: Alaska, Colorado, and Washington. Next year, the Marijuana Policy Project of Arizona is poised and voters will be heard.

 

Recreational Use Of Marijuana Laws

 

Treasurer of the MPP of Arizona and a lawyer with the Rose Law Group, Ryan Hurley, as said that he believes that the national MPP has been running the measure here due to the fact that “they think it’s going to pass.”

According to a recent poll that was issued by the Behavior Research Center around fifty-one percent of Arizona residents support the legalization and around forty-one percent are against it. However, before activists can put the option on the ballot for the 2016 voters to approve, there has to be one state lawmaker who wants the legislature to pass the measure.

Mark Cardenas who is a Democratic state representative had introduced a House Bill 2007 that outlined the system for taxing and regulation of Marijuana. Which also stated that it would be for anyone over the age of twenty-one years old in Arizona, which so far most states have agreed to this age limit in their proposals. Mark has said that if you wait for the voters to pass the initiative then it is pretty hard for the lawmakers to go back and make changes to to it.

Tax Sales on Marijuana

Mark says that the tax from the marijuana sales will help Arizona. The drug war hasn’t stopped people buying it illegally, according to Mark. If they decide to make it legal then tax it and make some money of the sales. That tax money will help Arizona fill the $500 million budget gap. Due to Mark’s proposal of $50 for an ounce of marijuana in Arizona. Which if it passes means a $48 million a year in revenue for the state according to analysts. Which he already has a plan for the extra money, thirty percent would go to education, ten percent would go to substance abuse programs, another ten percent would go to treatment programs, and fifty percent would of course go to the state’s general fund.

However, there is a grey area. According to the Maricopa County Attorney, Bill Montgomery, the costs that are associated with legalizing a drug such as marijuana will probably outweigh the revenue made from taxing it.

 

What Could be Arizona’s Next Move

The Arizona Regulation and Taxation of Marijuana Act may appear on the November 8, 2016, ballot in Arizona as an initiated state statute.

The measure, upon voter approval, would legalize the possession and consumption of marijuana by persons who are 21 years of age or older. People would be permitted to grow six plants in their homes. A 15 percent tax would be levied on the sale of marijuana, and revenue from the tax would be allocated to education and healthcare. The measure would establish a Department of Marijuana Licenses and Control which would be tasked with regulating the cultivation, manufacturing, testing, transportation and sale of marijuana. Local governments would be empowered to regulate and limit marijuana businesses. It was also designed to allow any medical marijuana facility to transition to a recreational marijuana facility.[1]

 

Criminal Defense Lawyers PLLC
668 N 44th St. Suite 300
Phoenix, AZ 85008
(480) 351-6445
https://www.criminaldefenselawyers.me

Categories
assault

Arizona Athletes And Sexual Abuse Cases

Arizona Athletes And Sexual Abuse Cases

Former Coach Arrested for Sexual Assault

Sexual assault is horrible. However, one of the lowest forms of abuse, is coming from someone you trust. Whether it’s from a family member or from a teacher you’re scared for life.

A former Scottsdale cheerleader coach is now arrested for accusations saying he was molesting two of his former athletes.

There are new court documents that show that twenty-one year old, Yohel Gattaz will now face one count of child molestation, as well as two counts of sexual conduct with a minor, two counts of sexual abuse, and one count of aggravated assault on a  minor. Pretty serious charges.

According to reports, Gattaz had worked at the Desert Storm Elite in Scottsdale for a little less than a year. The incidents were said to have happened between January and March 2016. Eric Contreras who is the owner of the gym, confirmed that Gattaz was fired in May.

 

Eric Contreras Statement:

It was difficult because we do extensive background checks on all our employees and there was no criminal record. We take very good care of our kids and our families. It’s a safe place for children it always has been and always will be.

 

The court paperwork showed that the Phoenix Police had recieved a report about the sexual abuse on May 17th. They then contacted the victims mother. The mother made a report to the police that there could have been another child that had fallen as prey to Yohel. The other victim’s mother contacted the Scottsdale Police Department.

The girls were both fourteen years old. They both told the police that they had been inappropriately touched by Gattaz on separate incidents. One of the girls say that they had tried to roll away from Gattaz but he grabbed her and pulled her back towards him.

The other victim was upset and told the police “This isn’t right, this is illegal”.

 

Phoenix Girls Suffer from Sexual Abuse

 

In the court records, the locations of where the girls suffered the sexual abuse was not listed. There were some e-mails sent to the parents though that stated that the incident happened off the gym’s property. The e-mail also said that all of the Desert Storm Elite employees have to pass a background check. Gattaz passed his background check.

The owner is very adamant about the abuse not taking place at the gym property. He also makes it clear that nothing like this has ever happened at the gym before.

The parents wrote to the local news, they were worried that Gattaz could have even more victims that might be scared to come forward. He was very close to the teens at the gym and he did have to spend a lot of time on the road with them for competitions.

Gattaz was arrested on June 16th and he immediately requested an attorney. Since he asked for an attorney he was not asked any questions.

The mother of two, Pam White said that one of her daughters were also coached by Gattaz last  year. She also said that she had never had any issues with the gym. She said that Gattaz was very professional.

 

Pam White’s Statement about Yohel:

I’ve always had a positive experience at the gym. The gym has become a second family for my daughters and I’ve always felt I’ve been very well informed by the gym with information parents needed to note.

 

She also said said that she will wait until after the police finish with their investigation before she will make the decision to let Yohel coach her child again or not.

Yohel’s attorney, Matt Hilscher said that “it’s important to remember at this point these are merely allegations” he also said that since Yohel is in ” this line of work makes him susceptible to these types of allegations”.

The online jail records show that a judge had set Gattaz bone at $150,000. His next court appearance is on July 1st.

Criminal Defense Lawyers PLLC
668 N 44th St. Suite 300
Phoenix, AZ 85008
(480) 351-6445
https://www.criminaldefenselawyers.me

Categories
assault bank robbery battery felony Personal Injury Wrongful Death

Phoenix Robberies

Phoenix Struggles With Murders

Overnight Phoenix Robberies

Crime rates are going up and people are being shot over nothing even more. Robberies are a daily occurrence. Police brutality is at an all time high and crime against police officers is always rising. This country is divided and Phoenix seems to never catch a break from the crime.

There were three people shot in two separate armed robberies. The robberies happened withing just moments of each other. This happened overnight in Phoenix. The police are saying that there were at least five other robberies in Phoenix in June. They believe that the same three suspects are behind all of these robberies.

According to the reports , the first robbery happened on a Wednesday and was located near 24th Street and McDowell Road at the 7-Eleven. The first robbery happened just before 1 o’clock in the morning. The Phoenix police officers arrived to the the robbery call and saw that a clerk had been shot in the leg. The Phoenix Police also say that the suspects left the scene in a newer, red, four door sedan vehicle. The car had light colored trim on the edge of the driver’s side.

Robberies Happen in Phoenix

According to the reports, around 1:15 a.m. on Wednesday the officers were called to the Circle K near 23rd Avenue and Thomas Road. The officers have stated that there was an armed man who robbed the Circle K and then shot the clerk and a customer. The customer, reportedly “exchanged gunfire” with the suspect.

The on scene investigators say that the clerk and customer suffered from non-life threatening injuries. According to the responding officers, the suspect jumped into a car that was waiting on him or her and sped away from the scene.

Police say five other robberies are also tied to the same group of men:

  • The first suspect is described as an African American man of an unknown age.

  • The second suspect is described as a Hispanic man in his early 20s who has black hair and was wearing a red bandana over his face.

  • The third suspect is described as a Caucasian or Hispanic man of an unknown age.

Seven robberies are being tied to all three men:

  • June 1, 9:37 p.m.: Subway (32nd Street and Thomas Road) – First suspect was armed with a machete.

  • June 6, 8:16 p.m.: Exxon (32nd Street and Van Buren Street) – Second suspect was armed with a silver handgun and ziptied employees.

  • June 17, 3:05 a.m.: Mobil (Indian School Road and Maryvale Parkway) – A suspect fired shots at the store clerk.

  • June 20, 8:48 p.m.: Panda Express (16th Street and Glendale Avenue) – First suspect fires a shot, points the gun at an employee and then flees in a gray truck.

  • June 20, 9:50 p.m.: 7-Eleven (67th Avenue and Camelback Road) – First suspect shows a weapon and points it at a store clerk.

  • June 22, 12:41 a.m.: 7-Eleven (24th Street and McDowell Road) – Second suspect shoots a store clerk in the leg before fleeing in a red 4-door vehicle.

  • June 22, 1:19 a.m.: Circle K (23rd Avenue and Thomas Road) – Second suspect shoots a store clerk in the arm. An armed customer inside the store shoots back, but was also struck in the leg.

Police are asking that if anyone has any information about the robberies to please call Silent Witness at (480) WITNESS or (480) TESTIGO. There is a reward being offered, $1,000.

Phoenix Police Investigating Robberies

The Phoenix Police are now investigating an armed confrontation at an Ahwatukee grocery store.

Sgt. Jonathan Howard stated that the officers were looking around the neighborhood near Chandler Boulevard and 44th Street for two men. They had threatened a man with a gun after stealing from the store.

Police swarmed the Safeway at 40th Street and Chandler Boulevard. Sgt. Howard said that the investigators were still trying to get detailed descriptions of suspects.

The police decided to close the Chandler Boulevard for the investigation to take place, the road was later re-opened.

The Phoenix police hope to have the surveillance video from the store very soon. Luckily there were no injuries reported and the store is remaining open for business.

 

Criminal Defense Lawyers PLLC
668 N 44th St. Suite 300
Phoenix, AZ 85008
(480) 351-6445
https://www.criminaldefenselawyers.me

Categories
drug possesion Drug Trafficking felony Narcotics

Marijuana Problems in Phoenix

Marijuana Problems in Phoenix

Synthetic Marijuana Issues in Phoenix

 

According to the police officials, synthetic marijuana is on the rise. Not just in Phoenix either. A lot of major U.S. cities have recordings of the rise in synthetic marijuana. There’s been a surge of overdoses according to police officials. Even, a rise in violent crime.

The situation is becoming pretty severe. It actually escalated enough that police chiefs had a meeting in Washington has called for development or field tests that can hopefully help the police figure out who the suspects are on the synthetic marijuana.

Police say that the Marijuana is sold in “slickly marketed packets” with names like K2, Scooby Snax and Spice. The drugs are crazy and not smart to be messed with, being that they are made up of a “variety of chemicals” and actually have very little to do with real marijuana.

Chemicals in Synthetic Marijuana

The chemicals that are found in the packets vary. Even the packets that are identically branded have very different ingredients. Most users probably don’t even know what the heck they are smoking.

July the poison control centers in the United States had tallied 4,377 reports of people who suffered from the effects of synthetic marijuana. Last year the numbers were a little lower at 3,682, according to the American Association of Poison Control Centers.

The users of the synthetic marijuana are now finding their way onto “police crime blotters”. There was a survey of thirty-five major city police departments across the United States has found out that thirty percent have contributed to some of the violent crimes related to the fake marijuana use.

William Bratton who is the New York Police commissioner has said during a press conference, that he’s calling it “weaponized marijuana”. He also said that it is a growing and huge concern.

 

William Bratton’s Statement:

These dangerous products do not belong on store shelves within our neighborhoods and are a threat to public health.

 

The New York Police Department has also said that there has been more than one hundred overdoes cases in just one month at the Bellevue Hospital trauma center.

In Washington the Metropolitan Police Department has said that there was a man who they believed to be suffering from the effects of synthetic marijuana. The man was on the synthetic marijuana and actually committed a gruesome, fatal stabbing on a metro train. The stabbing wasn’t a secret…he did it in plain sight of anyone who was on the subway on July 4th. The toxicology reports are not public at this time.

The EMS Department has said that their reports show that they have transported 439 people who were suffering from suspected synthetic marijuana overdoses in June.

According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, most of the synthetic marijuana actually comes from China. It’s then imported to the United States.

Law Enforcement have been trying to crack down on the synthetic marijuana situation. Convenience stores have even pulled items from their shelves. Now users have to use/know code names to get the drugs from store clerks or they can buy it from the street dealers.

The drugs can be very harmful. Causing hallucinogenic effects, nausea, agitation, seizures, and can even get as bad as causing suicidal or violent reactions.  The DEA says that the synthetic Marijuana falls under a “broad label of depressant-hallucinogens”. It actually has trouble classifying due to the several different types of chemicals that the manufacturers are using.

Homeless populations are on the front of heavy overdoses in some of the cities. The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Washington is planning to start giving the homeless shelters presentations about the harmful usage of this drug and other drugs.

Of course the drugs are illegal. However, it’s hard to stop all use of the many different chemicals used to make the synthetic drugs.

There’s some speculation that police officers are looking to “blame” the synthetic drug for the heavy spikes in crime. It’s a big problem in several different communities.

 

Washington’s Metro Police Chief, Cathy Lanier’s Statement:

In some cities, synthetic cannabinoids is a huge issue, in other cities its just beginning to grow. Its connection to violence, that’s a gap that can be fixed.

 

 

Marijuana Drug Bust

 

Drug busts around the border are sadly not uncommon. A recent find by the Customs and Border Protection officers lead to the arrest of two different men. They used “get away” cars to hide a crime.

In July, there were two separate incidents where officers at the Port of Douglas had to inspect as well as confiscate two different cars. Both hiding a total of two hundred pounds of marijuana!

A man from Douglas, who was seventy-years old at the time, got arrested after officers found forty-three pounds of marijuana in the car’s bench set after they inspected the Ford truck he was driving.

The officers also made an arrest against a sixteen year old male from Agua Prieta, Sonora, Mexico. This was after they also inspected his Pontiac Sedan vehicle and found over one-hundred and fifty-six pounds of marijuana hidden throughout the whole car. Who knew a Pontiac could hold that much?

The drugs and of course, the vehicles had to be seized. The two men then got arrested and taken to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations .

 

Criminal Defense Lawyers PLLC
668 N 44th St. Suite 300
Phoenix, AZ 85008
(480) 351-6445
https://www.criminaldefenselawyers.me

Categories
drug possesion Drug Trafficking Narcotics

Drug Tunnel Found

drug tunnel

Marijuana Seized From Drug Tunnel

A ton of cocaine and seven tons of marijuana were seized from a cross-border tunnel that stretched from a Tijuana, Mexico, home to a San Diego, California, suburb, U.S. authorities said Wednesday.

“We believe this to be the longest tunnel that we have discovered in this district to date,” said Laura Duffy, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of California.

Half-Mile Tunnel Found on US-Mexico Border, Cocaine Seized

Authorities arrested six people and seized more than 2,000 pounds of cocaine and more than 14,000 pounds of marijuana. The cocaine is valued at around $22 million.

“We believe this to be the largest single seizure of cocaine related to a tunnel in the California-Mexico border,” Duffy said.

At about 3-feet wide, the tunnel measured the length of more than eight football fields (nearly a half-mile) and was equipped with lights, ventilation, a rail system and a motorized freight elevator capable of carrying up to 10 people, according to federal officials.

The six arrested in San Diego were charged with various drug trafficking and tunnel-related charges, including conspiracy to import and distribute cocaine and conspiracy to use a border tunnel.

Authorities said there have been more than a dozen secret passages found along California’s border with Mexico since 2006.

In the past five years, federal authorities have detected more than 75 cross-border smuggling tunnels, most of them in California and Arizona.

part 2

OTAY MESA, Calif. – A new drug tunnel was discovered at an Otay Mesa outdoor wood pallet storage facility Tuesday, marking the third such discovery in a month.

Border Patrol agents were seen standing outside the fenced-off Otay Pallets business lot on Marconi Drive, about 1000 feet from the Tijuana-San Diego border.

In Tijuana, federal officers were guarding a house east of the Tijuana airport in an area known as colonia Nueva Tijuana.

That is said to be the south point of the tunnel.

Authorities from the US Attorney’s Office would not comment on the investigation Tuesday afternoon although they’ve called for a news conference on Wednesday at the site.

One man who works in the area said he recently became suspicious of the pallet operation, which had been open for about a year.

“Once I saw them put up cameras inside I knew something was going on,” said the man who did not want to be identified.

He also said he believes agents found the tunnel on Sunday.

“They were here last night and the night before, I came in and was like what’s going on and they said they shut everything down.”

Last Friday, a cross-border tunnel was discovered near Calexico by an El Centro Sector Border Patrol agent who was conducting routine patrol duties, CBP agent stated.  The agent noticed a depression in the soil along the banks of the All-American Canal, exposing an 18-inch hole with lumber and electrical wiring inside, according to the release.

Drug tunnel found at warehouse in Otay Mesa.

About four weeks ago, four people were arrestedafter Border Patrol agents located an alleged secret drug tunnel underneath a three-bedroom house in Calexico, authorities said. The tunnel’s entrance was inside a restaurant in Mexicali, Mexico.

 

 

Criminal Defense Lawyers PLLC
668 N 44th St. Suite 300
Phoenix, AZ 85008
(480) 351-6445

Home

Categories
drug possesion Drug Trafficking felony Narcotics

Arizona Drug Smuggle

Arizona Drug Smuggle

Arizona Man Arrested for Drug Smuggle Bust

 

DOUGLAS – Two Arizona men were caught attempting to smuggle thousands of dollars of marijuana near Tucson.

Customs and Border Protection officials arrested a 65-year-old Douglas man who attempted to sneak marijuana taped underneath his arms.

The 65-year-old Arizona man reportedly had more than three pounds of marijuana underneath his armpits, worth $1,600.

A 32-year-old Phoenix man was also arrested at the Douglas border crossing after he was found with 114 pounds of marijuana in the quarter panels and fuel tank of his vehicle.

The drugs were worth around $57,000.

Both men were turned over to officials and the evidence was seized

part 2

Arizona officials have arrested 76 people suspected in the smuggling of at least $2 billion worth of drugs through the state’s western desert in coordination with Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel.

“We in Arizona continue to stand and fight the Mexican drug cartels, who think they own the place,” Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu said in a statement about the investigation, dubbed Operation Pipeline Express.

“While this is a historic drug bust, sadly this represents only a fraction of what my deputies face every day,” Babeu said.

The arrests were made during a series of recent raids.

Officials said the ring, based in Chandler, Stanfield and Maricopa, used backpackers and trucks to move drugs from the border to a network of stash houses in the Phoenix area. After arriving in Phoenix, the smugglers sold the drugs, which included marijuana, cocaine and heroin, to distributors from various states.

Virginia Kice, a spokeswoman for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said the  smugglers succeeded at first because they had established control over an 80-mile stretch of the border from Yuma to Sells, Ariz.

“They had gained a virtual monopoly over a swath of the Arizona border,” she said.

Kice said investigators believe some of those arrested are U.S.-based bosses in the Sinaloa cartel.

“Through our joint efforts, we’ve sent a resounding message to the Mexican cartels that Arizona is off limits to their operatives,” Matthew Allen, special agent in charge of Homeland Security investigations in Arizona, said in a statement.

Officials posted video from the investigation online, including surveillance video of trucks being loaded and driven down desert roads, Border Patrol officers inspecting a roofing truck packed with large bricks of marijuana, and sheriff’s teams making arrests during nighttime raids.

The 17-month investigation, which began with a traffic stop by Pinal County sheriff’s deputies, included three “large-scale enforcement actions”: one last week, another earlier this month and a third last month, according to ICE.

During last week’s raids, authorities seized more than 2 tons of marijuana, 19 weapons and nearly $200,000 in cash, the agency said. It estimates that the drug ring smuggled more than 3.3 million pounds of marijuana, 20,000 pounds of cocaine and 10,000 pounds of heroin into the United States during the last five years.

 

Criminal Defense Lawyers PLLC
668 N 44th St. Suite 300
Phoenix, AZ 85008
(480) 351-6445

Home