Texas man sentenced to 35 years for 4.6 oz of Cannabis

It is well known in Texas that our Law Enforcement Officers are the best in the nation when it comes to that moment in time when the feet need to hit the ground. When you call 911, you can bet that Texas Law Enforcement Officers will respond quickly and deal with the situation at hand decisively.
Once the Law Enforcement Officers deal with the criminal element, they pass them off to the Texas Criminal Justice System. They are well known for their “tough on crime” campaign toting all of the old paradigms left over from the Reagan administration.
This bring us to the story about a Tyler Texas man named Henry Walter Wooten, 54 years old. Henry isn’t the brightest toker in the world. He was caught by law enforcement within 1000 feet of Ebenezer Day Care Center in Tyler with baggies of weed in his pockets toking on a joint. On Thursday, March 4th, Henry received 35 years in a state correctional facility.
Trey Cloud, DPS forensic chemist, testified that the weight of the marijuana seized from Wooten when he was arrested was 4.6 ounces, and the packaging alone weighed 1.06 ounces. He also testified that the drug seized from Wooten was indeed marijuana.
This is, more or less, a warning for those who would openly defy Marijuana Laws in Texas. The Texas Justice system is a series of policies designed to incarcerate people, not rehabilitate or help them in anyway. Henry’s case is unique because his possession limit was on the cusp of being a misdemeanor. In Texas, it is a misdemeanor to possess four ounces or less. One to two ounces is a class B, and three to four is a class A misdemeanor. Henry was found guilty of possessing four ounces to one pound, a felony which could be 2 years in jail and a $10,000 fine. However, since Henry was in a “drug free zone”, Smith County Assistant District Attorney Richard Vance had asked for the jury to give Wooten a sentence of 99 years. Do you think he got off easy?According to the University of North Texas Rehabilitative Studies professor, James Quinn, Texas is on the cusp of a real grass roots legalization effort.

Dr. Quinn,
76% of Texans are pro-Medical Marijuana and 46% are for blanket legalization. However, 80% of those who are in favor of Medical Marijuana believe they stand alone in their thoughts.
According to Ryan Rodriguez, the Executive Director of DFWNorml, (Dallas Fort Worth / North Texas Chapter of NORML),
Once Texans start to understand that most of their neighbors agree with them, they will become emboldened to come out of the Cannabis Closet. We are sitting on a legalization powder keg! Once the powder keg goes off, then we can finally start a real dialog with our policy makers in the Texas House of Representatives.Legalization in Texas is going to be an uphill battle. Our legislatures meet every two years. This year, 2010, is election year for all of them, including our congressional representatives, and next year the legislature convenes. We intend to submit several bills next year and are working closely with Texas NORML as well as volunteer lawyers and other activists. We could always use more help though!.
NORML activism has increased substantially over the last 18 months, more and more people feel empowered to come out to the meetings and fund raising events mostly because of the encouraging news around the country as more and more states pass legislation for decriminalization. With the possibility of California passing an initiative next year legalizing Marijuana, Texans are starting to open their eyes to the idea of another economic source of income.
The fact is that most of you who are reading this article will probably believe that sentencing a person to prison for 35 years for the possession of a non-toxic, non-addicting, all natural substance that has proven anti-cancer capabilities is not really protecting society from anything dangerous. He might have been stupid choosing his location to medicate, after all, it was Tyler, “Texas”, but nobody should spend a day in a steel cage for medicating, much less their entire life or 35 years. Let’s hope he earns a reprieve in his appeal.In the meantime, help support your local chapters of NORML. Texas NORML is looking to create a Houston Chapter, so if you live in Houston and want to start a chapter, visit http://texasnorml.org/ and click on the contact link.

-Copied from NORML

 

looks like texas is no different from SC my best freind just got out of under a 5 year sentence for 11 little plants Be safe be stoned and as Cheech&Chong say lets get this legal folks!!

 

Wow, I can see that the IQ levels in Texas amongst the criminals, and leagle beagles is not all that impressive. Big dummy is caught toking down, busted and now will be fed, clothed, and housed for 35 years! All for a couple hundred bucks of pot, where is the accounting department when you need them?

 

Some states just love the criminal injustice system. TX: Pot Bad!!! TX: Oil in Gulf Good!!! Not hard to see the real criminals. Unless you are blinded by greed. Wonder if they will say the poor soul running the rig on 4/20/2010 was Stoned and blew the rig up.........

 

I remember in the late 60s reading in one of the underground papers(LA Free Press or Berkely Barb) that a man in Texas was given a LIFE sentence for A JOINT!! What the hell are the cops/judges thinking?

 

Fucked up shit, but the way texas sentences work the guy will be out in less than five years. Still a ridiculous anmount of time for any amount of pot, but not much different from where I live. Hell, in kansas over an ounce is a felony first offence any anount is a felony second offence. I was sentenced to 11 months for a roach in an ashtray. Which meant I did 9 months which is how the systom works here. Roaches in the ashtray weren't why the door got kicked in in the first place. That's another crazy thing-18 mponths for meth with intent to sell, 11 for a roach. And they wonder why we have a meth epidemic here, LOL.

 

I heard about Texas' strict drug policies, but that's just not cool

 

Just another reason... Yeeeeeehaw!

 

WTF 35 years for 4.6 oz of weed ?
fucked up shit man.

 

budown guh go git mer uh beer we gunnuh wuhch dis evol weed man git gone put in jail

fuck texas and all those other backward southern states

we made a big mistake not letting them out of the union in the civil war, we should kick them out now.