FESTIVAL ORGANIZER CONVICTED OF FELONIES

ALBANY, Ore. (AP) -- William Conde, whose music and pro-hemp
gatherings became notorious for marijuana use, was has been convicted
of felony charges related to his July 1999 "Rock & Reggae Revival."

Conde, who last year sold his lumber yard in Harrisburg and moved with
his family to Belize, was found guilty of aiding and abetting delivery
of a controlled substance and hindering prosecution Friday night by a
jury in Linn County Circuit Court.

Conde was acquitted of two misdemeanor charges: frequenting a place
where controlled substances are used, and endangering the welfare of a
minor by allowing people under age 18 to enter his festival grounds.

"The jury worked hard and they were well justified in their
conclusions," Deputy District Attorney George Eder said.

No date was set for sentencing before Judge Carol Bispham.

Conde's lawyer, Brian Michaels of Eugene, said he will
appeal.

"We don't think, as a matter of law, he committed these crimes,"
Michaels said. "It seems as though he complied with everything the
state wanted him and the county wanted him to do."

Law enforcement officers said drug use and sales were rampant at the
three-day festival, attended by an estimated 3,000 people on Conde's
lumber yard just off Interstate 5. Despite "widespread" sale of
drugs, according to Sheriff Dave Burright, there was only one arrest,
of a 22-year-old Nebraska man who allegedly sold illegal mushrooms.

Michaels said the jury's verdict was devastating to Conde's plans to
hold future events on the property. Conde has applied to Linn County
for an outdoor assembly permit to hold another festival this summer.

Conde is scheduled to go on trial Aug. 8 on the same charges for
another festival, held over Labor Day weekend in 1999. He faces more
charges stemming from two events he organized in 1998.

Conde has filed a multimillion-dollar civil suit against Linn County,
claiming his business and family have been harmed by the county's actions.