MARIJUANA ACTIVIST ARRESTED IN RAID

HARRISBURG - Well-known marijuana activist Bill Conde was arrested
Tuesday for allegedly possessing the drug after Linn County sheriff's
deputies searched his home and redwood lumber business, a search
Conde'slawyer decried as illegal and politically motivated.

"Linn County has taken a political exception to Mr. Conde's views,"
attorney Brian Michaels said at the gate to Conde's property while the
search was under way. "This is political intimidation at its worst."

Sheriff Dave Burright said deputies were acting on "very serious
allegations of illegal activity" on Conde's property at 23005 N.
Coburg Road, specifically during his "Cannabis Carnival Unity Fair" in
early September.

"We have eyewitness accounts of multiple, multiple illegal drug
transactions and drug use, just a total disregard for the law,"
Burright said, alleging that drugs were being used in front of
children and, in some cases, by children.

"This is something I will not tolerate in this county," he
said.

According to a sheriff's office news release, Conde, 55, was charged
with possession of marijuana. He was taken to the Linn County Jail in
Albany and later released.

Deputies also arrested James Steven Dowd, 20, who lived at Conde's
residence, on a warrant from Washington state for possession of a
controlled substance.

Conde hasn't been arrested in recent years, according to his lawyer
and court records.

In 1976, he was arrested after a raid in Cottage Grove, where he lived
and ran his business. He was convicted on two drug charges two years
later and sentenced to 90 days in jail.

Conde argued in court then that he was Christian, and that God
provided marijuana to be used with other herbs.

Part way through his jail term, shaken by the impact the case had on
his life and business, he told a judge he wouldn't use marijuana
anymore and no longer viewed the drug as part of his religion.

Michaels angrily called Tuesday's search warrant "overbroad" and said
deputies took all of Conde's business records and computers,
effectively shutting down his lumberyard.

The warrant stated that deputies were searching not only for drugs,
but for records of drug transactions and paperwork to identify people
who attended or worked at the Cannabis Carnival - one of many
marijuana-themed events Conde has hosted.

The events draw political activists and vendors who make food,
beverages, clothing and other items from hemp.

Michaels charged that authorities are trying to pressure Conde into
abandoning his First Amendment rights to campaign for marijuana
legalization, and are trying to bully supporters into staying away
from his gatherings.

Burright said Conde is free to have political events and free to speak
his mind, "but he will conduct himself in a legal manner."

He said more arrests are likely if police can identify people who used
or sold drugs at the latest festival.

"There's a lot of people who ought to be watching over their
shoulders," he said.

Investigators believe illegal drugs in addition to marijuana were
being used at the festival, he said.

Michaels said Conde in no way "promoted or profited" from drug use at
the event, meaning he committed no crimes there and can't be held
accountable for the behavior of others.

Doing so would be like holding the University of Oregon liable for
someone who uses drugs at a football game, he said.

He said Conde hired security for the event and instructed officers to
escort people off the property if they saw criminal behavior. The
orders, however, didn't pertain to possessing or smoking marijuana.
Under Oregon law, having less than an ounce of marijuana is a
violation, not a crime.

Conde is campaigning against a measure on the November ballot, Measure

57, which would recriminalize marijuana use and possession. He is
lobbying for a second proposal, Measure 67, to allow medical use of
marijuana.

"Mr. Conde isn't a drug dealer," Michaels said. "If they're going to
claim he smokes marijuana, I think he's openly admitted that. But any
other criminal activity, it just doesn't happen."

Michaels said he doesn't understand how allegations of criminal
conduct on the festival site north of Conde's house gave deputies a
right to search the home.

"They're in his private residence going through his clothing drawers,"
he said.

Conde plans to fight back in court, he said.

"I think they picked on the wrong guy," Michaels said.

"As I know Mr. Conde over the years, we're going to see the county in
court over this for a long time."

Checked-by: Rich O'Grady