Op Ed that I had published in the Oakland Press just after the raid.
(August 28, 2010)
Clinical Relief’s Open Letter to the Public
Many have read or heard my name, Ryan Richmond, in the past few days relating to Oakland County Sheriff Bouchard’s raid on Clinical Relief’s medical marijuana clinic in Ferndale. A friend told me that social change can be accepted by the people much quicker than police actions will let old stereotypes die. If Sheriff Bouchard’s parody of Cheech and Chong were true for Clinical Relief then Police Academy 2 on steroids would be true for the Sheriff’s department-–guns drawn with 8 year olds in the sights, a dragnet that placed truly innocent people in solitary confinement, home searches that were about intimidation as opposed to thoroughness. Fortunately, neither parody is true.
Clinical Relief operates within the law and wants to set the standard for our industry. Sheriff Bouchard simply doesn’t like the law because it’s too broad. His approach is guilt by association instead of innocence because of medical benefits. He doesn’t respect what two-thirds of Michigan voters decided.
I welcome clarification of Michigan law. Our clinics want to be members of their communities. We have had a criminology class from Eastern Michigan University, Ferndale police and many different municipal leaders pay us a visit, the same offer was extended to Mike. If Sheriff Bouchard has his way: we, you, have no rights even within the law.
I am an entrepreneur and believe that medical marijuana is the next best thing since sliced bread. Let’s talk about 7,500 caregivers earning from $10,000 to $60,000 supplying Michigan’s medical marijuana needs. That could be 7,500 Michigan families off the unemployment ranks. And, 20,000 less incarcerations, although that’s probably bad for the policing business.
