Jonathan Wall is a living reminder that the War on Drugs continues to snare new individuals in the system with its severe mandatory minimum sentences.
The 26-year-old Maryland native faces a mandatory minimum 10-year sentence over a federal distribution conspiracy charge, with the Feds alleging that Wall was part of an operation running cannabis from Humboldt County, where he lived at the time, to his native Maryland. If he goes to trial and loses, he could face up to life with his conspiracy charge of distributing over 1,000 kilograms of cannabis.
Wall, a first-time offender, is alleged to be the mastermind of the operation between Northern California, including Humboldt County, to his native Maryland. The Feds crackdown occurred in April 2019, with Wall in custody since July 2020. His first trial date is nearly a year away in May 2022.
While he waits, the aspiring mainstream cannabis operator attempts to maintain his composure while interned in Baltimores Chesapeake Detention Facility, a facility with a penchant for violence and corruption involving inmates and guards. The matters were only made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Wall was born in Maryland and raised by his parents. He said they got along fine after adolescence, but had been contentious previously. Wall claimed to have had a bit of an issue with authority, stating that he saw through the bullshit of society early on. Happiness for Wall didnt involve material goods like much of the world around him. Stating that he wanted to push his boundaries to find a sense of wholeness, he pursued an unconventional route.
That route included running away several times as a youth. He recalled the first time he smoked pot while on the run from home, joining a group of migrant crabbing industry workers in the back of their work van. He said everything changed from there. Cannabis being introduced into my life allowed me to elevate my sense of consciousness and kind of see things in a different light. Claiming to now see things differently, he said he saw through the veil of the mundane, everyday reality, and witnessed the human experience as it truly is from a new and fresh perspective.
Running away from home eventually led to Wall becoming homeless in his teens, turning to friends, and on occasions, public parks and restrooms. The lack of a stable home led to him dropping out of school, taking his GED instead to obtain his degree. Wall said the decision allowed him to pursue an alternate route in life.
Hed spend the next few years working in local restaurants, with cannabis supplementing his income. At 20, he saw an opportunity to enter the emerging California cannabis market in Humboldt County. At the time, California was operating as a medical-only marketplace, adhering to the Proposition 215 regulations and its subsequent reforms. Wall said he wanted to help provide cost-efficient cannabis to medical patients. Income would always be welcomed, but he stated several times throughout the interview with High Times that his prime intention was to give customers medical cannabis access.
Wall saw the lifestyle as a way to gain freedom from a society he felt disenfranchised with. He saw the 2008 economic collapse and subsequent lack of prosecution as a sign that society and the system was broken, with the working class left to serve to the rich. Through cannabis and Northern California, he shared that he saw this as an opportunity to be entirely autonomous from a system that I saw as broken.
Wall found that autonomy and a community he lacked back at home, save for his skateboarding friends. Wall felt he was contributing to a sustainable and victimless livelihood that helped others while providing him a modest living.
The Northern California community was well aware it still faced potential dangers with violating state and federal laws. However, the Obama years and the Cole Memo gave some a slight sense that the Feds were finally coming around on federal decriminalization and eventual legalization.
Wall said operators in the area remained naturally paranoid during the period, still in fear of just one person tipping off the Feds. Still, he said the general consensus was that cannabis prosecution was a 20th century invention finally existing solely in the past, which wouldnt cause the unfortunate damages it had for decades before.
He said sentiments began to change when President Donald Trump appointed two anti-cannabis Attorneys Generals during his term, first Jeff Sessions and then William Barr.
Federal intervention became a reality in 2019. Wall was made aware that he was the subject of a crackdown while on vacation with family in Portugal. It was during this time that he said he became aware of the severity of cannabis charges. Everybody knows its federally illegal, but certainly not to that extent until the find themselves affected first-hand, he stated.
Wall was worried he wouldnt be allowed back into America without facing apprehension. After those fears were dashed, he first tried to get his affairs in order, but he found many in his trying opting to cash-out rather than support him.
Eventually, around autumn 2019, Wall left the U.S. for Central America. He would stay on the run until July 2020 before turning himself over to Feds at Los Angeles LAX airport. He would be shipped across the U.S. via bus and Con-Air flights, stopping at various prisons along the way, before reaching his current destination in Maryland. He said the journey is known as diesel therapy.
While Wall awaits his hearing on nonviolent federal cannabis charges, he is housed at the Chesapeake Detention Facility in Baltimore. The facility, known for its high level of violence, also endured significant exposure to the COVID-19 virus.
This is no place you want to be, said Wall, as he reported that stabbings occur regularly. He noted that one prisoner went so far as to have weaponized milk cartons with bodily waste against guards in an assault.
The experience has certainly created an impact on Wall, like it would almost anyone. He doesnt consider himself institutionalized, but shared that staying in a groove is essential to healthy adaptation. To do so, he exercises regularly, reads often and tries to meditate for at least 20 minutes a day. A profound read has been Murray Rothbards The Ethics of Liberty. The book had a significance in developing his enthusiasm for Libertarianism social and economic structures. He also credited former cannabis convict turned author Richard Stratton for helping with his adjustment.
Life in the facility worsened when COVID-19 reached the prison, with Wall saying he didnt know an inmate who didnt contract the virus. He stated that his symptoms were minimal but remains slightly concerned about possible long-term effects. He alleges that the guards brought in the virus, saying, Its the only way it comes in here. He added that instead of separating infected cellmates from other individuals, the guards would lock the door, not allowing either to leave for days at a time. He called the scenario a nightmare.
Wall waits for his May 2022 first appearance in court. I will have been incarcerated for 23 months as a legally innocent individual by the time I have my first appearance in court, said Wall, asking if that timeline adhered to a citizens right to a speedy trial.
It is oft-reported that prisoners face harsher sentences if they forgo a plea deal and fight their chargesoften forcing many to take a plea regardless or guilt or innocence. Despite the risk, Wall is ready to have his day in court. Whether guilty or innocent, Wall abhors the idea of surrendering by copping out, to a plea. He considers doing so accepting defeat. Ive known from childhood that these people were wrong, he said of regulators. He doesnt believe in fate, but said the case almost feels like something hes been preparing for some time.
He calls the drug war the most historically flagrant violation of personal property rights by the state. Asking who is the government to regulate what a citizen can consume, he added, especially a natural plant, widely regarded as a holistic medicine. Wall would later explain that alcohol, pharmaceuticals and shotguns as far more dangerous, readily available legal options.
Walls lawyer, Jason Flores-Williams, is a noted activist and is prepared to fight the case.
Flores-Williams isnt shying away from grand language to drive home his point. I dont understand this countrys commitment to ideological necrophilia, the insistence on continuing to have sex with dead ideas, he said of the ongoing drug war and its effects.
The lawyer added, I do not intend to live with the distinction of being the last attorney to have his client go to prison for pot.
Despite the attention being on Wall, he hopes readers understand that he is just one of many continuing to be arrested and forced to serve years, decades for nonviolent cannabis charges. Like himself, many continue to face lengthy prison sentences despite the so-called Green Rush of legalization sweeping America.
He believes that without change, others like him will continue to get snared in the system while the powerful continue to escape punishment for the various allegations and crimes. Are we tired of being lied to, tired of all the lies and the War on Drugs? Wall asked.
Read more from the original source:
- Ipswich Man given suspended sentence for burglary offences - Suffolk Constabulary - September 29th, 2023 [September 29th, 2023]
- Miller: Hey, Steve Rogers take a hike with your cronies! - The Observer Online - September 29th, 2023 [September 29th, 2023]
- Crime in Prison Referral Agreement - GOV.UK - September 29th, 2023 [September 29th, 2023]
- Reducing public defender workloads across the nation | Behind the ... - Missoulian - September 29th, 2023 [September 29th, 2023]
- The SIPT Judgement - Turks and Caicos Weekly News - September 29th, 2023 [September 29th, 2023]
- Two biotech CEOs charged with defrauding investors - UPI.com - December 26th, 2022 [December 26th, 2022]
- Most Free States 2022 - worldpopulationreview.com - December 26th, 2022 [December 26th, 2022]
- Economic and Social Effects of Crime | Encyclopedia.com - December 18th, 2022 [December 18th, 2022]
- What are Some Examples of Victimless Crimes? - eLawTalk.com - November 5th, 2022 [November 5th, 2022]
- Want to save Metro? Dare to re-criminalize fare beating - Washington Examiner - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- Police: Catalytic converter thefts on the rise | Police and Fire | kokomotribune.com - Kokomo Tribune - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- Holy See: Human dignity should be at the core of crime policies' - vaticannews.va - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- Why bike theft needs to be re-criminalised, urgently - CyclingWeekly - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- Outrageous raging inflation, and the distortion of CPI - City A.M. - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- Quickly: Readers sound off on the issues of the day - Chicago Tribune - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- Fortnum and Mason 'gives up on police catching shoplifters' - The Telegraph - September 27th, 2022 [September 27th, 2022]
- Asylum, Migration And US Foreign Policy OpEd - Eurasia Review - September 27th, 2022 [September 27th, 2022]
- The Victims of a Victimless Crime: The Future of Organized Retail Crime - Loss Prevention Magazine - September 14th, 2022 [September 14th, 2022]
- 2 people identified as human trafficking victims in Polk County | wtsp.com - September 11th, 2022 [September 11th, 2022]
- Parents of fentanyl victims rally in San Francisco - CBS San Francisco - August 22nd, 2022 [August 22nd, 2022]
- Retail Industry Joins With Law Enforcement to Keep Communities Safe - CSNews Online - August 22nd, 2022 [August 22nd, 2022]
- The boots on the ground stomping out insurance fraud - ITIJ - July 31st, 2022 [July 31st, 2022]
- Shoplifting rises 21% year-on-year | Features and Analysis - Convenience Store - July 25th, 2022 [July 25th, 2022]
- Retail Theft a National Crisis: What Must be Done to Help Businesses and Consumers - ABC Action News Tampa Bay - July 25th, 2022 [July 25th, 2022]
- Sex offender caught with vile image hoard avoids prison term - The Dumbarton and Vale of Leven Reporter - July 25th, 2022 [July 25th, 2022]
- Top Sheffield judge highlights sickening treatment of children who are sexually abused for content shared online - The Star - July 25th, 2022 [July 25th, 2022]
- Resident Evil: Netflix's eight-part adaptation's very different from the movies - Stuff - July 25th, 2022 [July 25th, 2022]
- The Consequences Of Justice Not Seen To Be Done: The Case Of Najib Razak Analysis - Eurasia Review - July 17th, 2022 [July 17th, 2022]
- Dad's weed grow 'to fund son's treatment' - Kent Online - July 13th, 2022 [July 13th, 2022]
- Reward to catch cable thieves as hundreds without internet - Kent Online - June 30th, 2022 [June 30th, 2022]
- Claim fraud on the rise: insurance firms hard-hit - Bizcommunity.com - June 30th, 2022 [June 30th, 2022]
- Smash-and-Grab Hits Calif. Macy's; NY Plans to Target Repeat Offenders - Sourcing Journal - June 30th, 2022 [June 30th, 2022]
- Human trafficking probe in Winnipeg nets three-year sentence | CTV News - CTV News Winnipeg - June 30th, 2022 [June 30th, 2022]
- Guest opinion: Clarity amid confusion in the county attorney's race - Daily Herald - June 22nd, 2022 [June 22nd, 2022]
- Fraudster jailed after trying to scam taxpayer out of 70000 with bogus claims - Shropshire Star - June 22nd, 2022 [June 22nd, 2022]
- Hack Me If You Can, Part 1: The Making of a Russian Hacker - The Journal. - WSJ Podcasts - The Wall Street Journal - June 15th, 2022 [June 15th, 2022]
- Crimes Against Morality: Definition & Examples - Study.com - June 11th, 2022 [June 11th, 2022]
- Britain's first police shoplifting squad catches twice as many thieves - The Telegraph - June 11th, 2022 [June 11th, 2022]
- Integrated assessment team to be involved in Narcotics Law revision - ANTARA English - June 11th, 2022 [June 11th, 2022]
- Soft Review: Young Black Men, Gently Pointed Toward Liberation - The New York Times - June 11th, 2022 [June 11th, 2022]
- Lubbock Woman Has Her Pot Stolen And Refuses To Call Police - KFMX-FM - June 11th, 2022 [June 11th, 2022]
- Teens held in spree of SF smash-and-grab thefts - KTVU FOX 2 San Francisco - June 11th, 2022 [June 11th, 2022]
- Michael Moynihan: Why is it that noisy people show no consideration for others? - Irish Examiner - June 11th, 2022 [June 11th, 2022]
- Sheriff Marceno: "We are taking the streets back" in reference to narcotics investigations - FOX 4 News Fort Myers WFTX - June 5th, 2022 [June 5th, 2022]
- Opinion: Are we fooling ourselves to say we're a nation of laws? - Yakima Herald-Republic - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- He Owns This City: How Jon Bernthal Gave the Performance of the Year - Decider - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- Guest Commentary: The Truth about Reisig - The Peoples Vanguard of Davis - June 3rd, 2022 [June 3rd, 2022]
- Matthew in the Middle | The war on drugs and crime - Eureka Times-Standard - May 3rd, 2022 [May 3rd, 2022]
- Police operation targets prostitution at Fishkill hotel - Mid Hudson News Website - May 3rd, 2022 [May 3rd, 2022]
- California State Senate Public Safety Committee Votes 4-0 to Pass SB 1472: Ryan's Law - Redefines Gross Negligence to Include Driving Over 100 MPH,... - May 3rd, 2022 [May 3rd, 2022]
- The Secret History of the War on Weed #1 - Multiversity Comics - April 25th, 2022 [April 25th, 2022]
- OPINION: Beware 'The Next Big Thing' - Daily Journal - April 22nd, 2022 [April 22nd, 2022]
- War has never been a reason not to replace a UK Prime Minister - The National - April 20th, 2022 [April 20th, 2022]
- Method 4 How to make $1k-$3k without any carding ... - reddit - April 11th, 2022 [April 11th, 2022]
- Meeting the challenge of organized retail crime - NRF News - April 11th, 2022 [April 11th, 2022]
- Industry Perspectives Op-Ed: When contractors engage in tax fraud they are stealing from the rest of us - constructconnect.com - Daily Commercial News - April 11th, 2022 [April 11th, 2022]
- A Woman's Take On the Men's Rights Movement | Hannah Cox - Foundation for Economic Education - April 11th, 2022 [April 11th, 2022]
- Sunnyside caf hit by theft and damages in second incident - LiveWire Calgary - March 27th, 2022 [March 27th, 2022]
- Fuel thefts might be 'low-level' crimes but they aren't victimless - Daily Record - March 21st, 2022 [March 21st, 2022]
- The false fantasy of funding the police - TheGrio - March 21st, 2022 [March 21st, 2022]
- Pandemic Relief Fraud- A Focus And Priority For The Department Of Justice - JD Supra - March 21st, 2022 [March 21st, 2022]
- Taraji P. Henson Uses Emmett Till As An Example To Demand Jussie Smolletts Release From Prison - Majic 102.1 - March 21st, 2022 [March 21st, 2022]
- Eight arrested as Sheriff's Office conducts prostitution sting - Palm Coast Observer - March 8th, 2022 [March 8th, 2022]
- The Rise Of Online Fraud: How To Stay Safe When iGaming - Euro Weekly News - March 8th, 2022 [March 8th, 2022]
- Brutal double murderer and school worker paedophile among the men jailed in February - Grimsby Live - March 8th, 2022 [March 8th, 2022]
- House Bill 672 Fish and game, violations - Idaho Freedom - idahofreedom.org - February 24th, 2022 [February 24th, 2022]
- Drugs and 150,000 illegal cigarettes found stashed behind wall in Hessle Road - Hull Live - February 24th, 2022 [February 24th, 2022]
- A RI city and judge start new approach for petty offenses driven by addiction. Here's why - The Providence Journal - February 17th, 2022 [February 17th, 2022]
- Police slap down suggestion they should 'focus on real crime' after cannabis bust in Coalville - Leicestershire Live - February 17th, 2022 [February 17th, 2022]
- Netflix's 'Inventing Anna' and the 'girlboss-ification' of Anna Delvey - MSNBC - February 17th, 2022 [February 17th, 2022]
- Bus lane fines rocket by more than 60 per cent in a year in Edinburgh as number cameras shot up during lockdown - Edinburgh News - February 17th, 2022 [February 17th, 2022]
- Two men involved in laundering 15 million have been sentenced to a total of 12 years in jail UKNIP - UK News in Pictures - February 17th, 2022 [February 17th, 2022]
- Judge in warning to people who view child abuse images as he jails dad who downloaded hundreds of vile pictures - The Star - February 11th, 2022 [February 11th, 2022]
- Tacarre Harper, Alleged Leader Of Smash-And-Grab Burglars That Targeted Stores On Mag Mile And Around City, Arrested And Charged - CBS Chicago - February 9th, 2022 [February 9th, 2022]
- What Homeland Security Will Be on Prowl for at Super Bowl - Newsweek - February 9th, 2022 [February 9th, 2022]
- Republicans Call For Tougher Penalties For Car Thefts, Hit-And-Runs - NBC Connecticut - February 7th, 2022 [February 7th, 2022]
- Gov. Bill Lee plays politics by failing to mention Tennessee's 22,000 COVID dead | Opinion - Tennessean - February 7th, 2022 [February 7th, 2022]
- Guelph police investigated almost 200 vehicle thefts in 2021 - GuelphToday - February 7th, 2022 [February 7th, 2022]
- How Do We Reconcile the Olympics and China's Human Rights Crisis? - Bleacher Report - February 7th, 2022 [February 7th, 2022]
- Car enthusiasts speak out about reckless driving as new bill is proposed to rev up penalties | News Channel 3-12 - KEYT - February 1st, 2022 [February 1st, 2022]