Below are two things you may find of interest... The first is a blurb by Katherine Loh of festivaluse.wordpress.com regarding a subject she interviewed for her blog, one Ms. Jessica Sonabend. Then, below that is a link to Ms. Loh's blog which takes you to her page with a 4 minute clip of her interview with... well... check it out below!!
What The "Ranting Raver" Has to Say About the EDM Movement
(December 2012)
By Katherine Loh
Jessica Sonabend, the writer behind “The Ranting Raver” blog publication is currently 23, yet has been attending raves since since she was 16 years old. I thought profiling her involvement within the rave and EDM culture was a great way to get a glimpse of her experience as well as her thoughts on its mainstream appeal.
Sonabend has attributed the growth of the rave scene to many promoters’ work and efforts. These include flyers and social media promotion. In addition, many of her favorite DJs have also gained attention on their own.
“Swedish House Mafia…Steve Angello, Sebastien Ingrosso, and Axwell…those are extremely old-school producers,” Sonabend said. “The fact that they came together in this group and blew America out of the water…people started seeing who they were.”
She states that it is a big deal considering none of these DJs are from the United States. In fact, many of them got their start in Europe and hit it big once they reached America. To her, the new collaborations between hip-hop artists like Nicki Minaj and Flo Rida are distasteful. After listening to a remix done by Flo Rida to the original “Cry” by Bingo Players, Sonabend wished it didn’t have to happen.
“This dude does not know how to produce music,” Sonabend said. “You can’t really do anything about it because EDM has become very mainstream.”
(http://festivalfuse.wordpress.com/2012/11/28/what-the-ranting-raver-has-to-say-about-the-edm-movement/)
Electronic Dance Music Growth -- Full Interview!
(December 2012)
By Katherine Loh
I spoke with a few experts that know a little about the Electronic Dance Music scene. Here is what they had to say about the reasons of its immediate growth:
http://festivalfuse.wordpress.com/2012/12/06/electronic-dance-music-growth/
Saturday, December 29, 2012
"Raving" About America's Music Festival Scene!
Looking for a positive spin on this past year instead of the negativity some of the media has given this phenomenon? Read below for the REAL deal...
(December 2012)
By the Ranting Raver
Shifts within the music industry have presented its followers with the 1970s disco movement, heavy metal era of the 1980s, boy band melodies of the 1990s, and transcendence of the hip-hop evolution of the 2000s. However, an upbeat and energetic sound has recently dominated the mainstream media in various ways. America is making a rapid transition into the electronic dance music scene, better known as EDM.
According to Forbes Magazine’s EDM series titled “House Music Has Become a Global Phenomenon”, contributor Dan Schawbel says music trio, Swedish House Mafia was able to sell out New York City’s Madison Square Garden within nine minutes in 2011. Ben Sisario of The New York Times writes that music festivals like Ultra and Electric Daisy Carnival draw crowds of 100,000 or more. Electronic dance music has perpetuated the influx of raves and music festivals worldwide.
Recently, electronic music has received a tremendous amount of radio airplay. Swedish House Mafia is a group of three Swedish music producers that have been active members of the electronic music era since the late 1990s. Their most recent hit “Save the World” has over 55 million views on YouTube and numerous plays on the radio.
The term “EDM” is a fairly new phenomenon. Ryan Mac, contributor for Forbes Magazine’s wealth team, says that electronic dance music has begun to exist in various inclinations.
“The phrase ‘EDM’ was born only a couple years ago, even though the roots of the dance music were there for decades,” Mac said. “In terms of how big it can be, coming from a strictly financial standpoint, some people are estimating that this whole industry could be worth about four billion dollars per year at some point in the next couple of years.”
But electronic music has been around for decades. Ben Sisario, writer for the New York Times, believes there was a pretty established electronic dance music sound and scene in the mid-eighties.
“In the US, there have been waves of popularity and there have always been raves but they have been fairly small by comparison to what is happening now,” Sisario said.
Large music festivals that strictly play electronic music, also known as raves, have become the center of the EDM movement. In the early 1990s, raves were typically kept underground and much of the public was unaware of its existence. Police officers would frequently break up the secret shows to scan the area for illegal substances. Raves are popularly known for its association with the drug, Ecstasy.
“Even when I started going seven years ago, there would be people that don’t really like this music but went because there are so many good drugs there,” said Jessica Sonabend, 23 year old blogger of The Ranting Raver. “At a rave, I have never seen so many people on drugs in one area before.”
Yet, drug use is common at almost every music festival event. Sisario believes drugs have had an impact on the music scene for many decades.
“Look at Woodstock! I think that drugs have been part of this music scene for a long time,” Sisario said. “On balance, I think it is no different than many kinds of pop music.”
Aside from its associated drug use, the electronic music industry is a big investment. The perpetuation of raves is only one of many sources of cash inflow. Mac says huge amounts of money are being tossed around to grow the industry in relation to venues and tours. Raves are drawing thousands of attendees with its headliner acts and special effects.
“Hundreds and thousands of people go and they have state-of-the-art speakers and lights,” Sonabend said. “You pay good money and you get the most bang for your buck.”
Sonabend has listened to electronic music and attended at least 300 raves since she was 16 years old. Her love for the music began before the existence of social media and Facebook updates.
“When I first started going to raves it was word-of-mouth,” Sonabend said. “There would be like an info line where somebody would turn their phone off and change the voice message on their phone to the location of the rave.”
After attending her first rave, Sonabend couldn’t get enough of it. She liked the thrill of sneaking out of her bedroom window of her parents’ house, feeling like she was up to no good.
However, unlike Sonabend, other attendees like to look at raves and electronic music as a time to relax. For MC Romano, junior at the University of Washington, raves act as mini vacations. After attending the Ultra music festival in Miami, FL, Romano associates the beach setting with her love for the music.
“These shows can be up to two to three days long,” Romano said. “You can do other things such as getting a hotel or camp.”
Another reason many believe electronic music has received mainstream media attention is due to the recent collaborations between EDM producers and hip-hop artists. While some popstars are creating their own remixes of electronic music, DJs like David Guetta have collaborated with Akon and Kid Cudi to produce some of America’s Top 40 singles like “Sexy Chick” and “Memories”.
“Historically, DJs have not been very successful as pop stars and their own records don’t really sell too well to mainstream audiences and it’s still pretty much the case,” Sisario said. “David Guetta became a celebrity in his own right.”
Jensen Wong, junior at the University of Washington, agrees that EDM broke through to the mainstream audience through radio airplay.
“Five years ago you would only hear hip-hop or alternative on the radio,” Jensen said.
The electronic dance music scene has impacted America in a variety of ways that people still struggle to completely understand. Music festivals have given many fans the opportunity to experience a type of music whether or not drug abuse is established. However, its growing industry has helped EDM become a widespread phenomenon.
“People want to experience this thing and in a sense, the industry has to accommodate this growing influx of interest,” Mac said.
(http://festivalfuse.wordpress.com/2012/12/06/the-electronic-dance-music-phenomenon/)
(December 2012)
By the Ranting Raver
Shifts within the music industry have presented its followers with the 1970s disco movement, heavy metal era of the 1980s, boy band melodies of the 1990s, and transcendence of the hip-hop evolution of the 2000s. However, an upbeat and energetic sound has recently dominated the mainstream media in various ways. America is making a rapid transition into the electronic dance music scene, better known as EDM.
According to Forbes Magazine’s EDM series titled “House Music Has Become a Global Phenomenon”, contributor Dan Schawbel says music trio, Swedish House Mafia was able to sell out New York City’s Madison Square Garden within nine minutes in 2011. Ben Sisario of The New York Times writes that music festivals like Ultra and Electric Daisy Carnival draw crowds of 100,000 or more. Electronic dance music has perpetuated the influx of raves and music festivals worldwide.
Recently, electronic music has received a tremendous amount of radio airplay. Swedish House Mafia is a group of three Swedish music producers that have been active members of the electronic music era since the late 1990s. Their most recent hit “Save the World” has over 55 million views on YouTube and numerous plays on the radio.The term “EDM” is a fairly new phenomenon. Ryan Mac, contributor for Forbes Magazine’s wealth team, says that electronic dance music has begun to exist in various inclinations.
“The phrase ‘EDM’ was born only a couple years ago, even though the roots of the dance music were there for decades,” Mac said. “In terms of how big it can be, coming from a strictly financial standpoint, some people are estimating that this whole industry could be worth about four billion dollars per year at some point in the next couple of years.”
But electronic music has been around for decades. Ben Sisario, writer for the New York Times, believes there was a pretty established electronic dance music sound and scene in the mid-eighties.
“In the US, there have been waves of popularity and there have always been raves but they have been fairly small by comparison to what is happening now,” Sisario said.
Large music festivals that strictly play electronic music, also known as raves, have become the center of the EDM movement. In the early 1990s, raves were typically kept underground and much of the public was unaware of its existence. Police officers would frequently break up the secret shows to scan the area for illegal substances. Raves are popularly known for its association with the drug, Ecstasy.
“Even when I started going seven years ago, there would be people that don’t really like this music but went because there are so many good drugs there,” said Jessica Sonabend, 23 year old blogger of The Ranting Raver. “At a rave, I have never seen so many people on drugs in one area before.”
Yet, drug use is common at almost every music festival event. Sisario believes drugs have had an impact on the music scene for many decades.
“Look at Woodstock! I think that drugs have been part of this music scene for a long time,” Sisario said. “On balance, I think it is no different than many kinds of pop music.”
Aside from its associated drug use, the electronic music industry is a big investment. The perpetuation of raves is only one of many sources of cash inflow. Mac says huge amounts of money are being tossed around to grow the industry in relation to venues and tours. Raves are drawing thousands of attendees with its headliner acts and special effects.
“Hundreds and thousands of people go and they have state-of-the-art speakers and lights,” Sonabend said. “You pay good money and you get the most bang for your buck.”
Sonabend has listened to electronic music and attended at least 300 raves since she was 16 years old. Her love for the music began before the existence of social media and Facebook updates.
“When I first started going to raves it was word-of-mouth,” Sonabend said. “There would be like an info line where somebody would turn their phone off and change the voice message on their phone to the location of the rave.”
After attending her first rave, Sonabend couldn’t get enough of it. She liked the thrill of sneaking out of her bedroom window of her parents’ house, feeling like she was up to no good.
However, unlike Sonabend, other attendees like to look at raves and electronic music as a time to relax. For MC Romano, junior at the University of Washington, raves act as mini vacations. After attending the Ultra music festival in Miami, FL, Romano associates the beach setting with her love for the music.
“These shows can be up to two to three days long,” Romano said. “You can do other things such as getting a hotel or camp.”
Another reason many believe electronic music has received mainstream media attention is due to the recent collaborations between EDM producers and hip-hop artists. While some popstars are creating their own remixes of electronic music, DJs like David Guetta have collaborated with Akon and Kid Cudi to produce some of America’s Top 40 singles like “Sexy Chick” and “Memories”.
“Historically, DJs have not been very successful as pop stars and their own records don’t really sell too well to mainstream audiences and it’s still pretty much the case,” Sisario said. “David Guetta became a celebrity in his own right.”
Jensen Wong, junior at the University of Washington, agrees that EDM broke through to the mainstream audience through radio airplay.
“Five years ago you would only hear hip-hop or alternative on the radio,” Jensen said.
The electronic dance music scene has impacted America in a variety of ways that people still struggle to completely understand. Music festivals have given many fans the opportunity to experience a type of music whether or not drug abuse is established. However, its growing industry has helped EDM become a widespread phenomenon.
“People want to experience this thing and in a sense, the industry has to accommodate this growing influx of interest,” Mac said.
(http://festivalfuse.wordpress.com/2012/12/06/the-electronic-dance-music-phenomenon/)
Monday, October 29, 2012
Music Festivals Rake in Millions for Hosting Cities
Don't believe us (but we think you do!)? Read below for the full story...
(October 2012)
By Jessica Sonabend
Trashed fields and cluttered arenas are the least of their worries as hotels, retail stores, and entertainment venues in Clark County, Las Vegas count the cash in their pocket after hosting the three-day Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC) at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
In June 2012, EDC attracted over 320,000 fans, bringing in a total estimated impact of $34.4 million since its first hosted carnival event in Las Vegas according to the Insomniac News Report. This year, “$28.3 million [was] spent in accommodations, $19.8 million in transportation, $19.6 million in dining, $17.2 million in gaming, $10.5 million in entertainment and $7.9 million in retail.”
With a growing number of fans and anticipated comeback each year, many more cities seem as if they are preparing themselves to host America’s next music festival scene.
Las Vegas is not the only city benefiting from this influx of music shows, but Austin, TX has received a dramatic change in its economy as well.
In March 2012, Austin introduced its annual music industry conference, trade show, and festival known as the South by SouthWest Festival (SXSW). According to the Bizmology Report the 2011 festival to kick off the NCAA conference raked in “$167 million to the local economy during the two weeks of the music, film, and interactive festivals.”
Regardless of location, many of these music festivals seem to do tremendously well in urban areas like downtown Austin and desserts similar to that of Las Vegas. Being within proximity of a major city helps hotels, restaurants and tourist attractions increase their revenue.
Many individuals are discovering new ways to draw a crowd through the source of music festivals similar to SXSW. Students from the University of Texas conducted a study and did research to draw recommendations on how to successfully increase the attendance of large shows which included “a Battle of the Bands, school choir competitions and roving musicians in addition to the Fair’s full line-up of concerts.”
Although government officials make plans to eliminate future raves, cities are profiting and tremendously benefiting from much of the crowds’ spending activity. The economic impact creates new jobs and increased state and federal tax revenue in various locations. The continuous struggle to rescue the unemployed and pay off the nation’s debts could possibly lie in the success of a new music scene.
(http://festivalfuse.wordpress.com/2012/10/05/music-festivals-rakes-in-millions-for-hosting-cities/)
(October 2012)
By Jessica Sonabend
Trashed fields and cluttered arenas are the least of their worries as hotels, retail stores, and entertainment venues in Clark County, Las Vegas count the cash in their pocket after hosting the three-day Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC) at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
In June 2012, EDC attracted over 320,000 fans, bringing in a total estimated impact of $34.4 million since its first hosted carnival event in Las Vegas according to the Insomniac News Report. This year, “$28.3 million [was] spent in accommodations, $19.8 million in transportation, $19.6 million in dining, $17.2 million in gaming, $10.5 million in entertainment and $7.9 million in retail.”
With a growing number of fans and anticipated comeback each year, many more cities seem as if they are preparing themselves to host America’s next music festival scene.
Las Vegas is not the only city benefiting from this influx of music shows, but Austin, TX has received a dramatic change in its economy as well.
In March 2012, Austin introduced its annual music industry conference, trade show, and festival known as the South by SouthWest Festival (SXSW). According to the Bizmology Report the 2011 festival to kick off the NCAA conference raked in “$167 million to the local economy during the two weeks of the music, film, and interactive festivals.”
Regardless of location, many of these music festivals seem to do tremendously well in urban areas like downtown Austin and desserts similar to that of Las Vegas. Being within proximity of a major city helps hotels, restaurants and tourist attractions increase their revenue.
Many individuals are discovering new ways to draw a crowd through the source of music festivals similar to SXSW. Students from the University of Texas conducted a study and did research to draw recommendations on how to successfully increase the attendance of large shows which included “a Battle of the Bands, school choir competitions and roving musicians in addition to the Fair’s full line-up of concerts.”
Although government officials make plans to eliminate future raves, cities are profiting and tremendously benefiting from much of the crowds’ spending activity. The economic impact creates new jobs and increased state and federal tax revenue in various locations. The continuous struggle to rescue the unemployed and pay off the nation’s debts could possibly lie in the success of a new music scene.
(http://festivalfuse.wordpress.com/2012/10/05/music-festivals-rakes-in-millions-for-hosting-cities/)
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
Behind the scenes of a first-time music festival, the rewards and perils
While I was not among those in attendance at What The Festival (see below) it did sound like it was going to be (and was) an amazing event for all those who participated. Below is an article where those who helped to put on this amazing festival (this was its first year!) give a little "behind the scenes" perspective of the whole deal. Note: This is a west-coast festival, for those who may be interested to look into WTF for 2013 and years to come. For the full story, read below...
(August 2012)
By Cody Delistraty
Driving along the same path that Meriwether Lewis and William Clark blazed two centuries ago, music festivalgoers headed into Oregon territory seldom explored since then. Upon entrance to the campsite of the What The Festival, a three-day electronic music event, the rural area’s perils became clear when security issued a single piece of advice: watch out for the rattlesnakes.
“It’s not just a walk in the park,” said Peter Clark, director and producer of WTF, as the festival is colloquially called. "It’s a site that’s never been used for a festival so therefore you have to educate people as to what they’re getting into. They’re not just going to (an urban) venue where they don’t have to worry about that.”
Set on a spacious cattle ranch in Tygh Valley, Ore., the weekend of July 28, the What The Festival certainly had its natural dangers, but the allure of languid country days and starry evenings clearly outweighed them. The event ended up selling out. Setting all of that up, however, and for the first time no less, was a complicated affair. Relying on exactly 172 volunteers, the inaugural festival of 3,000 took a grassroots approach that both accommodated its moderate budget and stayed in line with its bohemian feel.
WTF! Is this the Millennial Generation's Woodstock?
Volunteers took photographs for the festival, dealt with public relations and marketing, and worked backstage. A huge team of helpers also distributed posters in a variety of cities, including nearby Portland and Seattle, to promote the first-time event, and they were excited to help out.
“Being on the street team was not only a great way to get the word out,” said 21-year-old WTF volunteer Emily Meltzer, who lives in Seattle. “But it also made me even more excited to be a part of this inaugural festival.”
Clark noted the necessity of volunteers and their unwavering dedication, saying, “They’re the ones that will come out there and do any job and really not give you that much attitude about it.”
There was certainly much to be excited about as volunteers got in to the festival for free, where there was not only music but also yoga, a hookah lounge, interactive art installations, even a mobile spa offering massages and spa treatments. Although the spa seemed slightly gauche, going against the air of beatnik calm that permeated the festival, the rest of the festival’s offerings were right on point.
“We wanted a mature audience. We wanted it to be tasteful, classy, a little bit more upscale,” Clark said. “We didn’t get the kids. We didn’t get the Kandy Ravers and all that sort of thing,” referring to the groups of tweens and teens who attend raves dressed in bright colors, exchanging small trinkets to gesture friendship.
Putting on this outdoor festival takes a far different approach than more urban events, such as Chicago’s Lollapalooza and Pitchfork, Seattle’s Bumbershoot, Miami’s Ultra, or Paris’ Rock en Seine to name a few. One of the most difficult parts is finding a suitable location, but when Peter Clark and his team were approached by the cattle ranch landowners they knew almost immediately this would be the festival’s home. The spaciousness, the relative proximity to Portland, the atmosphere created by the wide sky and surrounding, acoustically complementary cliffs -- WTF had a home.
“I think this feeling really brings something out of people and creates a really amazing flow of energy throughout the event,” noted Matt Dressman, the festival’s marketing director.
Festivalgoers were quick to concur. “There’s just so much natural wonder up here,” said Andrew Oberland, 24, who works at a software company in Portland. “It’s a little hot -- maybe could use a little more shade -- but it’s amazing!”
Neither the heat nor the possible rattlesnakes put a damper on the festival that was, by all accounts, a
success.
“For a first year festival, I think we knocked it out of the park,” said Clark. “Coming away from an event and already looking towards next year -- considering I just got off site yesterday -- is pretty amazing.”
(http://www.nbcnews.com/entertainment/behind-scenes-first-time-music-festival-rewards-perils-928297?franchiseSlug=entertainmentmain)
(August 2012)
By Cody Delistraty
Driving along the same path that Meriwether Lewis and William Clark blazed two centuries ago, music festivalgoers headed into Oregon territory seldom explored since then. Upon entrance to the campsite of the What The Festival, a three-day electronic music event, the rural area’s perils became clear when security issued a single piece of advice: watch out for the rattlesnakes.
“It’s not just a walk in the park,” said Peter Clark, director and producer of WTF, as the festival is colloquially called. "It’s a site that’s never been used for a festival so therefore you have to educate people as to what they’re getting into. They’re not just going to (an urban) venue where they don’t have to worry about that.”
Daniel Zetterstrom photo / Fans at the WTF stage during Ghostland Observatory's performance.
Set on a spacious cattle ranch in Tygh Valley, Ore., the weekend of July 28, the What The Festival certainly had its natural dangers, but the allure of languid country days and starry evenings clearly outweighed them. The event ended up selling out. Setting all of that up, however, and for the first time no less, was a complicated affair. Relying on exactly 172 volunteers, the inaugural festival of 3,000 took a grassroots approach that both accommodated its moderate budget and stayed in line with its bohemian feel.
WTF! Is this the Millennial Generation's Woodstock?
Volunteers took photographs for the festival, dealt with public relations and marketing, and worked backstage. A huge team of helpers also distributed posters in a variety of cities, including nearby Portland and Seattle, to promote the first-time event, and they were excited to help out.
“Being on the street team was not only a great way to get the word out,” said 21-year-old WTF volunteer Emily Meltzer, who lives in Seattle. “But it also made me even more excited to be a part of this inaugural festival.”
Clark noted the necessity of volunteers and their unwavering dedication, saying, “They’re the ones that will come out there and do any job and really not give you that much attitude about it.”
Daniel Zetterstrom photo /
There was certainly much to be excited about as volunteers got in to the festival for free, where there was not only music but also yoga, a hookah lounge, interactive art installations, even a mobile spa offering massages and spa treatments. Although the spa seemed slightly gauche, going against the air of beatnik calm that permeated the festival, the rest of the festival’s offerings were right on point.
“We wanted a mature audience. We wanted it to be tasteful, classy, a little bit more upscale,” Clark said. “We didn’t get the kids. We didn’t get the Kandy Ravers and all that sort of thing,” referring to the groups of tweens and teens who attend raves dressed in bright colors, exchanging small trinkets to gesture friendship.
Putting on this outdoor festival takes a far different approach than more urban events, such as Chicago’s Lollapalooza and Pitchfork, Seattle’s Bumbershoot, Miami’s Ultra, or Paris’ Rock en Seine to name a few. One of the most difficult parts is finding a suitable location, but when Peter Clark and his team were approached by the cattle ranch landowners they knew almost immediately this would be the festival’s home. The spaciousness, the relative proximity to Portland, the atmosphere created by the wide sky and surrounding, acoustically complementary cliffs -- WTF had a home.
“I think this feeling really brings something out of people and creates a really amazing flow of energy throughout the event,” noted Matt Dressman, the festival’s marketing director.
Festivalgoers were quick to concur. “There’s just so much natural wonder up here,” said Andrew Oberland, 24, who works at a software company in Portland. “It’s a little hot -- maybe could use a little more shade -- but it’s amazing!”
Neither the heat nor the possible rattlesnakes put a damper on the festival that was, by all accounts, a
success.
“For a first year festival, I think we knocked it out of the park,” said Clark. “Coming away from an event and already looking towards next year -- considering I just got off site yesterday -- is pretty amazing.”
(http://www.nbcnews.com/entertainment/behind-scenes-first-time-music-festival-rewards-perils-928297?franchiseSlug=entertainmentmain)
Saturday, October 13, 2012
How Congress is Interfering with the Music Scene
For the full scoop...Read on...
(October 2012)
By Jessica Sonabend
Remember when Congress decided that raves were harmful to society and were thought to condone the use of drugs instead of discourage it?
It is fall and legislation concerning this controversial issue is surfacing. Putting aside statistics, let us consider how difficult it has been to control the use of drug paraphernalia in sports stadiums, concert halls, college campuses, and the back-alleys of urban concrete locations. So why has Congress recently decided to push the ban on raves when drug use has been a prevalent issue within the past 50 years? Why now?
Back when the raves were locked underground, it was difficult for society to understand the effects of the music scene. Glow sticks, pacifiers, chilled air-conditioning rooms, and items as crucial as water bottles were suddenly used as a means of promoting the “drug scene”. Ironically, Congress enacted the Crack House Statute as apart of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986, which in turn created the RAVE Act (Reducing Americans’ Vulnerability to Ecstasy) as a way to control the public’s opportunity to host or promote parties in buildings where they believe foster drug havens.
According to Drug Abuse Warning Network, “Ecstasy mentions in emergency visits grew 1,040 percent between 1994 and 1999″ in this abcnews report. Congress has used the RAVE Act to pinpoint the music scene as a result for the spikes in drug-related emergency visits. While drug-use occurs everyday, many of their efforts are spent in denial of this very idea.
Historically, the rave culture has been a haven to promote a fun and respectful atmosphere for all its attendees. To say that its promoters encourage the use of drug paraphernalia by overcharging for bottled water is stating that hot-dog vendors at Safeco Field are doing the same. Why has this idea succumb to outrageous claims against this necessity? Water is an essential item in survival and as much as Congress believes otherwise, it has led society to believe their efforts are more focused on blaming this music culture for drug promotion as an easy way out.
Electronic Dance Music(EDM) has worked its way through the mainstream culture and is making it more difficult for legislation to pass due to its increasing popularity. Hip-hop artists like Nicki Minaj and Pitbull have teamed up with some of the most famous EDM djs to collaborate in their efforts to produce good music. So when a culture that has faced so much controversy and hatred weasels its way into the hands of bank-breaking producers, what will Congress have to say about that?
(http://festivalfuse.wordpress.com/2012/10/11/how-congress-is-interfering-with-the-music-scene/)
(October 2012)
By Jessica Sonabend
Remember when Congress decided that raves were harmful to society and were thought to condone the use of drugs instead of discourage it?
It is fall and legislation concerning this controversial issue is surfacing. Putting aside statistics, let us consider how difficult it has been to control the use of drug paraphernalia in sports stadiums, concert halls, college campuses, and the back-alleys of urban concrete locations. So why has Congress recently decided to push the ban on raves when drug use has been a prevalent issue within the past 50 years? Why now?
Back when the raves were locked underground, it was difficult for society to understand the effects of the music scene. Glow sticks, pacifiers, chilled air-conditioning rooms, and items as crucial as water bottles were suddenly used as a means of promoting the “drug scene”. Ironically, Congress enacted the Crack House Statute as apart of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986, which in turn created the RAVE Act (Reducing Americans’ Vulnerability to Ecstasy) as a way to control the public’s opportunity to host or promote parties in buildings where they believe foster drug havens.
According to Drug Abuse Warning Network, “Ecstasy mentions in emergency visits grew 1,040 percent between 1994 and 1999″ in this abcnews report. Congress has used the RAVE Act to pinpoint the music scene as a result for the spikes in drug-related emergency visits. While drug-use occurs everyday, many of their efforts are spent in denial of this very idea.
Historically, the rave culture has been a haven to promote a fun and respectful atmosphere for all its attendees. To say that its promoters encourage the use of drug paraphernalia by overcharging for bottled water is stating that hot-dog vendors at Safeco Field are doing the same. Why has this idea succumb to outrageous claims against this necessity? Water is an essential item in survival and as much as Congress believes otherwise, it has led society to believe their efforts are more focused on blaming this music culture for drug promotion as an easy way out.
Electronic Dance Music(EDM) has worked its way through the mainstream culture and is making it more difficult for legislation to pass due to its increasing popularity. Hip-hop artists like Nicki Minaj and Pitbull have teamed up with some of the most famous EDM djs to collaborate in their efforts to produce good music. So when a culture that has faced so much controversy and hatred weasels its way into the hands of bank-breaking producers, what will Congress have to say about that?
(http://festivalfuse.wordpress.com/2012/10/11/how-congress-is-interfering-with-the-music-scene/)
Saturday, September 15, 2012
Ticketmaster: Necessary Evil or Just Plain Evil?
For anyone who has navigated the realms of LiveNation, Ticketmaster, TicketFly, Etix, Clubtix . . . You all know what I'm talking about ... sometimes it's the wait and then the frustration when the page won't refresh, accept your information, or just plain "sold out" by the time you seem to get to the final step ... other times it's those fees -- THE FEES! -- they don't go to the artists, the venues, or anyone associated with them. Nope. It's to the ticket sites for their part in the whole scene, the "necessary evil" described by the author below. Thanks to some for making ticket purchasing slightly less corporate (i.e., buying tickets to many festivals), but for the most part you are stuck buying tickets through a system we as consumers have very little control of. While all of this isn't actually addressed directly by the article below, it does point out some of the biggest issues - and tries best to explain some background for them in a neutral way, in my opinion - associated with the biggest one of them all -- Ticketmaster. For the full story, read below...
(August 2012)
By Hannah Epstein
In July of this year, 50 String Cheese Incident closest fans and friends took $20,000 and bought tickets to the band’s show at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles. Each ticket cost $49.95 and was subsequently sold through SCI’s official website for exactly that price to fans looking to attend the show.
What caused or necessitated this circumventing of the system? Nothing less than complete and utter frustration with Ticketmaster and their seeming monopoly on the industry.
This show of force by String Cheese and their fans was meant to simplify the ticket-buying process and maybe put a small dink in the massive armor that surrounds the ticket-selling conglomerate.
The band, who also sued Ticketmaster in 2003 for being an alleged monopoly, is just one of many groups dissatisfied with the company’s involvement and business practices. High service fees and a perceived dominance over online ticket sales have sparked fan, musician and venue outrage and changes in Ticketmaster’s business practices.
But who and what is to blame for the current state of affairs when it comes to buying tickets? Between shipping, processing and the dreaded “service” fees, fans of music in all genres grumble and moan about the added cost on top of face value – but they continue to purchase them because there usually aren’t any alternatives.
Selling tickets to concerts, sports games, musicals, plays and events all over the world, Ticketmaster is something everyone is familiar with.
“If you look at their website, there’s nobody that books more venues than they do,” I.M.P. spokeswoman Audrey Schaefer said. “There’s nobody who has more artists under their management than they do. There’s no close second.”
According to the D.C.-based company that owns area venues, it’s Ticketmaster and everyone else. The company is currently under scrutiny because of added charges to the original price of the ticket. Those service fees don’t go to the artist, venue or promoters – they go solely to Ticketmaster to pay for their side of the business. In many ways, a necessary evil.
The maddening fact that there are often no other options for attendees to circumvent these fees makes Ticketmaster less of a convenience for online buying and more of a strain on wallets. Because Ticketmaster has so much power, many worry that its business model will limitlessly raise prices and reduce choices.
'Master of Puppets
Ticketmaster was started in 1976 in Phoenix and sold its first tickets to an Electric Light Orchestra show at the University of New Mexico in 1977. By 1988, they had clients in Canada, Norway, Australia and the United Kingdom. In 2001, they bought out a major competitor, Ticketron, and in 2008 debuted paperless tickets to supplement their ticket booths.
In 2009, the public condemned Ticketmaster after more than 2,000 fans logged on at the appropriate time and date to buy tickets to a New Jersey Bruce Springsteen show and were denied and instead redirecting to a different site called “TicketsNow.” The latter site, a ticket re-sale company, had available tickets for a significantly greater price than the sale had advertised. Essentially, this secondary market had bought up the tickets with plans to sell at a higher rate.
What fans would come to realize is that Ticketmaster had purchased TicketsNow in 2008.
Ticketmaster came under fire again in 2010 when they merged with Live Nation to become Live Nation Entertainment. At the time, Live Nation was the largest promoter in the U.S. on the brink of creating their own ticketing website. Ticketmaster essentially eliminated their largest potential competitor and people feared a monopoly was imminent.
During a federal investigation, U.S. Representative Bill Pascrell of New Jersey responded to complaints from his constituents, calling Live Nation Entertainment “a juggernaut.”
“[They] would have control over every aspect of the live music business: artist management, record sales, promotion, licensing, venue control, parking, tickets,” he said.
Then president and CEO of the company, Michael Rapino, claimed that the merger was necessary for the company financially and saved them from a buyout from a foreign investor.
After years of legal squabbling over the Springsteen incident, Live Nation Entertainment finally settled with the New Jersey Attorney General and the Federal Trade Commission in an agreement that required them to pay $16.5 million and remove their link to TicketsNow for one year.
After that year, Ticketmaster was required to alert customers when they leave their site to go to TicketsNow, explicitly stating that it is a separate website and prices might be higher.
Other artists have protested Ticketmaster’s monopolistic hold on the ticketing industry as well. In 1994, Pearl Jam filed a complaint with the Justice Department and subsequently refused to sell tickets through Ticketmaster unless they eliminated service fees. The band was ultimately blacklisted from Ticketmaster-operated venues and had to cancel their tour.
A man in Arkansas is currently suing the company under the Arkansas Deceptive Trade Practices Act – which prohibits scalping – for charging nearly $50.00 in service fees for four tickets to a concert.
As a result of these concerns, Ticketmaster’s website looks distinctly different than in the past with service fees disclosed at the very beginning of the sale – even if they remain higher than fans would like. But sneaky processing fees still exist and your charge seems to always end up just a bit higher than you thought by the end. Another issue concerning fans is that the service fees are not consistent for each ticket and are greater with a more expensive ticket.
Step 7: Acceptance (Step 8: Revolution?)
Currently, Ticketmaster maintains a strong hold on the vast majority of venues in the U.S. and continues to grow just recently signing on with Brooklyn’s new Barclays Center. Ticketmaster pays premiums to have exclusive rights with these venues and certainly working with a multi-national corporation that has streamlined tickets sales and promotion can be beneficial to those involved.
However, venues like Citizen’s Bank Business Arena in Ontario, California and the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia have dropped the company due to public concerns. Smaller venues, such as the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C., have chosen to use independent ticket companies as well.
Schaefer explains that the D.C. venue, which is run by the larger I.M.P. production company, works with many local businesses, which makes them less inclined to use a corporation like Ticketmaster.
According to her, their ticketing service, Ticketfly, charges a nominal service fee that goes directly toward the manpower required to run a ticketing company.
“These people are smart, they’re creative, they’re dedicated,” Schaefer said. “By using Ticketfly, we can together have a ticketing system that is much more consumer friendly.”
For music fans, service fees can be an inconvenience, but usually not enough to deter them from attendance.
“I’ve never not gone to a show because it was Ticketmaster,” sound engineer Andrew Maury said. “If I really want to see the band, I’m going to go.”
“When I go to buy tickets for a show, it means that I like the artist enough that a few dollars is probably not going to sway me either way,” another fan, Justin Masters, said.
However, Masters and others admittedly prefer to purchase through a smaller vendor, when given the option.
“I like knowing I’m getting my tickets directly from the source and not from a third party,” Masters added.
Schaefer echoed the sentiment, citing merchandise, concessions and other avenues of revenue also helping sustain a venue.
“I would say that, to us, what matters is getting people through the door at the lowest cost,” she said.
And it seems like that business model resonates with fans.
“If a ticket is a few dollars cheaper than I expected, I will definitely be more likely to put that cash toward a concert T-Shirt, a new CD or stickers,” Masters said.
Adding to the frustration of fees are the technological boundaries. For many, slow Internet connection or just sheer bad luck means you might not be able to get the “good seats” no matter when you log on.
“I went to buy tickets for an Internet pre-sale at 10:30 for a Bon Iver show,” Celia Garrity said. “The website did not offer up the ticket purchasing page and it wouldn’t refresh until about 10:37.”
And by then, often times, they’re already gone.
(http://www.headstash.com/magazine/inside-the-scene/3096-ticketmaster-necessary-evil-or-just-plain-evil)
(August 2012)
By Hannah Epstein
In July of this year, 50 String Cheese Incident closest fans and friends took $20,000 and bought tickets to the band’s show at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles. Each ticket cost $49.95 and was subsequently sold through SCI’s official website for exactly that price to fans looking to attend the show.
What caused or necessitated this circumventing of the system? Nothing less than complete and utter frustration with Ticketmaster and their seeming monopoly on the industry.
This show of force by String Cheese and their fans was meant to simplify the ticket-buying process and maybe put a small dink in the massive armor that surrounds the ticket-selling conglomerate.
The band, who also sued Ticketmaster in 2003 for being an alleged monopoly, is just one of many groups dissatisfied with the company’s involvement and business practices. High service fees and a perceived dominance over online ticket sales have sparked fan, musician and venue outrage and changes in Ticketmaster’s business practices.
But who and what is to blame for the current state of affairs when it comes to buying tickets? Between shipping, processing and the dreaded “service” fees, fans of music in all genres grumble and moan about the added cost on top of face value – but they continue to purchase them because there usually aren’t any alternatives.
Selling tickets to concerts, sports games, musicals, plays and events all over the world, Ticketmaster is something everyone is familiar with.
“If you look at their website, there’s nobody that books more venues than they do,” I.M.P. spokeswoman Audrey Schaefer said. “There’s nobody who has more artists under their management than they do. There’s no close second.”
According to the D.C.-based company that owns area venues, it’s Ticketmaster and everyone else. The company is currently under scrutiny because of added charges to the original price of the ticket. Those service fees don’t go to the artist, venue or promoters – they go solely to Ticketmaster to pay for their side of the business. In many ways, a necessary evil.
The maddening fact that there are often no other options for attendees to circumvent these fees makes Ticketmaster less of a convenience for online buying and more of a strain on wallets. Because Ticketmaster has so much power, many worry that its business model will limitlessly raise prices and reduce choices.
'Master of Puppets
Ticketmaster was started in 1976 in Phoenix and sold its first tickets to an Electric Light Orchestra show at the University of New Mexico in 1977. By 1988, they had clients in Canada, Norway, Australia and the United Kingdom. In 2001, they bought out a major competitor, Ticketron, and in 2008 debuted paperless tickets to supplement their ticket booths.
In 2009, the public condemned Ticketmaster after more than 2,000 fans logged on at the appropriate time and date to buy tickets to a New Jersey Bruce Springsteen show and were denied and instead redirecting to a different site called “TicketsNow.” The latter site, a ticket re-sale company, had available tickets for a significantly greater price than the sale had advertised. Essentially, this secondary market had bought up the tickets with plans to sell at a higher rate.
What fans would come to realize is that Ticketmaster had purchased TicketsNow in 2008.
Ticketmaster came under fire again in 2010 when they merged with Live Nation to become Live Nation Entertainment. At the time, Live Nation was the largest promoter in the U.S. on the brink of creating their own ticketing website. Ticketmaster essentially eliminated their largest potential competitor and people feared a monopoly was imminent.
During a federal investigation, U.S. Representative Bill Pascrell of New Jersey responded to complaints from his constituents, calling Live Nation Entertainment “a juggernaut.”
“[They] would have control over every aspect of the live music business: artist management, record sales, promotion, licensing, venue control, parking, tickets,” he said.
Then president and CEO of the company, Michael Rapino, claimed that the merger was necessary for the company financially and saved them from a buyout from a foreign investor.
After years of legal squabbling over the Springsteen incident, Live Nation Entertainment finally settled with the New Jersey Attorney General and the Federal Trade Commission in an agreement that required them to pay $16.5 million and remove their link to TicketsNow for one year.
After that year, Ticketmaster was required to alert customers when they leave their site to go to TicketsNow, explicitly stating that it is a separate website and prices might be higher.
Other artists have protested Ticketmaster’s monopolistic hold on the ticketing industry as well. In 1994, Pearl Jam filed a complaint with the Justice Department and subsequently refused to sell tickets through Ticketmaster unless they eliminated service fees. The band was ultimately blacklisted from Ticketmaster-operated venues and had to cancel their tour.
A man in Arkansas is currently suing the company under the Arkansas Deceptive Trade Practices Act – which prohibits scalping – for charging nearly $50.00 in service fees for four tickets to a concert.
As a result of these concerns, Ticketmaster’s website looks distinctly different than in the past with service fees disclosed at the very beginning of the sale – even if they remain higher than fans would like. But sneaky processing fees still exist and your charge seems to always end up just a bit higher than you thought by the end. Another issue concerning fans is that the service fees are not consistent for each ticket and are greater with a more expensive ticket.
Step 7: Acceptance (Step 8: Revolution?)
Currently, Ticketmaster maintains a strong hold on the vast majority of venues in the U.S. and continues to grow just recently signing on with Brooklyn’s new Barclays Center. Ticketmaster pays premiums to have exclusive rights with these venues and certainly working with a multi-national corporation that has streamlined tickets sales and promotion can be beneficial to those involved.
However, venues like Citizen’s Bank Business Arena in Ontario, California and the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia have dropped the company due to public concerns. Smaller venues, such as the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C., have chosen to use independent ticket companies as well.
Schaefer explains that the D.C. venue, which is run by the larger I.M.P. production company, works with many local businesses, which makes them less inclined to use a corporation like Ticketmaster.
According to her, their ticketing service, Ticketfly, charges a nominal service fee that goes directly toward the manpower required to run a ticketing company.
“These people are smart, they’re creative, they’re dedicated,” Schaefer said. “By using Ticketfly, we can together have a ticketing system that is much more consumer friendly.”
For music fans, service fees can be an inconvenience, but usually not enough to deter them from attendance.
“I’ve never not gone to a show because it was Ticketmaster,” sound engineer Andrew Maury said. “If I really want to see the band, I’m going to go.”
“When I go to buy tickets for a show, it means that I like the artist enough that a few dollars is probably not going to sway me either way,” another fan, Justin Masters, said.
However, Masters and others admittedly prefer to purchase through a smaller vendor, when given the option.
“I like knowing I’m getting my tickets directly from the source and not from a third party,” Masters added.
Schaefer echoed the sentiment, citing merchandise, concessions and other avenues of revenue also helping sustain a venue.
“I would say that, to us, what matters is getting people through the door at the lowest cost,” she said.
And it seems like that business model resonates with fans.
“If a ticket is a few dollars cheaper than I expected, I will definitely be more likely to put that cash toward a concert T-Shirt, a new CD or stickers,” Masters said.
Adding to the frustration of fees are the technological boundaries. For many, slow Internet connection or just sheer bad luck means you might not be able to get the “good seats” no matter when you log on.
“I went to buy tickets for an Internet pre-sale at 10:30 for a Bon Iver show,” Celia Garrity said. “The website did not offer up the ticket purchasing page and it wouldn’t refresh until about 10:37.”
And by then, often times, they’re already gone.
(http://www.headstash.com/magazine/inside-the-scene/3096-ticketmaster-necessary-evil-or-just-plain-evil)
Friday, August 31, 2012
6 Things To Know About BOUNCERS
From our lovely friends at HeadStash.com ,,, Read on!!
(originally posted May 2012)
By Amy Ettinger
Though he’s far taller than six feet with a stocky build, his broad shoulders slightly droop and his small, slanted eyes emanate a youthful twinkle and harmless charm. Tyler Yaney is the epitome of a humble and friendly giant.
A smiling face is emblazoned across his baby blue T-shirt that bears the motto,” Smile, it’s contagious!”
It accurately reflects his cheerful and encouraging spirit.
In his three years as the doorman of one of Missoula, Montana’s most popular nighttime bars, The Top Hat, Yaney has managed to forge friendships, burn bridges and hail haters. Almost everyday at around 10:00 p.m., he leaves behind any of his own troubles to resume his perch at the front door and take on the bar’s quandaries as his own.
Here’s a glimpse into the life and times of a doorman at one of the Northwest’s most popular venues, The Top Hat. He’s not there just to take your cash or kick you out.
--
1. “We’re not bouncers, we’re peacekeepers.”
Although nothing that he witnesses in the bar surprises him anymore, Yaney said his main goal is to create a safe environment, not to kick you out.
For such a tough and intimidating role, Yaney’s personality is more akin to that of a third -grade teacher or a dependable older brother than an unapproachable watchman.
“I’m probably one of the more patient door guys,” he said. “I’ll call people out before I drag them out.”
2. But the job definitely gets physical sometimes.
The first time he had to break up a fight was back in 2009 on the Friday of Halloween weekend. At around 12:30 a.m., Yaney was the only man left after his three comrades were cut because of slow business.
Yaney was dressed as Borat that night, adorned in the famous lime green thong mankini bathing suit. He even shaved his face except for a wiry patch of hair above his upper lip.
A guy dressed as Ken, Barbie’s significant other, and another man dressed in drag started fighting right in front of the bar taps, Yaney said, so it was up to the bartender and Yaney to break up the chaos.
“There I was, Borat putting Ken in a headlock and dragging him out the door,” he explained. “This dude in drag is leaning over me trying to punch Ken in the face, and bartender Steve, dressed in drag as well, is trying to punch the other drag queen.”
The scene was ridiculous albeit not altogether untypical (aside from the attire).
3. It can even get dangerous.
Within three minutes of breaking up this fight, Yaney encountered a severely inebriated girl at the door, whom he expected to be celebrating her 21st birthday judging by her youthful appearance. He asked for her ID and she mockingly shook it quickly in front of his face.
“Well it looks like you can’t come in tonight unless I can see your ID, sorry,” he said.
He looked away for a second and when he turned back to face the girl, she clocked him directly in the face. Borat now had blood dripping down his face and onto his bare, hairy chest. He grabbed the girl, but her friend pushed Yaney’s hand away and dragged her out of the bar.
This all happened in a five-minute period of time.
4. He does a lot more than guard the door.
Yaney describes his job title(s) as, “bartender, peacekeeper, swamper.” He works Tuesday through Saturday, and before his 9:00 p.m. call to post, he frequently mops the floor and cleans the place.
One year at an annual concert series, his employer hosted The Naked Cowboy. On stage, the cowboy destroyed a number of piñatas filled with food – hotdogs, mustard, ketchup, vegetables, fruit, cake, sour cream, etc. – and excited the crowd into joining his self-initiated food fight.
After kicking him out of the bar, it was up to Yaney to clean the walls and mop the floors the next day for nine hours.
5. It’s all in the family.
At 26 years old, Yaney is above all a music lover and musician. It’s the tunes and the intimate bond that he and his coworkers share that led him to the bar and have kept him there.
“I didn’t think I was going to last there because I didn’t know what the fuck I was doing [when I first started],” Yaney said.
But after a festival let out nearby and the bar was swamped, Yaney just started working, lending a hand wherever he saw fit
“And here I am two years later,” he said. “They’re all my family.”
6. It’s all about the music.
At home, Yaney shares a small, but comfortable apartment with his roommates. They frequently host potluck-style dinners for co-workers, family and friends.
The apartment is organized, but plastered with band posters and music memorabilia, and laden with instruments – a mandolin, two bass guitars, two electric guitars, a harmonica and several amps, all of which belong to Yaney.
“I love music,” he said as expected. “I listen to music everywhere.”
(http://www.headstash.com/magazine/inside-the-scene/1739-6-things-to-know-about-doormen)
(originally posted May 2012)
By Amy Ettinger
Though he’s far taller than six feet with a stocky build, his broad shoulders slightly droop and his small, slanted eyes emanate a youthful twinkle and harmless charm. Tyler Yaney is the epitome of a humble and friendly giant.
A smiling face is emblazoned across his baby blue T-shirt that bears the motto,” Smile, it’s contagious!”
It accurately reflects his cheerful and encouraging spirit.
In his three years as the doorman of one of Missoula, Montana’s most popular nighttime bars, The Top Hat, Yaney has managed to forge friendships, burn bridges and hail haters. Almost everyday at around 10:00 p.m., he leaves behind any of his own troubles to resume his perch at the front door and take on the bar’s quandaries as his own.
Here’s a glimpse into the life and times of a doorman at one of the Northwest’s most popular venues, The Top Hat. He’s not there just to take your cash or kick you out.
--
1. “We’re not bouncers, we’re peacekeepers.”
Although nothing that he witnesses in the bar surprises him anymore, Yaney said his main goal is to create a safe environment, not to kick you out.
For such a tough and intimidating role, Yaney’s personality is more akin to that of a third -grade teacher or a dependable older brother than an unapproachable watchman.
“I’m probably one of the more patient door guys,” he said. “I’ll call people out before I drag them out.”
2. But the job definitely gets physical sometimes.
The first time he had to break up a fight was back in 2009 on the Friday of Halloween weekend. At around 12:30 a.m., Yaney was the only man left after his three comrades were cut because of slow business.
Yaney was dressed as Borat that night, adorned in the famous lime green thong mankini bathing suit. He even shaved his face except for a wiry patch of hair above his upper lip.
A guy dressed as Ken, Barbie’s significant other, and another man dressed in drag started fighting right in front of the bar taps, Yaney said, so it was up to the bartender and Yaney to break up the chaos.
“There I was, Borat putting Ken in a headlock and dragging him out the door,” he explained. “This dude in drag is leaning over me trying to punch Ken in the face, and bartender Steve, dressed in drag as well, is trying to punch the other drag queen.”
The scene was ridiculous albeit not altogether untypical (aside from the attire).
3. It can even get dangerous.
Within three minutes of breaking up this fight, Yaney encountered a severely inebriated girl at the door, whom he expected to be celebrating her 21st birthday judging by her youthful appearance. He asked for her ID and she mockingly shook it quickly in front of his face.
“Well it looks like you can’t come in tonight unless I can see your ID, sorry,” he said.
He looked away for a second and when he turned back to face the girl, she clocked him directly in the face. Borat now had blood dripping down his face and onto his bare, hairy chest. He grabbed the girl, but her friend pushed Yaney’s hand away and dragged her out of the bar.
This all happened in a five-minute period of time.
4. He does a lot more than guard the door.
Yaney describes his job title(s) as, “bartender, peacekeeper, swamper.” He works Tuesday through Saturday, and before his 9:00 p.m. call to post, he frequently mops the floor and cleans the place.
One year at an annual concert series, his employer hosted The Naked Cowboy. On stage, the cowboy destroyed a number of piñatas filled with food – hotdogs, mustard, ketchup, vegetables, fruit, cake, sour cream, etc. – and excited the crowd into joining his self-initiated food fight.
After kicking him out of the bar, it was up to Yaney to clean the walls and mop the floors the next day for nine hours.
5. It’s all in the family.
At 26 years old, Yaney is above all a music lover and musician. It’s the tunes and the intimate bond that he and his coworkers share that led him to the bar and have kept him there.
“I didn’t think I was going to last there because I didn’t know what the fuck I was doing [when I first started],” Yaney said.
But after a festival let out nearby and the bar was swamped, Yaney just started working, lending a hand wherever he saw fit
“And here I am two years later,” he said. “They’re all my family.”
6. It’s all about the music.
At home, Yaney shares a small, but comfortable apartment with his roommates. They frequently host potluck-style dinners for co-workers, family and friends.
The apartment is organized, but plastered with band posters and music memorabilia, and laden with instruments – a mandolin, two bass guitars, two electric guitars, a harmonica and several amps, all of which belong to Yaney.
“I love music,” he said as expected. “I listen to music everywhere.”
(http://www.headstash.com/magazine/inside-the-scene/1739-6-things-to-know-about-doormen)
Sunday, August 26, 2012
We're Back!
Hey Everyone, sorry for the summer hiatus from our blog ...
... I'm sad to say that due to a lot of clients not following through on their bills for services we were forced to shut down full force operation of the blog for a few weeks. We are now up and running again and can't wait to share more news and stories that interest you with you. Please email any suggestions you have for topics you would like to see covered in the future or any interesting articles you would like us to share with others in the community.
Thank you to our 2,000+ loyal followers ... we officially launched only a few months ago so we thank you all for following us and re-posting our blog all over. Please spread the word to prevent our brothers and sisters from getting in trouble with the law or to help those who are in need of assistance at this time.
Peace,love,&light to you all~Kathryn
... I'm sad to say that due to a lot of clients not following through on their bills for services we were forced to shut down full force operation of the blog for a few weeks. We are now up and running again and can't wait to share more news and stories that interest you with you. Please email any suggestions you have for topics you would like to see covered in the future or any interesting articles you would like us to share with others in the community.
Thank you to our 2,000+ loyal followers ... we officially launched only a few months ago so we thank you all for following us and re-posting our blog all over. Please spread the word to prevent our brothers and sisters from getting in trouble with the law or to help those who are in need of assistance at this time.
Peace,love,&light to you all~Kathryn
Monday, July 16, 2012
Music Festival Drug Arrests - Why ??
To name a few from 2012...
Summer Camp
Electric Forest
Bonnaroo
Wakarusa
Summerset
North Coast Music Festival
...
Each year it seems more and more festivals are popping up of all sizes and sorts. Every year there are the veterens who return for the (insert time, aprox. 5-15 years, depending on the fest), the new-veterens (this isn't your first time at a festival but it's no more than your second or third), and the newbies (congrats! welcome to the music festival scene! =)
*note: this is completely my opinion ... if you differ in your defining of categories of attendees please don't hesitate to comment on this post!!
While I understand that the growth of the scene seems inevitable (along with the commercialization that goes with it ... (see the latest cover of Rolling Stone )
does this also have to mean that there are more arrests every year at festivals and shows? Particularly for drug crimes and now, sadly more and more, for violent and victim crimes including fighting and harrassment (battery and assault), theft (stealing from tents being the most prevalent here but not the only way it takes place), and even the saddest of all - sexual assault (such as will forever now be assciated in the minds of so many people with New Year's Eve this past year in Chicago)
Summer Camp
Electric Forest
Bonnaroo
Wakarusa
Summerset
North Coast Music Festival
...
Each year it seems more and more festivals are popping up of all sizes and sorts. Every year there are the veterens who return for the (insert time, aprox. 5-15 years, depending on the fest), the new-veterens (this isn't your first time at a festival but it's no more than your second or third), and the newbies (congrats! welcome to the music festival scene! =)
*note: this is completely my opinion ... if you differ in your defining of categories of attendees please don't hesitate to comment on this post!!
While I understand that the growth of the scene seems inevitable (along with the commercialization that goes with it ... (see the latest cover of Rolling Stone )
does this also have to mean that there are more arrests every year at festivals and shows? Particularly for drug crimes and now, sadly more and more, for violent and victim crimes including fighting and harrassment (battery and assault), theft (stealing from tents being the most prevalent here but not the only way it takes place), and even the saddest of all - sexual assault (such as will forever now be assciated in the minds of so many people with New Year's Eve this past year in Chicago)
Thursday, July 5, 2012
Police at Electric Forest Festival (2012) make eight arrests, press 45 felony drug charges...
More on some of the other stories/occurrences of interest from EFF 2012 will be posted on in the next few days. See below for the latest...
(July 2012, Andrew Krietz)
With attendance capped at 25,000 and near sellout crowds, Michigan State Police troopers investigated 67 complaints during the four-day event, according to a release by Lt. Kevin Leavitt at the Hart Post.
Eight subjects were lodged in the Oceana County Jail and 49 subjects are pending arrest following review by the Oceana County Prosecutor’s Office.
“(The numbers appear) about normal,” Leavitt said. “You’ve got to think, if you’ve got 25,000 people there, you’re going to have that element everywhere and that’s what we were prepared for.”
Among the charges pressed, there were 45 felony drug charges, one felony charge of resisting and obstructing an officer causing injury and 12 misdemeanor charges. Those include larcenies, assaults, drug charges, reckless driving, operating under the influence of drugs and resisting and obstructing an officer.
The autopsy continues on a 37-year-old Connecticut man who died at the festival Friday morning, Leavitt said. The man, identified as Michael Benway Jr., was found dead at his campsite by fellow campers.
Foul play is not suspected and it will take a few weeks before the results of the examination and toxicology tests are known, Leavitt said.
A local Rothbury weather station reported a high of 94 degrees Thursday — the first day of the festival and warmest of all days. Leavitt said heat played a factor this year compared to last.
“It was a lot warmer this year than last year,” Leavitt said. “The guys out there in the field would tell people to hydrate often.”
Troopers responded to 41 various medical calls with emergency medical service crews and festival security.
"Overall, it was a good festival," Leavitt said. "We've assisted with festivals in previous years and we had an idea of what to expect before this one."
(http://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/index.ssf/2012/07/45_felony_drug_charges_pressed.html)
(July 2012, Andrew Krietz)
With attendance capped at 25,000 and near sellout crowds, Michigan State Police troopers investigated 67 complaints during the four-day event, according to a release by Lt. Kevin Leavitt at the Hart Post.
Eight subjects were lodged in the Oceana County Jail and 49 subjects are pending arrest following review by the Oceana County Prosecutor’s Office.
“(The numbers appear) about normal,” Leavitt said. “You’ve got to think, if you’ve got 25,000 people there, you’re going to have that element everywhere and that’s what we were prepared for.”
Among the charges pressed, there were 45 felony drug charges, one felony charge of resisting and obstructing an officer causing injury and 12 misdemeanor charges. Those include larcenies, assaults, drug charges, reckless driving, operating under the influence of drugs and resisting and obstructing an officer.
EnlargeSarah Wenig eyes the camera, laying between her friends Shaye Smith, left, and Monica Sydow, right, in Ranch Arena during Electric Forest on Thursday, June 28, 2012. Libby March | MLiveBest of Electric Forest gallery (38 photos)
Foul play is not suspected and it will take a few weeks before the results of the examination and toxicology tests are known, Leavitt said.
A local Rothbury weather station reported a high of 94 degrees Thursday — the first day of the festival and warmest of all days. Leavitt said heat played a factor this year compared to last.
“It was a lot warmer this year than last year,” Leavitt said. “The guys out there in the field would tell people to hydrate often.”
Troopers responded to 41 various medical calls with emergency medical service crews and festival security.
"Overall, it was a good festival," Leavitt said. "We've assisted with festivals in previous years and we had an idea of what to expect before this one."
(http://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/index.ssf/2012/07/45_felony_drug_charges_pressed.html)
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Electric Forest (2011) police post-mortem: not bad for its size (a recap from last year)
For those of you about to leave next week for Electric Forest, here is the first in a series of information from last year's festival which I think is worth reading. This one is about the law enforcement activity surrounding last year's festival. Check it out...
(July 2011, John S. Hausman
(July 2011, John S. Hausman
Friday, June 15, 2012
Just Say No to "The Phish!" ...
As promised ... I particularly find his take on Phish and cybercrime to be, well, just plain amusing... see below!
(Jan. 2011, Stephenson Billings)
Crisscrossing the country to promote a dangerous mix of communism, cybercrime and drug culture, notorious rock band “The Phish” is pushing American communities to the breaking point. This sad fact can be seen in the headlines so commonplace they no longer shock us: “Phish Fest Nets $81,000 in Drugs; 1,200 Arrests” or “Police Seize $1.2 Million Worth of Drugs From Phish Fans” or “Phish, Drugs and Rock ‘n’ Roll.” As towns and cities across this nation continue to be torn apart by this havoc, it’s high time we get educated about the undeniable threat our children are now facing.
Many successful musical acts like Britney Spears, Gwen Stefani and Josh Groban profit handsomely from studio albums and videos played on cable television stations. What The Phish does is far worse. More than any other band out there today, they have devoted countless hours and incredible financial resources to crossing the country in search of new converts. They are continuously “on tour” performing at venues large and small, prowling for intimate personal contact with the youth of America.
Any group of people that makes such a calculated effort to insert itself into the lives of the innocent should surely raise the eyebrows of concerned parents. For The Phish, their modus operandi is to induce the naïve with promises of sexual pleasure and peer acceptance. Like serial killer Charles Manson, they lower inhibitions through hardcore drug use. As with false prophet Jim Jones, the price for such kicks is a complete dedication to their larger agenda.
One concerned mother recently wrote to Oprah Winfrey:
A closer look at this group’s music proves the implicit endorsement of drug culture that The Phish engages in. There are ballads with titles that celebrate narcotic experimentation such as, “Marijuana” and “Christmas Without Weed.” And then there are those who have secret messages difficult to decipher at first glance. One of their most famous works, “Prince Caspian” is centered on cocaine use and even opens with the noise of a bubbling crack pipe.
The lyric, “the children in the fields all sowing seed and chaffing” is a clear reference to the cocoa growers of Columbia. “Bouncing Round The Room” tells the horrendous story of a man who brutally beats his girlfriend around his apartment while on a drug binge. “The Mango Song” talks about running out of marijuana supplies, while “Twist” celebrates a hardcore LSD trip. And the list goes on and on.
The concerts themselves are the foulest orgies of self-indulgent self-satisfaction seen since the tumultuous sixties. When first ushered to their assigned locations in the arena, these “Phishheads” will immediately scope out the area for the most pliable drug abusers within range of their tapping fingers and “Hey dude” calls so that they may score communal soft drinks and “drags” from poorly-rolled blunts. As the evening grows later, they will abandon any sense of camaraderie to lifelong friends in order to scheme closer seats and vivacious women.
Eventually the night reaches a fever pitch of exposed breasts and mushroom peaks and the terrifying hippie dancing will begin. Naked, they writhe and commingle with erotic intensity as guitarist Trey Anastasio descends into confusing jam sessions. Children of all ages will tear off their clothes and jump in muddy mosh pits, kicking and penetrating each other with little compunction for common sense. Young girls have their precious bodies traded among eager, breaded elders and teen boys are forced into nightmares of sexual congress. Even regular Phishheads will admit that masturbation is shockingly common in their “scene.”
The music itself is demeaning at best and criminally violent at worst. For mature listeners, it will make no sense. There is an incomprehensible absurdity to their lyrics, like the loudest ramblings of a derelict beaten down by years of alcoholism and homelessness. The instrumental sounds they produce violate all the requirements of high art. There is no rhyme, no reason. Meter, particularly in the hands of keyboardist Page McConnell, does not exist on their stage. Quite simply, band members mash up violent drumming with amateur guitar screeches at such high speeds there is no doubt that heroin is doing a guest performance with the group.
(Transvestite drummer Jon Fishman and shifty-eyed bassist Mike Gordon are clearly the most guilty of these auditory abuses.) Their noise seems intentionally calibrated to overload the central nervous system with false messages of terror and orgasm. If there ever were a soundtrack to schizophrenia, this would surely be it. No wonder there is a direct link between psychosis and fans of The Phish.
Of course, drugs are irrevocably connected to this world. How else could one find meaning or even rhythm in their perverse sounds? Recently, authorities made a cursory sweep through a concert and seized:
Hedonism continues unabated in the parking lots after these shows. The band pays for tanks of hospital nitrous oxide to be wheeled out so that the hordes of regulars struggling with their symptoms of withdrawal can be managed. As people chug this controlled medical substance, their bodies are subdued with painful cardiac fits. These masochists seem to enjoy it, however, and their friends will find obscene entertainment in watching a comrade flopping helplessly in the dirt.
Those too high to return to their parent’s homes will go anywhere nearby to sleep. In dirty motel rooms and even in the backs of old schoolbuses, these people will give their bodies over to painful patchouli sex parties in exchange for a wet pillow on which to rest their heads. (Rumors that roadies and band members regulary crash these events to demand gratification have garnered the attention of police detectives.)
In other parking lot vehicles, puffs on pot pipes are bartered for hasty fondlings. Grungy tapestries may hide the worst of these acts from passing eyes, but the cries and splattered fluids on windows are enough to tell the horrific story. For the frustrated, reckless masturbation in Port-O-Johns is the highlight of their evenings. It gives them a small sense of control to harass their aching phalluses to the beat of drummer Fishman’s incoherent thrashings.
This after concert scene is an ideal hunting ground for pimps, ex-cons and manipulators. For the young, so eager to impress and be part of the “in” crowd, it is a terrifying conundrum. They undergo incredible pressures to extend the hippie party beyond a single night at the concert. Tie-dye shirts and cheap trinkets are sold on every corner. Little gas burners of organic foods light up. Marijuana clouds pass overhead. Crude shrines to lead singer Trey are constructed out of falafel wrappers and whippet canisters. And these weak young men and women are encouraged to take the leap into a full “on tour” lifestyle, abandoning family and faith as they pursue never-ending psychedelic trips and dreadlocked sex games in the nearby public parks.
One area of this culture that demands closer inspection is The Phish’s involvement in cybercrime. It may explain the tremendous growth of their empire and how these endless tours are financed. A few years back, investigators noticed a new type of theft across the internet. In a secret nod to this rock band, it was named “Phishing” and involved high tech identity fraud. The people behind it often dig through household garbage, looking for any documents that contain personal information like social security numbers and bank codes. These are then used to create fake drivers’ licenses or credit cards. Clearly, the gypsy-like lifestyle of Phishheads, moving from town to town, digging through other people’s garbage and making easy friends, assures that this a natural outlet for those who seek money outside of gainful employment.
As we take a broad look at this culture spreading to our communities, the question must be asked: What is the ultimate goal of The Phish? Clearly, there is a strong current of communist sympathies in this crowd. These people delight in shared seating and organic products. They demand that their members participate in a “green” lifestyle, despite the fact that it undermines American industries and flies in the face of traditional consumerism.
They oppose wars and hard work, instead preferring drum circles and perpetual protest. They even aim to include fringe Christian groups, falsely claiming that the hippie lifestyle conforms to Biblical teaching. A closer look reveals a hidden hierarchy among these people. Older “trust fund hippies” occupy the power elite, using tactics not unlike those employed by the Politburo in the Soviet Union to monitor and control the unruly masses of newbies and the chronically overdosed. With relentless psychological warfare, these elders demand sacrifices to the cause, while at the same time secretly indulging in the plentiful supply of supple young women and fresh drugs that their status affords them.
Rarely do they ever open up their discarded front row seats, hotel room suites and air conditioned luxury cars to the common man.
As for the band itself, one can only hypothesize where their broader agenda is leading. It goes without saying that they employ the very same tactics common among drug gangs, pedophiles and cult leaders to spread their dangerous message. If their activities are leading to gun violence, child rape or mass suicide, should we not do everything in our power to stop it?
http://www.dailypress.com/news/dp-local_phisharrests_0309mar10,0,1347704.story
(Christwire, http://christwire.org/2011/01/just-say-no-to-the-phish/)
(Jan. 2011, Stephenson Billings)
Crisscrossing the country to promote a dangerous mix of communism, cybercrime and drug culture, notorious rock band “The Phish” is pushing American communities to the breaking point. This sad fact can be seen in the headlines so commonplace they no longer shock us: “Phish Fest Nets $81,000 in Drugs; 1,200 Arrests” or “Police Seize $1.2 Million Worth of Drugs From Phish Fans” or “Phish, Drugs and Rock ‘n’ Roll.” As towns and cities across this nation continue to be torn apart by this havoc, it’s high time we get educated about the undeniable threat our children are now facing.
Many successful musical acts like Britney Spears, Gwen Stefani and Josh Groban profit handsomely from studio albums and videos played on cable television stations. What The Phish does is far worse. More than any other band out there today, they have devoted countless hours and incredible financial resources to crossing the country in search of new converts. They are continuously “on tour” performing at venues large and small, prowling for intimate personal contact with the youth of America.
Any group of people that makes such a calculated effort to insert itself into the lives of the innocent should surely raise the eyebrows of concerned parents. For The Phish, their modus operandi is to induce the naïve with promises of sexual pleasure and peer acceptance. Like serial killer Charles Manson, they lower inhibitions through hardcore drug use. As with false prophet Jim Jones, the price for such kicks is a complete dedication to their larger agenda.
One concerned mother recently wrote to Oprah Winfrey:
So I think my son is hooked on drugs. He just turned 18 and says I can’t control him anymore. His favorite band is Phish and I’ve seen some of the movie’s he has of this band and they look like a drug band.A terrifying story indeed!
He says he’s been waiting his whole life for this moment since I guess they recently reuinited (after the singer was caught with heroin!)
He says he’s sick of being a noob (whatever that means) and he needs to see his first Phish concert this summer or he never wants to speak to me again.
It’s so heartbreaking, he’s at the age where he will do whatever he wants to do since he doesn’t have to ask my permission. He doesn’t look healthy and I don’t want him going to this concert. I did some research on the band and they sound like bad news.
I’m about ready to slash his tires on his cars its making me that upset.
A closer look at this group’s music proves the implicit endorsement of drug culture that The Phish engages in. There are ballads with titles that celebrate narcotic experimentation such as, “Marijuana” and “Christmas Without Weed.” And then there are those who have secret messages difficult to decipher at first glance. One of their most famous works, “Prince Caspian” is centered on cocaine use and even opens with the noise of a bubbling crack pipe.
The lyric, “the children in the fields all sowing seed and chaffing” is a clear reference to the cocoa growers of Columbia. “Bouncing Round The Room” tells the horrendous story of a man who brutally beats his girlfriend around his apartment while on a drug binge. “The Mango Song” talks about running out of marijuana supplies, while “Twist” celebrates a hardcore LSD trip. And the list goes on and on.
Eventually the night reaches a fever pitch of exposed breasts and mushroom peaks and the terrifying hippie dancing will begin. Naked, they writhe and commingle with erotic intensity as guitarist Trey Anastasio descends into confusing jam sessions. Children of all ages will tear off their clothes and jump in muddy mosh pits, kicking and penetrating each other with little compunction for common sense. Young girls have their precious bodies traded among eager, breaded elders and teen boys are forced into nightmares of sexual congress. Even regular Phishheads will admit that masturbation is shockingly common in their “scene.”
The music itself is demeaning at best and criminally violent at worst. For mature listeners, it will make no sense. There is an incomprehensible absurdity to their lyrics, like the loudest ramblings of a derelict beaten down by years of alcoholism and homelessness. The instrumental sounds they produce violate all the requirements of high art. There is no rhyme, no reason. Meter, particularly in the hands of keyboardist Page McConnell, does not exist on their stage. Quite simply, band members mash up violent drumming with amateur guitar screeches at such high speeds there is no doubt that heroin is doing a guest performance with the group.
(Transvestite drummer Jon Fishman and shifty-eyed bassist Mike Gordon are clearly the most guilty of these auditory abuses.) Their noise seems intentionally calibrated to overload the central nervous system with false messages of terror and orgasm. If there ever were a soundtrack to schizophrenia, this would surely be it. No wonder there is a direct link between psychosis and fans of The Phish.
Of course, drugs are irrevocably connected to this world. How else could one find meaning or even rhythm in their perverse sounds? Recently, authorities made a cursory sweep through a concert and seized:
“70 tanks of nitrous oxide, over 550 grams of marijuana, about 135 grams of mushrooms and more than 100 pills of various prescription narcotics, along with brownies, cookies and Rice Krispies treats laced with marijuana. Police also confiscated 21 cookies containing LSD.”Other narcotics common in this crowd include: ecstasy, methamphetamine, cocaine, psylocibin, MDMA, hashish, heroin, Adderall and Klonazapin. Mix them all together and drip them into the bloodstream continuously for five years and that’s the mental state of your average fan.
Hedonism continues unabated in the parking lots after these shows. The band pays for tanks of hospital nitrous oxide to be wheeled out so that the hordes of regulars struggling with their symptoms of withdrawal can be managed. As people chug this controlled medical substance, their bodies are subdued with painful cardiac fits. These masochists seem to enjoy it, however, and their friends will find obscene entertainment in watching a comrade flopping helplessly in the dirt.
Those too high to return to their parent’s homes will go anywhere nearby to sleep. In dirty motel rooms and even in the backs of old schoolbuses, these people will give their bodies over to painful patchouli sex parties in exchange for a wet pillow on which to rest their heads. (Rumors that roadies and band members regulary crash these events to demand gratification have garnered the attention of police detectives.)
In other parking lot vehicles, puffs on pot pipes are bartered for hasty fondlings. Grungy tapestries may hide the worst of these acts from passing eyes, but the cries and splattered fluids on windows are enough to tell the horrific story. For the frustrated, reckless masturbation in Port-O-Johns is the highlight of their evenings. It gives them a small sense of control to harass their aching phalluses to the beat of drummer Fishman’s incoherent thrashings.
This after concert scene is an ideal hunting ground for pimps, ex-cons and manipulators. For the young, so eager to impress and be part of the “in” crowd, it is a terrifying conundrum. They undergo incredible pressures to extend the hippie party beyond a single night at the concert. Tie-dye shirts and cheap trinkets are sold on every corner. Little gas burners of organic foods light up. Marijuana clouds pass overhead. Crude shrines to lead singer Trey are constructed out of falafel wrappers and whippet canisters. And these weak young men and women are encouraged to take the leap into a full “on tour” lifestyle, abandoning family and faith as they pursue never-ending psychedelic trips and dreadlocked sex games in the nearby public parks.
One area of this culture that demands closer inspection is The Phish’s involvement in cybercrime. It may explain the tremendous growth of their empire and how these endless tours are financed. A few years back, investigators noticed a new type of theft across the internet. In a secret nod to this rock band, it was named “Phishing” and involved high tech identity fraud. The people behind it often dig through household garbage, looking for any documents that contain personal information like social security numbers and bank codes. These are then used to create fake drivers’ licenses or credit cards. Clearly, the gypsy-like lifestyle of Phishheads, moving from town to town, digging through other people’s garbage and making easy friends, assures that this a natural outlet for those who seek money outside of gainful employment.
As we take a broad look at this culture spreading to our communities, the question must be asked: What is the ultimate goal of The Phish? Clearly, there is a strong current of communist sympathies in this crowd. These people delight in shared seating and organic products. They demand that their members participate in a “green” lifestyle, despite the fact that it undermines American industries and flies in the face of traditional consumerism.
They oppose wars and hard work, instead preferring drum circles and perpetual protest. They even aim to include fringe Christian groups, falsely claiming that the hippie lifestyle conforms to Biblical teaching. A closer look reveals a hidden hierarchy among these people. Older “trust fund hippies” occupy the power elite, using tactics not unlike those employed by the Politburo in the Soviet Union to monitor and control the unruly masses of newbies and the chronically overdosed. With relentless psychological warfare, these elders demand sacrifices to the cause, while at the same time secretly indulging in the plentiful supply of supple young women and fresh drugs that their status affords them.
Rarely do they ever open up their discarded front row seats, hotel room suites and air conditioned luxury cars to the common man.
As for the band itself, one can only hypothesize where their broader agenda is leading. It goes without saying that they employ the very same tactics common among drug gangs, pedophiles and cult leaders to spread their dangerous message. If their activities are leading to gun violence, child rape or mass suicide, should we not do everything in our power to stop it?
http://www.dailypress.com/news/dp-local_phisharrests_0309mar10,0,1347704.story(Christwire, http://christwire.org/2011/01/just-say-no-to-the-phish/)
Friday, June 8, 2012
:Coachella 2012 over but Bonnaroo continues the depravation of our youth"
Wow! The way some people like to twist/mis-portray the truth will never cease to amaze me. Next week I will post some things similar written on Phish ... which any one with half a brain who has attended a Phish show would easily see as pure PURE propaganda. But, if you didn't already know how much hate some people hold in their hearts (and how misinformed some people are/much some people enjoy misinforming others) ... read below ... (and note: yes, drugs are dangerous but this is just so biased it takes away from any truth or helpfulness this information could ever provide to some one)...
(Christwire, April 2012)
It seems that this annual festival of degradation has left a stench that will be lingering for some time yet. B grade actress/harlet Emma Roberts was seen parading around in what could only be described as an unfinished knitting project.
The promoters of this yearly Satanic muckhole gathering also crossed the boudaries of decency by raising a notorious public enemy from the dead. The rapper Two-Pack, named after a popular automobile spraypainting process, was elevated as a false holographic idol on stage with other repugnant performers. This evil resurrection incited crazy and sinful gyrations from thousands of onlookers who were held in a trancelike state as Two-Pack led them in a demonic chant and followed it with a rendition of ”2 Of Amerikaz Most Wanted”, his anthem against the State.
Now the promoters of Bonnaroo, the next stop on the ‘Bandwagon of Sin’, are hoping to follow suit with their own holographic performance of the Queen of evil Amy Winehouse performing a mouth sex act on the Prince of playtime Michael Jackson.
All parents need to be aware of the dangers of their children attending these celebrations of sin. Each year the promoters find new ways to corrupt our children. They provide tents where anal sin docking is encouraged and the defloration of virginal muckholes is a constant occurrence. Last year Tyson Bowers III reported on the horrific practices at Bonnaroo but his warnings fell on deaf ears. This year I urge all interested parties to join me in a vigil outside Great Stage Park. I have arranged for some of the members of my youth madrigal group to join me and we will be providing succour and medical assistance. I have personally trained my assistants in the application of a healing ointment to the distended muckholes of any unfortunate festival patrons who may have been ravaged in the docking tents. We can be found in the purple RV parked outside the South gate.
Will the Devil ever give respite to our impressionable youth – not likely.
(http://christwire.org/2012/04/coachella-2012-over-but-bonnaroo-continues-the-depravation-of-our-youth/)
(Christwire, April 2012)
It seems that this annual festival of degradation has left a stench that will be lingering for some time yet. B grade actress/harlet Emma Roberts was seen parading around in what could only be described as an unfinished knitting project.
The promoters of this yearly Satanic muckhole gathering also crossed the boudaries of decency by raising a notorious public enemy from the dead. The rapper Two-Pack, named after a popular automobile spraypainting process, was elevated as a false holographic idol on stage with other repugnant performers. This evil resurrection incited crazy and sinful gyrations from thousands of onlookers who were held in a trancelike state as Two-Pack led them in a demonic chant and followed it with a rendition of ”2 Of Amerikaz Most Wanted”, his anthem against the State.
Now the promoters of Bonnaroo, the next stop on the ‘Bandwagon of Sin’, are hoping to follow suit with their own holographic performance of the Queen of evil Amy Winehouse performing a mouth sex act on the Prince of playtime Michael Jackson.
All parents need to be aware of the dangers of their children attending these celebrations of sin. Each year the promoters find new ways to corrupt our children. They provide tents where anal sin docking is encouraged and the defloration of virginal muckholes is a constant occurrence. Last year Tyson Bowers III reported on the horrific practices at Bonnaroo but his warnings fell on deaf ears. This year I urge all interested parties to join me in a vigil outside Great Stage Park. I have arranged for some of the members of my youth madrigal group to join me and we will be providing succour and medical assistance. I have personally trained my assistants in the application of a healing ointment to the distended muckholes of any unfortunate festival patrons who may have been ravaged in the docking tents. We can be found in the purple RV parked outside the South gate.
Will the Devil ever give respite to our impressionable youth – not likely.
(http://christwire.org/2012/04/coachella-2012-over-but-bonnaroo-continues-the-depravation-of-our-youth/)
"The Four Most Dangerous Drugs Your Child Did at Coachella 2012 Bonnaroo Tent "
Wow! The way some people like to twist/mis-portray the truth will never cease to amaze me. Next week I will post some things similar written on Phish ... which any one with half a brain who has attended a Phish show would easily see as pure PURE propaganda. But, if you didn't already know how much hate some people hold in their hearts (and how misinformed some people are/much some people enjoy misinforming others) ... read below ... (and note: yes, drugs are dangerous but this is just so biased it takes away from any truth or helpfulness this information could ever provide to some one)...
(April 2012, Mike Watson)
If your son or daughter is posting images of their fun time at “Coachella 2012″, rest assured that they are likely drug addicts by now. Your daughter has a 75% chance of being pregnant and even worse, it is most likely a scaby baby. We won’t even terrify you fathers with knowledge of what horrors docked into your son’s backside if he were foolish enough to pass out, which ussually does happen at some point during Coachella’s exhausting weekend of sin.
Coachella 2012 is a music festival that takes place in the “Valley of the Homeless”. The valley is where most of the nomadic hippies of the 1970s finally settled. With The Dave Matthews Band and Jack Johnson now growing old to the collegiate ear, today’s yuppie children are looking for a new ‘outlet’ of mellow, chill music. Sadly, they are being lured by a band named The Phish, the new Pied Pipers of Marijuana who beat their hippie drums, gypsy tamborines and play their magical lutes as they lure college children to a festival that now attracts over 1 million people and results in acts of rampant drug induced pregnancy and shameful counts of LSD marinated reverse sodomizations of Gomorrhal iniquities.
1. Uncle Tweety Flipper’s Liquid LSD
Eyes perpetually glossed with the most addictive marijuana residues and spirits all but defunct, the mouths of naive Coachella raver chicks chirp open in sexual glee as they wait to be plied with more Tweetie Flipper’s liquid ecstasy induced acid trips.
Uncle Tweety’s Liquid Flipper packs the punch of carmalized 8 ball crystals and the addictive properties of raw cut maryjane. It’s said one ounce of this substance has a pheremone effect on women. It will cause them to immediately feel overheated and strip, arching their back like a crack addicted cat in heat and only feeling satisfied when they are mounted by one of the many diseased hippies who attend this festival. Liquid Flipper resembles Jelly Beans and has origins in the ‘jelly belly’ raver community of Florida.
To enter Coachella, everyone must first go through what’s called the Bonnaroo Tent to be ID’d. Women must receive a ‘tramp stamp’ on their backs, face, tongue or hands. The stamp is placed using heavy Henna Ink. The ‘tramp stamp’ marking signifies where a guy can ‘release himself’ should he mount a passed out woman for fornication: the tramp stamp is a pre-signed agreement that the woman acknowledges while she is sober. Unfortunately, the entire situation is bad and most men just go all the way with your college daughter at Coachella, not bothering to ‘pull it out’ and use the premarked areas.
The reality of the situation is grim but true. This year alone an estimated 820,000 college women were in attendance and regardless of where they placed their designated tramp stamp, over 60% of them are now pregnant and crying. Do you want this to be your daughter?
492,000 college women are now going to become foodstamp mothers with only a few years of college under their belts. Just one weekend and liquid jelly filled capsule of Uncle Tweety’s Liquid Flipper LSD ruined them.
Is your daughter looking a bit pudgy after her first year in college? If so, ask her if she’s been to Coachella. She’s either pregnant or immediately started Plan B and subsequent birth control because she’s addicted to Tweety Flipper. The Phish are known peddlers of filthy music, but how sick that their tunes are also used as the background music to all the college women subjected to the powerful effects of this compound.
2. Trippy Hippy Granules (Magic Mint Qualuudes)
Our good friends at LA Weekly helped document the effects of this substance. Qualuudes are a new street drug that investigators estimate took origin in the SoHo area of New York. Likely imported to the US by Cuban nationals, the mind-altering drug has now made its way to the West Coast where it is massively produced and consumed by the jobless hippies who habitate the Coachella Valley.
Qualuudes have a very, very bitter taste, so are mixed with the most addictive drug known to man: magic mint. This version of Whacko Tobacco, as the kids called it, is also known as Satan’s Sulfur Smoke (SSS). The SSS is a play on word on how when mixed together and heated, the magic mint and qualuudes make a S sound, like a homosexual snake with a lisp. When the vapors reach the nose of the imbiber, the effects are immediate and the shameful acts not remembered.
Photo Courtesy LA Weekly
The young man in the image is showing the classic signs of Trippy Hippy consumption. Notice how he has already removed his shirt and has no shame. He cares not that people in the crowd are looking at him do his ‘dubstep’ walk. Notice how the boxers are still exposed, as he probably just finished an epic mount on one of the passed out Uncle Tweety chirpers from up above.
Trippy Hippy causes an explosive release of adrenaline in the body. Those who consume it have been noted to run at speeds of over 50 miles per hour, able to dead life over 600 pounds and are subject to harmful bouts of raging priapism.
The young man in this video can keep up this dancing, superhumanly fast docking of passed out women and raging priapism for at least 5 or 6 hours before passing out, where he himself will likely become the victim of a throbbing gristle and not remember a thing when the drug concoction wears off.
3. Skillex Drops Pops
Named after the crater-prone founder of dubstep, Skrillex Drops are probably the greatest threat against your daughter’s unfertilized womb. The droplets are made from strong bases such as soap and shampoo, in which fertility pills are massively dissolved over high heats. The medicinal mixture is then mixed with heavy carmael, cocao beans, a jungle list of ‘hallucinogens’ and sugar. Strong coffee is then added to the mixture until a volume of 2 cups is reached, at which point is is blended to make Ice Blended Skrillex Drops.
This harmful product is usually consumed off a popsicle stick and is said to taste just like a Starbucks Drink, leaving the women who consume it frisky, fertile and fervent in their attempts to force themselves on a man.
4. Phunky Phish Acid Candies
It’s rare to find a freshly bathed hippie, raver or hipster. All of the demographics relish in the fermenting funks of humanism, hence their vehement defense of destructive concepts like free love, socialism and music festivals that only the jobless have time to attend.
For every five college women that attend Coachella, the CDC confirms that 3 have an 80% chance of becoming pregnant with scaby babies. Their minds will be so mussed from all the smoked drugs and mindless gyrations they won’t know until weeks later. We won’t even terrify you fathers with what all likely happened to your sons. At least not yet.
If your child has attended Coachella 2012, plan a visit to a psychologist and ask what necessary paperwork needs to be signed to commit your college child to your custody. When you next see your son or daughter, tell them the form is necessary for their next year’s tuition and when they sign it, have them arrested and taken to an emergency room for medical clearance. Then, get them tested for drugs, pregnancy and disease. Please, don’t be shocked when you find out they have all three and focus on rehabing their lives. Coachella is a dangerous festival and is largely to blame for the recent yearly decline of American graduates of college and unemployment rate.
(ChristWire, http://christwire.org/2012/04/the-four-most-dangerous-drugs-your-child-did-at-coachella-2012-bonnaroo-tent/)
(April 2012, Mike Watson)
If your son or daughter is posting images of their fun time at “Coachella 2012″, rest assured that they are likely drug addicts by now. Your daughter has a 75% chance of being pregnant and even worse, it is most likely a scaby baby. We won’t even terrify you fathers with knowledge of what horrors docked into your son’s backside if he were foolish enough to pass out, which ussually does happen at some point during Coachella’s exhausting weekend of sin.
Coachella 2012 is a music festival that takes place in the “Valley of the Homeless”. The valley is where most of the nomadic hippies of the 1970s finally settled. With The Dave Matthews Band and Jack Johnson now growing old to the collegiate ear, today’s yuppie children are looking for a new ‘outlet’ of mellow, chill music. Sadly, they are being lured by a band named The Phish, the new Pied Pipers of Marijuana who beat their hippie drums, gypsy tamborines and play their magical lutes as they lure college children to a festival that now attracts over 1 million people and results in acts of rampant drug induced pregnancy and shameful counts of LSD marinated reverse sodomizations of Gomorrhal iniquities.
1. Uncle Tweety Flipper’s Liquid LSD
Eyes perpetually glossed with the most addictive marijuana residues and spirits all but defunct, the mouths of naive Coachella raver chicks chirp open in sexual glee as they wait to be plied with more Tweetie Flipper’s liquid ecstasy induced acid trips.
Uncle Tweety’s Liquid Flipper packs the punch of carmalized 8 ball crystals and the addictive properties of raw cut maryjane. It’s said one ounce of this substance has a pheremone effect on women. It will cause them to immediately feel overheated and strip, arching their back like a crack addicted cat in heat and only feeling satisfied when they are mounted by one of the many diseased hippies who attend this festival. Liquid Flipper resembles Jelly Beans and has origins in the ‘jelly belly’ raver community of Florida.
To enter Coachella, everyone must first go through what’s called the Bonnaroo Tent to be ID’d. Women must receive a ‘tramp stamp’ on their backs, face, tongue or hands. The stamp is placed using heavy Henna Ink. The ‘tramp stamp’ marking signifies where a guy can ‘release himself’ should he mount a passed out woman for fornication: the tramp stamp is a pre-signed agreement that the woman acknowledges while she is sober. Unfortunately, the entire situation is bad and most men just go all the way with your college daughter at Coachella, not bothering to ‘pull it out’ and use the premarked areas.
The reality of the situation is grim but true. This year alone an estimated 820,000 college women were in attendance and regardless of where they placed their designated tramp stamp, over 60% of them are now pregnant and crying. Do you want this to be your daughter?
492,000 college women are now going to become foodstamp mothers with only a few years of college under their belts. Just one weekend and liquid jelly filled capsule of Uncle Tweety’s Liquid Flipper LSD ruined them.
Is your daughter looking a bit pudgy after her first year in college? If so, ask her if she’s been to Coachella. She’s either pregnant or immediately started Plan B and subsequent birth control because she’s addicted to Tweety Flipper. The Phish are known peddlers of filthy music, but how sick that their tunes are also used as the background music to all the college women subjected to the powerful effects of this compound.
2. Trippy Hippy Granules (Magic Mint Qualuudes)
Our good friends at LA Weekly helped document the effects of this substance. Qualuudes are a new street drug that investigators estimate took origin in the SoHo area of New York. Likely imported to the US by Cuban nationals, the mind-altering drug has now made its way to the West Coast where it is massively produced and consumed by the jobless hippies who habitate the Coachella Valley.
Qualuudes have a very, very bitter taste, so are mixed with the most addictive drug known to man: magic mint. This version of Whacko Tobacco, as the kids called it, is also known as Satan’s Sulfur Smoke (SSS). The SSS is a play on word on how when mixed together and heated, the magic mint and qualuudes make a S sound, like a homosexual snake with a lisp. When the vapors reach the nose of the imbiber, the effects are immediate and the shameful acts not remembered.
Look at this video footage:
Photo Courtesy LA WeeklyThe young man in the image is showing the classic signs of Trippy Hippy consumption. Notice how he has already removed his shirt and has no shame. He cares not that people in the crowd are looking at him do his ‘dubstep’ walk. Notice how the boxers are still exposed, as he probably just finished an epic mount on one of the passed out Uncle Tweety chirpers from up above.
Trippy Hippy causes an explosive release of adrenaline in the body. Those who consume it have been noted to run at speeds of over 50 miles per hour, able to dead life over 600 pounds and are subject to harmful bouts of raging priapism.
The young man in this video can keep up this dancing, superhumanly fast docking of passed out women and raging priapism for at least 5 or 6 hours before passing out, where he himself will likely become the victim of a throbbing gristle and not remember a thing when the drug concoction wears off.
3. Skillex Drops Pops
Named after the crater-prone founder of dubstep, Skrillex Drops are probably the greatest threat against your daughter’s unfertilized womb. The droplets are made from strong bases such as soap and shampoo, in which fertility pills are massively dissolved over high heats. The medicinal mixture is then mixed with heavy carmael, cocao beans, a jungle list of ‘hallucinogens’ and sugar. Strong coffee is then added to the mixture until a volume of 2 cups is reached, at which point is is blended to make Ice Blended Skrillex Drops.
This harmful product is usually consumed off a popsicle stick and is said to taste just like a Starbucks Drink, leaving the women who consume it frisky, fertile and fervent in their attempts to force themselves on a man.
4. Phunky Phish Acid Candies
It’s rare to find a freshly bathed hippie, raver or hipster. All of the demographics relish in the fermenting funks of humanism, hence their vehement defense of destructive concepts like free love, socialism and music festivals that only the jobless have time to attend.For every five college women that attend Coachella, the CDC confirms that 3 have an 80% chance of becoming pregnant with scaby babies. Their minds will be so mussed from all the smoked drugs and mindless gyrations they won’t know until weeks later. We won’t even terrify you fathers with what all likely happened to your sons. At least not yet.
If your child has attended Coachella 2012, plan a visit to a psychologist and ask what necessary paperwork needs to be signed to commit your college child to your custody. When you next see your son or daughter, tell them the form is necessary for their next year’s tuition and when they sign it, have them arrested and taken to an emergency room for medical clearance. Then, get them tested for drugs, pregnancy and disease. Please, don’t be shocked when you find out they have all three and focus on rehabing their lives. Coachella is a dangerous festival and is largely to blame for the recent yearly decline of American graduates of college and unemployment rate.
(ChristWire, http://christwire.org/2012/04/the-four-most-dangerous-drugs-your-child-did-at-coachella-2012-bonnaroo-tent/)
Sunday, June 3, 2012
Never Get Busted...
A reader sent me this link which I thought I'd share. In the future this is a good source from which I will post other pertinent things. See below for some pretty interesting material...
(compiled by former police officer Barry Cooper)
Beware Of Where You Purchase Your Rolling Papers And Blunts
Beware of purchasing rolling papers and blunt wraps at small convenience stores. It could get you busted. I just received an email advising a Deputy Sheriff in Texas is receiving tips from cashiers who report patrons purchasing rolling papers and/or blunt wraps. Soon after leaving the store, the citizen was pulled over for a traffic violation he never committed. The auto was searched and the driver was busted with under 1 oz of pot. The driver later learned the cashier has been giving the kops tips regularly. This is not the first of hear of this tactic used by overzealous drug kops. It’s much safer to purchase rolling papers and blunt wraps at large grocery stores where cashiers are too busy to tip off the police. Tell your friends about this tip…it’s worth repeating.
Never Carry More Than You Can Eat
Never carry more than you can eat. Upon being stopped by the kops, simply chase the small stash down with a waiting glass of water. It’s not illegal to smell like pot, it’s only illegal to possess it. If the officer somehow saw you swallowing and he asks you about it, tell him you weren’t swallowing anything except water. In most states there is a charge for tampering with evidence. The act of eating marijuana falls under this statute but there is no way the officer can arrest you for it because the evidence you tampered with is in your stomach and unretrievable.
This method is safe since it’s impossible to overdose to death on marijuana. In over 5000 years of recorded use, there have been zero deaths contributed to a marijuana overdose.
Peanut Butter And Jelly
Never believe anything is smell proof because every material is porous and will eventually permeate a scent cone for a K-9 to detect. Placing your stash in a baggie, then into a jar of peanut butter, buried in the peanut butter, in a cooler will tremendously slow down the rate at which the odor permeates. A jar of peanut butter contains an aluminum paper backed safety seal. Peel the seal off carefully and add super glue around the mouth of the jar and reapply after content has been stashed. This will make things look more inconspicuous. Also make sure you have other cold food items in the cooler along with the peanut butter…jelly is always a good choice. Placing lunch meat in the same cooler helps confuse a K-9 team because any interest from the dog appears to be because of the meat.
(www.nevergetbusted.com)
(compiled by former police officer Barry Cooper)
Beware Of Where You Purchase Your Rolling Papers And Blunts
Beware of purchasing rolling papers and blunt wraps at small convenience stores. It could get you busted. I just received an email advising a Deputy Sheriff in Texas is receiving tips from cashiers who report patrons purchasing rolling papers and/or blunt wraps. Soon after leaving the store, the citizen was pulled over for a traffic violation he never committed. The auto was searched and the driver was busted with under 1 oz of pot. The driver later learned the cashier has been giving the kops tips regularly. This is not the first of hear of this tactic used by overzealous drug kops. It’s much safer to purchase rolling papers and blunt wraps at large grocery stores where cashiers are too busy to tip off the police. Tell your friends about this tip…it’s worth repeating.
Never Carry More Than You Can Eat
Never carry more than you can eat. Upon being stopped by the kops, simply chase the small stash down with a waiting glass of water. It’s not illegal to smell like pot, it’s only illegal to possess it. If the officer somehow saw you swallowing and he asks you about it, tell him you weren’t swallowing anything except water. In most states there is a charge for tampering with evidence. The act of eating marijuana falls under this statute but there is no way the officer can arrest you for it because the evidence you tampered with is in your stomach and unretrievable.
This method is safe since it’s impossible to overdose to death on marijuana. In over 5000 years of recorded use, there have been zero deaths contributed to a marijuana overdose.
Peanut Butter And Jelly
Never believe anything is smell proof because every material is porous and will eventually permeate a scent cone for a K-9 to detect. Placing your stash in a baggie, then into a jar of peanut butter, buried in the peanut butter, in a cooler will tremendously slow down the rate at which the odor permeates. A jar of peanut butter contains an aluminum paper backed safety seal. Peel the seal off carefully and add super glue around the mouth of the jar and reapply after content has been stashed. This will make things look more inconspicuous. Also make sure you have other cold food items in the cooler along with the peanut butter…jelly is always a good choice. Placing lunch meat in the same cooler helps confuse a K-9 team because any interest from the dog appears to be because of the meat.
(www.nevergetbusted.com)
Saturday, June 2, 2012
Wakarusa Just a Safer Festival...?
Below was one of the only links I could find related Waka to arrests, drug busts, etc. ... esp. for this year at least ... it seems of all the festivals getting mentioned online for these sorts of things Waka was the one mentioned/is the one being mentioned the least of all the major festivals in the Midwest. Weird. Well, read below if you want to know what they did decide to highlight and publish...
(May 31, 2012, Alicia Agent and Heather Lewis)
Four people have been arrested and one suspect is on the loose after deputies make a drug bust on Interstate 40 in Sequoyah County.
Officials with the Sequoyah County Jail say 22-year-old Sara Fruman, 22-year-old Victoria Karasik, 23-year-old Jasper Taylor, and 20-year-old Mollie White were all arrested.
Authorities say the four have all now been released on a $1000 bond. A fifth suspect, Kyle Riffle, remains on the loose after he allegedly ran from deputies. Those who live in the area say they’re keeping a watchful eye out for the suspect.
“Ron Lockhart told me to watch for him at night,” said Jeri Crow. “Said he’d probably pop up.”
While some believe Riffle is lurking in the woods, others say they think he’s hitchhiked out of town.
“He’s going to hit the interstate,” said Jeri Crow. “He’s long gone. They won’t catch him.”
Sheriff Ron Lockhart says a Volkswagen van with Colorado tags was pulled over for failing to use a turn signal when changing lanes on the interstate.
“When deputies stopped it, there was like five individuals in the car,” said Sheriff Lockhart. “While they were talking to one individual in the car, he took off on foot.”
One suspect ran off. Deputies were looking for him between the rest stop area west of Sallisaw and Highway 64.
Deputies found marijuana, mushrooms, and five bags of cocaine. Each bag is worth around $250, according to deputies. More than $3,500 cash was also found inside the van.
The group was headed to this weekend’s Wakarusa concert series on Mulberry Mountain in Franklin County, according to Lockhart.
“We’ve noticed since we’ve been doing drug interdiction here this week on Interstate 40, we’ve stopped a lot of people from Colorado going to Wakarusa,” said Sheriff Lockhart.
Sheriff Lockhart says Riffle was last seen wearing shorts and a dark blue t-shirt.
“He shouldn’t have run,” said resident Jim Cooper. “I know that cause he’s going to go to jail sooner or later.”
(5 News, KNSM, http://5newsonline.com/2012/05/31/van-enroute-to-wakarusa-busted-for-drugs/)
(May 31, 2012, Alicia Agent and Heather Lewis)
Four people have been arrested and one suspect is on the loose after deputies make a drug bust on Interstate 40 in Sequoyah County.
Officials with the Sequoyah County Jail say 22-year-old Sara Fruman, 22-year-old Victoria Karasik, 23-year-old Jasper Taylor, and 20-year-old Mollie White were all arrested.
Authorities say the four have all now been released on a $1000 bond. A fifth suspect, Kyle Riffle, remains on the loose after he allegedly ran from deputies. Those who live in the area say they’re keeping a watchful eye out for the suspect.
“Ron Lockhart told me to watch for him at night,” said Jeri Crow. “Said he’d probably pop up.”
While some believe Riffle is lurking in the woods, others say they think he’s hitchhiked out of town.
“He’s going to hit the interstate,” said Jeri Crow. “He’s long gone. They won’t catch him.”
Van pulled over on I-40
“When deputies stopped it, there was like five individuals in the car,” said Sheriff Lockhart. “While they were talking to one individual in the car, he took off on foot.”
One suspect ran off. Deputies were looking for him between the rest stop area west of Sallisaw and Highway 64.
Deputies found marijuana, mushrooms, and five bags of cocaine. Each bag is worth around $250, according to deputies. More than $3,500 cash was also found inside the van.
The group was headed to this weekend’s Wakarusa concert series on Mulberry Mountain in Franklin County, according to Lockhart.
“We’ve noticed since we’ve been doing drug interdiction here this week on Interstate 40, we’ve stopped a lot of people from Colorado going to Wakarusa,” said Sheriff Lockhart.
Sheriff Lockhart says Riffle was last seen wearing shorts and a dark blue t-shirt.
“He shouldn’t have run,” said resident Jim Cooper. “I know that cause he’s going to go to jail sooner or later.”
(5 News, KNSM, http://5newsonline.com/2012/05/31/van-enroute-to-wakarusa-busted-for-drugs/)
Friday, June 1, 2012
How to NOT GET ARRESTED on the way to BONNAROO...
Besides knowing that in all the small towns you drive through, esp. Murphesboro, TN - Be careful for police presence!! - See the following below compiled by a Tennessee criminal defense attorney (but it applies to everyone coming to Bonnaroo...and other fests too...) on how to avoid getting in to any trouble on your way to Bonnaroo next week...
(NashvilleCriminalLawReport, 2012)
1. Before you leave for Bonnaroo....2. Driving To Bonnaroo
3. The Car
4. When Stopped
-Do not consent to search your car, your person, or your stuff
5. Questioning
6. If Arrested
7. Cannabis
(http://www.nashvillecriminallawreport.com/2012/05/articles/search-and-seizure-1/bonnaroo-arrest-prevention-guide/)
What Are the Police Looking For??? ...
A MUST READ for all!! Compiled by a group associated with medical marijuana the following is a source on what police officers can (note: this is NOT a END ALL BE ALL guide for what police look/don't look for, etc. in any given setting, etc.) base their thoughts on...
read below...
WHO RUNS DRUGS?
While drugs traffickers range in age from 14 to 75 and can be any race or gender, there are several combinations that seem to be the norm. While these indicators should not be your sole deciding factor in whether or not to ask for consent to search, they should most certainly be taken into account.
HIDDEN COMPARTMENTS OF COMMERCIAL CARRIERS
You should go to a truck yard and inspect some semi tractor/trailers so will know when you see something on the outside that doesn't fit. Many times, truck drivers trafficking drugs count on the fact that you don't know what is supposed to be on a big truck and what isn't. Any type of custom-built canister mounted on the outside of a tractor/trailer can be a potential hiding place for drugs. Many times these canisters will even have pseudo working lines running from them into the truck, making it appear to be a working piece of machinery. The following are some of the external hiding spots commercial carriers use to hide illegal drugs in.
The following are frequently used routes of travel for drug traffickers. If you patrol an area of one of these highways, your community may benefit from a drug interdiction program. In the case of each highway, you will most likely get illegal drugs on the eastbound side and drug money on the westbound side. Interstates that run north and south are normally used by traffickers to jump from one west or east bound interstate to another.
There are numerous interstates and highways that drug traffickers use, but these seem to be the most common, most likely because they're the largest and most heavily traveled. Remember, traffickers like to make as fast a trip as possible. If your patrol area contains part of an interstate or major highway, a drug checkpoint or a drug interdiction program may benefit your community and your department. Even if your interstate or highway is not considered a "major" travel route, you may want to test run an interdiction effort to see what comes about, especially now that Law Enforcement is becoming more aware of the major drug routes, and traffickers are changing to less traveled, non-major interstates and highways. Interstate 44, which runs through our neck of the woods, is really a very short interstate compared to most, but we still make thousands of drug arrests and drug and money seizures every year. You could too.
Another thing to think about are the drugs coming into the US from Canada. Some of the "best" Marijuana with high THC levels is coming from Canada into the USA. All the adjoining states should be watched closely for drug traffickers coming from Canada. A few months ago it was reported that Heroin was coming from Canada going to Detroit, Michigan. This is just one example, and if your area of jurisdiction includes a highway or interstate coming out of Canada, you could have some big busts ahead of you.
HIDING PLACES OF USER AMOUNTS
Many of the miscellaneous hiding places discussed at the end of chapter 6 are also excellent hiding places for user amounts. Some of the information in this chapter reiterates the information found in Hiding Compartments but some does not, and much of it pertains to vehicle searches.
Inside film canisters, underneath the rubber cover on stick shifts, inside perfume bottles (liquid meth), inside fingernail polish bottles (they use the brush to put the drugs under their nose), on the sun visor; panels can be removed with two screws and the inside is filled with foam rubber that can taken out for drug hiding. Underneath the horn cover (most just pop off), in air bag compartments if the air bag has been removed or has gone off and never been repacked. This leaves an excellent hiding place for small amounts. Thermos bottles can be used for hiding drugs in and still have coffee or some type of liquid in them, but the drugs have to be in a sealed bag. Use your flashlight to look inside the thermos. The inner sole of shoes (they should pull up freely), inside the heels of shoes, inside stash cans (a list of these are included in the back of this book). Be sure to look closely at the cigarette lighters in cars. If it has a hole in the end, pull it out for examination. Companies now make small pipes that look exactly like a car cigarette lighter and fit into the space for your car lighter as well. Definitely check the lighter if you see a real one laying up in the dash or anywhere in the car. Anytime you see a cigar laying around in the car, check it as well. The inside of the cigar could be packed with marijuana instead of tobacco. These are called "blunts" and they are popular with African American drug users. Check all packs of cigarettes for an odd looking cigarette. It's actually a pipe made to look like a cigarette. It's the same length, white and is painted to look like it has a filter on the end. These are relatively easy to spot, as both ends have holes in them for smoking. Also be sure to check all packs for marijuana joints, which can be shorter than normal cigarettes and undetectable at a glance, as well as for drugs stuffed down inside the pack and in the cellophane wrapping on the outside. The majority of the time drug users will use the boxed cigarette packs, not the soft packs.
On one search the only thing that was found was a small amount of marijuana and a couple hundred empty Marlboro packs indicating that the person may have been a drug dealer, using the empty packs to sell marijuana joints in.
Earlier in this book we discussed marijuana being hidden in dog food bags. This is also a good place for offenders to hide user amounts of marijuana and powdered drugs. If you see a person traveling with a dog and a bag of dog food, check the bag of food. You will probably want to dump the food into a container to really check thoroughly. Depending on the type of drugs, a large amount could be concealed in the bag. If there is a K-9 carrying crate in the vehicle, be sure to check underneath the crate and check the crate itself for a false floor. Look closely at it to see if the inside floor is higher than the bottom on the outside. If you try to work your dog around a crate, you will probably not get a typical alert, especially if the crate contains a dog at the time. Remember, hiding places for user amounts are only limited to the offenders imagination and creativity.
INDICATIONS OF DRUG USERS
The following are physical and psychological indications of drug use. Most of these are quite easy to spot. Sometimes marijuana use is harder to spot than other drugs, so descriptions have been included with it's indicators.
Indications of Marijuana Use...
Indications of Cocaine (and Crack Cocaine) Use...
Indicators of Methamphetamine Use...
Indicators of Hallucinogen Use...
Indicators of Inhalant Use...
Indicators of specific drug use are often hard to discern because so many of the symptoms for different drugs are alike. But, because your job is to take all illegal drugs off the streets, figuring out the exact drug being used is not so important. However, it is important when it comes to the safety of you or your dog. A dog getting a small amount of marijuana in its mouth will not hurt it, and definitely not kill it. But, a small amount of any other drug could be deadly to your dog and even you. Plus, knowing what type of drugs a person is on, tells you whether to be on your guard for possible violent or psychotic behavior.
MISCELLANEOUS HIDING PLACES
These next few hidden compartments I'll discuss can be used to hide user amounts, and in many cases larger amounts of drugs. Especially if you're talking about any type of powdered drug, as you can fit more of it in a smaller area. Typically, anything can become a hiding place for the ingenious drug trafficker, but these are some of the most common, most overlooked areas.
Many times a K-9 will alert to an area of a vehicle or home and the Officer will pass it off as residual odor and not perform a thorough search. I cannot stress enough the importance of trusting your dog every time he alerts! You'll see what I mean after reading about these creative hiding places.
Inside radios, cassette tapes and players, battery chargers, electric and hand-held tire pumps, flash lights, thermos bottles and inside ice chests (they will often remove the inside of the ice chest, place their drugs, then put the inside back in. See if you can pull the inside out of ice chests to check for this.) Lipstick tubes, powder compacts, cigarette cases, cigarette packs, CD cases, shoe heels (they swivel), inside shoes and boots (the sole is removable), books with pages cut out, musical instrument cases (big hiding place for band members) and even inside the instruments themselves. Dummy pagers (they are worn on the belt, but are not workable, serving only as a hiding spot), pillows, hat bands, ball point pens and inside loaves of bread that the interior has been carved out of (Most K-9 handlers will pull their K-9's away from food. (Before you pull him away, see if he's going to alert on the food, or just sniff it.) Baby bottles, under babies in the baby seat, baby bottles, in the lining of suitcases and purses, film containers (this is a BIG one), cameras (Most Officers are reluctant to open cameras with film in them for fear of exposing the film and finding nothing. Find some place dark to check the camera and just feel around the inside without touching it. If you're using a K-9, lay the camera on the ground and then run the dog past it to check.) Video cameras and video tapes also serve as excellent hiding places.
One big hiding place is inside sex toys. Seriously. These drug traffickers will try to think of the thing you don't want to touch or go through the most, and that's where they'll hide it. There's probably big loads of drugs going across country right now under 2 feet of cow dung. Anyway, one time I was assisting a Sheriff who was searching a woman's belongings looking for more cocaine (she had already given up some). In one of the suitcases, wrapped in a towel was an 18 inch long vibrator (dildo, stimulation device, whatever you wish to call it). Well, I didn't find any drugs, and I didn't handle the device except with the towel. But, wanting to see his reaction, I went over to my Sheriff friend and told him there were more drugs in the suitcase. He asked where at, and when I told him they were in the...ummm, device. He told me in no certain terms that they would stay there. It was funny pulling this little joke on my friend, but really, what better place to hide drugs. Places such as these should be checked just as any other possible hiding place. That's what they make rubber "snappy" gloves for.
If you are searching a private residence, there are literally hundreds of places drugs could be hidden. Be sure to check under all couch and chair cushions and mattresses, in drawers, cabinets (especially out of the way or hard-to-access cabinets), inside metal tins and kitchen canisters, cigar boxes, jewelry boxes and the like. Also check behind the bottom plate on refrigerators and behind wall paneling. Most of these places you probably already know, but also check...
Anything that can hollowed out, such as the handles of garden tools, shovels, etc., wooden fence posts or fire place wood, and yard ornaments made of cement. Computer cases (be very careful checking these), the bases of lamps and decorative statues, and in cans that serve only for the hiding of items, such as "stash cans". These cans will look like name brand products. They can be shaving cream, hairspray, spray paint, oil, beer or soda cans. Most of the time they will even dispense the proper product and be actual working cans. You can test the bottoms and tops of these with a quick twist to see if they screw off (be sure to try and turn in both directions as many have been made with the threads backwards). Any time you find a can laying around a car, be sure to test it, you may be surprised at what you find.
My friend, there is no end to the hiding places you will find drugs in. When you search, do so with the intention of finding drugs. If you have reason enough to start a search, then do a thorough job of it.
I have seen many times, trucks, trailers and autos stacked full of luggage and other items, a K-9 gave a good alert, yet because of the enormous amount of work involved, the Officers did not do a good search.
Here's one more story about an incomplete search. A Trooper was helping out at a drug checkpoint and an auto came off the highway, trying to avoid the checkpoint they thought was just ahead on the highway they were traveling (of course, they ran right into the middle of it, which is the beauty of setting up checkpoints). There was reasonable suspicion, of course, since the person was obviously trying to avoid them by exiting the highway, so the Trooper asked for consent to search. It was refused, so the K-9 was walked around the vehicle and gave a positive alert. The people were mad as all get-out and did not want their car or belongings searched. Because of the K-9's alert, the Trooper had probable cause to search for drugs. Now, the woman in the car had her purse in the trunk of the auto which was being half-heartedly searched by the Trooper. The woman walked up, grabbed her purse and headed for the inside of the auto with it. The Trooper tried to grab it back, thinking she may have a gun. She pulled back on the purse, shoved the Trooper and a Deputy stepped in to help restrain her. She elbowed the Deputy and again struck the Trooper in the chest. BIG mistake on her part as she was assaulting an Officer of the Law. She was handcuffed and then the purse was searched. Nothing was found in it, and since nothing had been found in the auto or in the trunk, the Trooper was pretty shook up over the whole incident. He called his superior Officer out to find out what he should do, as they had nothing on the people except refusal to consent to search and assaulting the Officer. The woman was a college professor from a large university and the Troopers new some heck was going to be raised about it all. The Trooper needed something to get himself out of hot water with his superiors as well as something to help avoid a law suit with these people. They forgot all about searching the auto more, and were trying to figure out what they could do to quiet this whole situation down. At the time I was talking to a good friend of mine, a Deputy Sheriff working the checkpoint, about all of the commotion. I told him that they had not made a thorough search of the vehicle and that these people had come up the ramp, trying to avoid the checkpoint for a reason, and the Troopers needed to find out why. I asked him to go tell the Troopers to search the auto again with a fine-toothed comb to find out what these people where hiding. The Troopers listened to the Deputy and everything set out on the street. One Trooper happened to pick up a bag that was sitting behind the seat, within reach of the driver. Guess what!? Two loaded hand guns were in the bag. The Trooper was no longer in trouble, but would have been if they had not gone back to do the second search. My friend, if you start a search, do a good job, because if you don't find anything it may come back on you in the courts. Get your reasonable suspicion (checkpoints are excellent ways to obtain this) before you run a K-9 around the vehicle to get your probable cause to search, then search until you find something, or until you know for a fact there is nothing there.
INDICATIONS OF LOADED VEHICLES
INDICATORS OF COMMERCIAL CARRIERS WHO RUN DRUGS
Some of the largest loads of drugs have been seized off of semi trucks and trailers. First I'll give you a few statistics. The average marijuana load seized from tractor-trailers is around 1,000 pounds. The average cocaine seizure is around 900 pounds and the average currency seizure is around $400,000. It's been found that approximately 75% of all drugs entering the United States are coming in through the southwest borders of Texas and Arizona and 70% of that is being carried in tractor-trailers. Approximately 60% of the drivers are Hispanic, 30% Caucasian, 5% African-American and 5% are other nationalities. The majority of the time, Peterbilt trucks are preferred over Kenworth for hauling illegal drugs in. This is due to the fact that Peterbilt trucks can be custom-ordered to the buyers specifications. The only thing the manufacturers control is the frame of the truck, the suspension system and all the sheet metal or aluminum work on the vehicle. Peterbilt tractors do not use sheet metal, instead they opt for the lighter weight materials such as aluminum and fiberglass. The typical tractor-trailer hauling drugs will probably be a late model, heavily equipped with customization features and rigged for all-weather long hauls (i.e. Oversized fuel tanks, sleeper compartment, etc.) This doesn't mean you should ignore other makes of tractor-trailers, only that you should pay special attention to these types. It costs around $170,000 for a typical tractor/refrigerated trailer with a 63" sleeper cabin. A 30% down payment is required before production will even start. For owner/operator rigs, there should be some logical source of income that could account for being able to put out such a large sum of money.
Many time commercial carriers running drugs will spend a long amount of time (3 days or more) at one location, such as a hotel or truck stop, waiting for their load of drugs to arrive from the storage site. Most of the time the drugs will arrive in smaller trucks and be packaged in cardboard boxes. If you see a semi-truck staying at one place for an extended amount of time, you may want to keep your eye on him/her.
Here are some indications of a commercial carrier who's hauling drugs:
INDICATIONS OF DRUG TRAFFICKERS
This section includes physical indicators you will see in the car as well as verbal and physical indications of the traffickers themselves. First we'll address the former.
Now we will discuss verbal and physical clues the trafficker may give. These clues indicate deception of some sort on their part. It is best to have the subject standing to properly assess these indications.
MASKING ODORS
As you walk up to a vehicle and begin to question the driver, have your nose be on alert for strong or heavy odors coming from the car. These odors are called masking odors. Most all drug offenders, whether they're using drugs or trafficking them, use masking odors. These are odors used to cover up the overwhelming scent of drugs. With drug users, it's an attempt to cover up the scent escaping the car as you approach. With drug runners, it's normally an attempt to fool drug dogs. While a dogs nose is able to "see" through these odors, as a human, all you can do is use them as an indication of illegal activity. If you smell any of these, further investigation may be needed.
Here is a list of commonly used masking odors. These are also some of the strongest and easiest for you to detect.
read below...
WHO RUNS DRUGS?
While drugs traffickers range in age from 14 to 75 and can be any race or gender, there are several combinations that seem to be the norm. While these indicators should not be your sole deciding factor in whether or not to ask for consent to search, they should most certainly be taken into account.
- ANYONE BETWEEN THE AGES OF 21 and 30 - Almost half of all drug traffickers fall into this age group. Approximately 30% of all traffickers are between the ages of 31 and 40.
- 2 MIDDLE-AGED MALES ANY RACE - This is highly unusual, and dealers know this, so it's not often used. However, if you come across this situation, look for other indicators as well. They could be business men traveling together, but if that's the case, there should be some indication as to their work. Such as briefcases or extra business clothes in the back seat. Look at the whole picture though. If they have nice, new looking briefcases and old, ratty looking suits on, it doesn't quite go together and could be a cover up.
- 1 FEMALE - Most females will not travel alone and if you see this it should be a major indication of trafficking. However, as usual, the traffickers have figured out that this looks suspicious and have gone to using 2 or more females as described below. Still though, keep your eyes open for a lone female driver.
- 2 OR MORE FEMALES - Most of the time, women will have someone traveling with them. Sometimes they are going to music concerts or to visit friends or family. Most of the time there will be three or four going together to concerts. Most often than not they will have a user amount of drugs with them. Normally, if a woman is in her late teens or early twenties, and is traveling with another woman of the same age, it's a good indication that they may be running drugs. Most older women, 30 and up, will drive alone when trafficking, or they will have children with them as a cover. Children could be an indicator as well. How old is the child? Is he/she school age? If so, why isn't he/she in school?
-
An Illinois Trooper got a young female and
her young children driving a U-Haul. Over 1,000 pounds of marijuana was found in
the back of the truck. If a woman is moving, she will more than likely have
someone traveling in another car with her. Plus, if she states that she is
traveling with someone, it's still unusual for the woman to be driving the
U-Haul.
- OLDER MAN/YOUNGER WOMAN - if there appears to be an age difference of more than 10 years, something is probably amiss. It could be a Dad and his daughter, or a Grandfather and granddaughter, but this is very rare. One big time dealer that got busted was in his 30's and had paid a 19 year old girl to travel with him. This same character also had telltale license plates, but they'll be more about him in Chapter 5.
- NICELY DRESSED COUPLES - this is a good indicator if your working highway interdiction as most people will not travel long distances in nice clothing. One load that got busted in Missouri was being hauled by a man in a business suit and a woman in an evening dress. What tipped the arresting Officers off besides their fancy outfits? They were from Mexico and the car they were driving was a newer model, with excessive mileage on it. 4,000 to 5,000 miles per month had been put on the vehicle. Further investigation revealed maps marked with past trips on it and first names written beside different cities. 150 pounds of marijuana was seized and after his $15,000 bond was paid in cash, he was never seen again.
- NATIONALITY INDICATORS - These indicators should never be used as the sole reason to stop or detain a person for suspected drug smuggling, but should be used in conjunction with other indications to increase probability. Most traffickers are either U.S. or Mexican nationals. Other nationalities with high incidents of trafficking are Cuban, Dominican and Jamaican. The number of Columbians trafficking in the U.S. has decreased, however, the number of traffickers from other South American countries and the Caribbean are on the increase.
HIDDEN COMPARTMENTS OF COMMERCIAL CARRIERS
You should go to a truck yard and inspect some semi tractor/trailers so will know when you see something on the outside that doesn't fit. Many times, truck drivers trafficking drugs count on the fact that you don't know what is supposed to be on a big truck and what isn't. Any type of custom-built canister mounted on the outside of a tractor/trailer can be a potential hiding place for drugs. Many times these canisters will even have pseudo working lines running from them into the truck, making it appear to be a working piece of machinery. The following are some of the external hiding spots commercial carriers use to hide illegal drugs in.
- AIR FILTERS/CLEANERS AND LUBREFINERS - These tanks can be found in three different areas, depending on the type of semi. An air filter can be mounted on the back of the cab, and there should be only one of them. If there are two, the other one could be hiding illegal drugs. On "streamliner" models, the air filter is usually mounted underneath the hood forward of the firewall. On other models, the air filter is usually mounted just forward of the passenger door under the window level. Occasionally, some tractors are equipped with two to three air filters, with one located under the hood and others externally mounted. Again, only one is necessary for safe operation of the vehicle. To test for the legitimacy of and air filter, hold a lit cigarette up to the filters intake. If smoke is sucked into the filter, the unit is functional. Two non-identical tanks mounted on the back of the cab will usually represent an air filter on the right and a lubrefiner on the left. A lubrefiner is unnecessary and obsolete because of the purity of refinement of today's lubricants. For the past eight years these devices have had to be custom ordered. If they are warm to the touch then they are functioning. An out-modeled lubrefiner is a perfect place to hide drugs.
- AIR COMPRESSORS - Tractor trailers must have one of these, with an air dryer, for braking purposes. Most carry the brand name "Bendix". Different classes of trailers require different compression capacities. At the most, one or two air compressors meet safety guidelines. Most tractor trailers can be equipped with three to four compressors for extra safety. If a driver routinely maintains and checks his equipment, the third and fourth are redundant. If one of these devices is being used to hide drugs, the canister will appear to be sealed and connected to the real compressor by phony connecting hoses and clamps. To test and see if an air compressor or dryer is phony, have the driver apply pressure to the brakes. As pressure is bled off the compressor should kick on to increase the pressure. When this is completed, the air dryer emits a blast of air, dumping moisture from the air lines. If the unit does not perform this dumping, then it is not operational.
- EXHAUST STACKS - A large amount drugs can be hidden inside a false or inoperable exhaust stack. Normally tractors have only one exhaust manifold which is located on the right side of the engine. A single stack is normally used because it causes "back pressure" and extends the life of a diesel engine. If a tractor has dual stacks, the left manifold will be cut into the right. Close inspection will determine if this is actually the case. Watch a truck, and if only one of the stacks emits smoke as the truck is pulling away from a weigh station or stop, then the second stack is probably bogus.
- TUBELESS TIRES - This is most risky for traffickers to use because of the danger of damaging the tires and the loss of the drugs. A tubed tire will always have a flat rim, while a tubeless tire has a noticeable hump in the rim. Look for this when inspecting tires for hidden drugs.
- FUEL TANKS - One or two tanks will be visible on customized rigs, each holding from 60 to 150 gallons. For a truck to "line haul" (going from coast to coast), twin 150 gallon tanks are normally used. A large fuel tank could be fitted with interior bulkhead, creating a false compartment to hide drugs in. These compartments are very difficult to locate and the same techniques should be used on semi tanks, as on normal automobile tanks. Access to these storage areas can be made either from under a step plate or underneath a running board. Fuel tanks attached to the trailer for refrigeration or heating units could be manipulated in the same manner.
- BATTERY BOXES - A normal tractor trailer is equipped with one battery box, containing two batteries, one for backup. A tractor needs only one battery to run, so the second battery could be used to conceal drugs. Customized tractors will have two battery boxes, creating even more space to hide drugs in. Many times, in the cases of trucks that go north in the winter, the dual battery boxes, with batteries in them, is not redundant. Closely inspect the batteries and cables to be sure they are not false.
- POWER DIFFERENTIAL - If a trafficker has a good mechanic, he could have the power drive fixed so that all drive power is transferred to the front drive axle only. This causes the second, or rear axle to continue to turn and appear completely normal. The junction box and the rear axle liner could be used to hide drugs in. Detection of this is difficult and there are a couple ways you can check. First, on ice or slippery conditions, the front tires would spin while the rear ones would not. Second, at a toll booth or weigh station, a trained eye can see the front tires "bite" into the pavement on take off while the rear tires would roll freely.
- AIR BAGS - You should be suspicious of air spring suspension bags if the trailer is equipped with both conventional springs and air spring suspension bags. Or, if the air spring suspension bags do not appear in pairs on each rear axle.
- HYDRAULIC SYSTEM - Normally a false system and hose configuration will be attached to the rear of the sleeper cab. If the system is real, power take off (PTO) controls can be found in the cab. In all probability, traffickers would not go to the trouble to install fake PTO controls in the cab. However, if PTO controls are found in the truck, they should be tested.
- FABRICATED HOOD STORAGE - There are many false cavities and compartments in the hood area, especially if the hood is made of fiberglass. To detect panels and doors concealing these compartments, the hood must be raised into it's 90 degree service position.
- UNDERNEATH THE CAB - A false compartment under the floor of the cab would be hidden from sight by the side panels which extend 4" to 6" past the bottom of the cab floor. This makes them difficult to detect. You may be able to detect these hidden compartments by crawling underneath the tractor. Once again, you will need to know what looks normal under a tractor, before you can accurately distinguish what is NOT normal.
- GRATE IN FRONT OF AXLE - Some traffickers may mount a tank under a grate that is in front of the front axle. There is no use for any tank you may see mounted in this area and it should be considered suspicious if there is one.
- FLATBED TRAILERS - Flatbeds can be modified so that the entire metal structure of the trailer is raised by several inches, creating an empty space perfect for hiding drugs in. The compartment will be between the bed of the trailer and the frame beneath. Look for boards on the flatbed that appear to have been pryed up and then screwed back down, or boards that have been cut.
- SLEEPER COMPARTMENT - The sleeper compartment on most trucks measure 30" to 63" in depth and 80" in width. A 2" liner space can be found in the wall of the sleeper, usually filled with insulation. This insulation can be removed to create a hiding place for drugs. All you have to do is loosen the felt or leather interior wall liner and the compartment is readily available. A trafficker can conceal up to 500 kilos of cocaine in one of these spaces as the compartment can run the entire length and width of the sleeper. Sometimes there will be electronic switches concealed in the sleeper area for easy access to hidden drugs.
- TRACTOR DOORS - With the window rolled down, the hollow compartment remaining at the bottom of the door measures approximately 12" in height and the width of the door itself. This means the window will still function properly, even with a large amount of drugs hidden in the door. You can tap with your screwdriver on the door, listening for a hollow sound, the same as on a car.
- CAB STORAGE DOORS - These are found on the sides of the sleeper unit and offer access to storage compartments under the sleeper bed. The space is approximately 14" to 16" deep, extending the complete width of the sleeper unit. A couple fabricated bulkheads would hide a hidden compartment in this area from view. These type of hidden compartments can only be detected by measuring inside and outside dimensions.
- MISCELLANEOUS HIDING PLACES - Even though you will not normally find the big loads in these spots, they should always be checked for user amounts. They include many of the same places as in cars (headrests, glove boxes, etc.), but a big rig has many more nooks and crannies for hiding drugs in. Be sure to always check the storage compartments that are above the truck drivers head. There could be anywhere from one to three of four of these on any given truck. These are normally used to hold maps, log books and the like. These compartments are pretty deep, and you'll probably have to shine your flashlight back in them to detect any hidden drugs. Many truck drivers have small refrigerators on their rigs and they should be checked thoroughly as well. And don't forget to check luggage and duffel bags belonging to the driver and/or passenger. Since many rigs are customized, especially owner/operator trucks, there is no limit to the number of compartments that could be in one. Be sure to inspect everything very carefully.
The following are frequently used routes of travel for drug traffickers. If you patrol an area of one of these highways, your community may benefit from a drug interdiction program. In the case of each highway, you will most likely get illegal drugs on the eastbound side and drug money on the westbound side. Interstates that run north and south are normally used by traffickers to jump from one west or east bound interstate to another.
- Interstate 10 - Runs from Los Angeles, California, through Arizona and New Mexico to Houston, Texas. It then runs along the Gulf Coast all the way to Jacksonville, Florida.
- Interstate 20 - Runs from approximately Pecos, Texas, through Ft. Worth and on into Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. Then on to Atlanta, Georgia and finally Columbia, South Carolina.
- Interstate 40 - Runs from approximately San Bernadino, California through Arizona, New Mexico and Texas to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. It continues on through Little Rock, Arkansas and Nashville, Tennessee. It then goes on to Wilmington, North Carolina.
- Interstate 44 - Runs from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma through Tulsa, Oklahoma and on into Springfield, Missouri and then up to St. Louis. Even though this is a rather short section of interstate, many traffickers use it as it connects to I-40, I-35, and I-135.
- Interstate 70 - This interstate comes off of Interstate 15 in Utah. It then runs through Denver, Colorado and on through Kansas to Kansas City. It also hits St. Louis, Missouri, then it goes through Illinois to Indianapolis, Indiana, then Columbus, Ohio and finally Baltimore, Maryland.
- Interstate 80 - Runs from San Francisco/Oakland, California area through the center of the U.S., hitting Salt Lake City, Utah, Omaha, Nebraska, and Des Moines, Iowa. It then continues on through Northern Illinois, Indiana, Ohio and Pennsylvania and finally to New York City.
- Interstate 95 - Runs from Miami, Florida up the eastern seaboard into Washington D.C. It continues up the seaboard from Washington D.C. all the way to New Brunswick, Canada, hitting many major U.S. source cities along the way, such as New York City and Boston.
- Interstate 5 - Runs from San Diego, California, north through California, hitting Sacramento along the way. It continues all the way up the west coast, through Portland, Oregon and Seattle Washington, into Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
- Interstate 15 - Runs from San Bernadino, California north through Las Vegas, Nevada, Salt Lake City, Utah, Idaho and Montana to the Canadian border. Interstate 35 - Runs from Laredo, Texas north through Dallas/Ft. Worth, then on through Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and intersects with the Kansas Turnpike in Witchita.
- Interstate 25 - Runs from southern New Mexico north to Montana. Intersects I-40, I-70, I-80 and I-90.
- Interstate 135 - Runs from the Kansas Turnpike north to I-70.
- Interstate 55 - Runs from approximately Baton Rouge, Louisiana north through Jackson, Mississippi, Memphis, Tennessee, St. Louis, Missouri and Springfield, Illinois. It then continues on into Chicago, Illinois. It intersects many major interstates along the way.
- Interstate 75 - Runs from Ft. Myers, Florida north to Atlanta, Georgia. It continues northward, intersecting many major interstates, until it reaches Cincinnati, Ohio, then Toledo, Ohio, and finally it makes its way into Detroit, Michigan, then on to the Canadian border.
There are numerous interstates and highways that drug traffickers use, but these seem to be the most common, most likely because they're the largest and most heavily traveled. Remember, traffickers like to make as fast a trip as possible. If your patrol area contains part of an interstate or major highway, a drug checkpoint or a drug interdiction program may benefit your community and your department. Even if your interstate or highway is not considered a "major" travel route, you may want to test run an interdiction effort to see what comes about, especially now that Law Enforcement is becoming more aware of the major drug routes, and traffickers are changing to less traveled, non-major interstates and highways. Interstate 44, which runs through our neck of the woods, is really a very short interstate compared to most, but we still make thousands of drug arrests and drug and money seizures every year. You could too.
Another thing to think about are the drugs coming into the US from Canada. Some of the "best" Marijuana with high THC levels is coming from Canada into the USA. All the adjoining states should be watched closely for drug traffickers coming from Canada. A few months ago it was reported that Heroin was coming from Canada going to Detroit, Michigan. This is just one example, and if your area of jurisdiction includes a highway or interstate coming out of Canada, you could have some big busts ahead of you.
HIDING PLACES OF USER AMOUNTS
Many of the miscellaneous hiding places discussed at the end of chapter 6 are also excellent hiding places for user amounts. Some of the information in this chapter reiterates the information found in Hiding Compartments but some does not, and much of it pertains to vehicle searches.
Inside film canisters, underneath the rubber cover on stick shifts, inside perfume bottles (liquid meth), inside fingernail polish bottles (they use the brush to put the drugs under their nose), on the sun visor; panels can be removed with two screws and the inside is filled with foam rubber that can taken out for drug hiding. Underneath the horn cover (most just pop off), in air bag compartments if the air bag has been removed or has gone off and never been repacked. This leaves an excellent hiding place for small amounts. Thermos bottles can be used for hiding drugs in and still have coffee or some type of liquid in them, but the drugs have to be in a sealed bag. Use your flashlight to look inside the thermos. The inner sole of shoes (they should pull up freely), inside the heels of shoes, inside stash cans (a list of these are included in the back of this book). Be sure to look closely at the cigarette lighters in cars. If it has a hole in the end, pull it out for examination. Companies now make small pipes that look exactly like a car cigarette lighter and fit into the space for your car lighter as well. Definitely check the lighter if you see a real one laying up in the dash or anywhere in the car. Anytime you see a cigar laying around in the car, check it as well. The inside of the cigar could be packed with marijuana instead of tobacco. These are called "blunts" and they are popular with African American drug users. Check all packs of cigarettes for an odd looking cigarette. It's actually a pipe made to look like a cigarette. It's the same length, white and is painted to look like it has a filter on the end. These are relatively easy to spot, as both ends have holes in them for smoking. Also be sure to check all packs for marijuana joints, which can be shorter than normal cigarettes and undetectable at a glance, as well as for drugs stuffed down inside the pack and in the cellophane wrapping on the outside. The majority of the time drug users will use the boxed cigarette packs, not the soft packs.
On one search the only thing that was found was a small amount of marijuana and a couple hundred empty Marlboro packs indicating that the person may have been a drug dealer, using the empty packs to sell marijuana joints in.
Earlier in this book we discussed marijuana being hidden in dog food bags. This is also a good place for offenders to hide user amounts of marijuana and powdered drugs. If you see a person traveling with a dog and a bag of dog food, check the bag of food. You will probably want to dump the food into a container to really check thoroughly. Depending on the type of drugs, a large amount could be concealed in the bag. If there is a K-9 carrying crate in the vehicle, be sure to check underneath the crate and check the crate itself for a false floor. Look closely at it to see if the inside floor is higher than the bottom on the outside. If you try to work your dog around a crate, you will probably not get a typical alert, especially if the crate contains a dog at the time. Remember, hiding places for user amounts are only limited to the offenders imagination and creativity.
INDICATIONS OF DRUG USERS
The following are physical and psychological indications of drug use. Most of these are quite easy to spot. Sometimes marijuana use is harder to spot than other drugs, so descriptions have been included with it's indicators.
Indications of Marijuana Use...
- Very bloodshot eyes - Pronounced veins in the eyeballs.
- Other Eye Indicators - No Nystagmus, pupil size normal or perhaps slightly dilated.
- Body tremors - Shaking as they hand you their license, registration, etc...
- Odor of marijuana in the vehicle - It will smell sweet, with a slightly burned odor.
- Disorientation - Unable to tell you where they are exactly, where they've been and/or where they're going. May also have time distortions, thinking it has been longer since an event than it actually has. (For example, they say they just left their friends house right down the street about 30 minutes ago.
- Relaxed inhibitions - This may fool you at first, because they seem so calm, but very few people are completely calm when being stopped for a violation. They may be very conversational with you.
- Difficulty in dividing or giving attention - They may have a hard time following their own story or listening to exactly what you tell them to do. They may have a hard time answering questions asked while they are retrieving their license and registration or performing other tasks for you.
- Dry Mouth - Unable to wet lips, causing the constant licking of lips. May cause them to mispronounce words or slur speech.
Indications of Cocaine (and Crack Cocaine) Use...
- Perspiration and body odor
- Red face
- Itching of the skin
- Quick, animated movements, inability to sit still
- Sensitive to sound
- Heightened reflexes
- Time and distance disorientation
- Runny nose, walls of nostrils pale yellow
- Injection sites on arms and/or hands
- Constricted pupils
- Droopy eyelids
- Slurred speech
- Staggering gait
- Aggressive behavior
- Unable to feel pain
- Slow physical movements and reflexes
- Constricted pupils, slow reaction to light
- Slurred speech
- Blue discoloration of skin
- Dry skin
- Dry mouth
- Droopy eyelids
- Lowered body temperature, cold skin
- Goose bumps on skin
- Facial itching
- Slow respiration
- Low, raspy speech
- Heavy, deep breathing
- Flushed complexion
- Teary eyes
- Runny nose
- Irritability
- Hyperactivity
- Loss of concentration
- Nervousness
Indicators of Methamphetamine Use...
- Very awake and alert
- Eye indicators: No nystagmus, pupils noticeably dilated
- Hair loss
- Rotten teeth
- Strong body odor
- Increased respiration
- Increased perspiration
- Hyperactivity
- Dark circles under eyes, indicating lack of sleep
- May be delusional or psychotic
- Anxious
- Talkative
- Euphoria and exhilaration
- Grinding teeth
- Redness to nasal area
- Exaggerated reflexes
Indicators of Hallucinogen Use...
- Hallucinations
- Dazed appearance
- Disorientation
- Lack of coordination
- Body tremors
- Paranoia
- Difficulty talking
- Eye Indications: No nystagmus, pupils noticeably dilated.
- Hyperactive
- Perspiration
- Blank stare
- Repetitive speech
- Incomplete verbal responses
- Confusion
- Possibly violent and combative
Indicators of Inhalant Use...
- Disorientation
- Slurred speech
- Residue of substance on face, hands and/or clothing
- Eye indicators - horizontal gaze, nystagmus usually will be present, vertical nystagmus may be present, pupil size generally normal
Indicators of specific drug use are often hard to discern because so many of the symptoms for different drugs are alike. But, because your job is to take all illegal drugs off the streets, figuring out the exact drug being used is not so important. However, it is important when it comes to the safety of you or your dog. A dog getting a small amount of marijuana in its mouth will not hurt it, and definitely not kill it. But, a small amount of any other drug could be deadly to your dog and even you. Plus, knowing what type of drugs a person is on, tells you whether to be on your guard for possible violent or psychotic behavior.
MISCELLANEOUS HIDING PLACES
These next few hidden compartments I'll discuss can be used to hide user amounts, and in many cases larger amounts of drugs. Especially if you're talking about any type of powdered drug, as you can fit more of it in a smaller area. Typically, anything can become a hiding place for the ingenious drug trafficker, but these are some of the most common, most overlooked areas.
Many times a K-9 will alert to an area of a vehicle or home and the Officer will pass it off as residual odor and not perform a thorough search. I cannot stress enough the importance of trusting your dog every time he alerts! You'll see what I mean after reading about these creative hiding places.
Inside radios, cassette tapes and players, battery chargers, electric and hand-held tire pumps, flash lights, thermos bottles and inside ice chests (they will often remove the inside of the ice chest, place their drugs, then put the inside back in. See if you can pull the inside out of ice chests to check for this.) Lipstick tubes, powder compacts, cigarette cases, cigarette packs, CD cases, shoe heels (they swivel), inside shoes and boots (the sole is removable), books with pages cut out, musical instrument cases (big hiding place for band members) and even inside the instruments themselves. Dummy pagers (they are worn on the belt, but are not workable, serving only as a hiding spot), pillows, hat bands, ball point pens and inside loaves of bread that the interior has been carved out of (Most K-9 handlers will pull their K-9's away from food. (Before you pull him away, see if he's going to alert on the food, or just sniff it.) Baby bottles, under babies in the baby seat, baby bottles, in the lining of suitcases and purses, film containers (this is a BIG one), cameras (Most Officers are reluctant to open cameras with film in them for fear of exposing the film and finding nothing. Find some place dark to check the camera and just feel around the inside without touching it. If you're using a K-9, lay the camera on the ground and then run the dog past it to check.) Video cameras and video tapes also serve as excellent hiding places.
One big hiding place is inside sex toys. Seriously. These drug traffickers will try to think of the thing you don't want to touch or go through the most, and that's where they'll hide it. There's probably big loads of drugs going across country right now under 2 feet of cow dung. Anyway, one time I was assisting a Sheriff who was searching a woman's belongings looking for more cocaine (she had already given up some). In one of the suitcases, wrapped in a towel was an 18 inch long vibrator (dildo, stimulation device, whatever you wish to call it). Well, I didn't find any drugs, and I didn't handle the device except with the towel. But, wanting to see his reaction, I went over to my Sheriff friend and told him there were more drugs in the suitcase. He asked where at, and when I told him they were in the...ummm, device. He told me in no certain terms that they would stay there. It was funny pulling this little joke on my friend, but really, what better place to hide drugs. Places such as these should be checked just as any other possible hiding place. That's what they make rubber "snappy" gloves for.
If you are searching a private residence, there are literally hundreds of places drugs could be hidden. Be sure to check under all couch and chair cushions and mattresses, in drawers, cabinets (especially out of the way or hard-to-access cabinets), inside metal tins and kitchen canisters, cigar boxes, jewelry boxes and the like. Also check behind the bottom plate on refrigerators and behind wall paneling. Most of these places you probably already know, but also check...
Anything that can hollowed out, such as the handles of garden tools, shovels, etc., wooden fence posts or fire place wood, and yard ornaments made of cement. Computer cases (be very careful checking these), the bases of lamps and decorative statues, and in cans that serve only for the hiding of items, such as "stash cans". These cans will look like name brand products. They can be shaving cream, hairspray, spray paint, oil, beer or soda cans. Most of the time they will even dispense the proper product and be actual working cans. You can test the bottoms and tops of these with a quick twist to see if they screw off (be sure to try and turn in both directions as many have been made with the threads backwards). Any time you find a can laying around a car, be sure to test it, you may be surprised at what you find.
My friend, there is no end to the hiding places you will find drugs in. When you search, do so with the intention of finding drugs. If you have reason enough to start a search, then do a thorough job of it.
I have seen many times, trucks, trailers and autos stacked full of luggage and other items, a K-9 gave a good alert, yet because of the enormous amount of work involved, the Officers did not do a good search.
Here's one more story about an incomplete search. A Trooper was helping out at a drug checkpoint and an auto came off the highway, trying to avoid the checkpoint they thought was just ahead on the highway they were traveling (of course, they ran right into the middle of it, which is the beauty of setting up checkpoints). There was reasonable suspicion, of course, since the person was obviously trying to avoid them by exiting the highway, so the Trooper asked for consent to search. It was refused, so the K-9 was walked around the vehicle and gave a positive alert. The people were mad as all get-out and did not want their car or belongings searched. Because of the K-9's alert, the Trooper had probable cause to search for drugs. Now, the woman in the car had her purse in the trunk of the auto which was being half-heartedly searched by the Trooper. The woman walked up, grabbed her purse and headed for the inside of the auto with it. The Trooper tried to grab it back, thinking she may have a gun. She pulled back on the purse, shoved the Trooper and a Deputy stepped in to help restrain her. She elbowed the Deputy and again struck the Trooper in the chest. BIG mistake on her part as she was assaulting an Officer of the Law. She was handcuffed and then the purse was searched. Nothing was found in it, and since nothing had been found in the auto or in the trunk, the Trooper was pretty shook up over the whole incident. He called his superior Officer out to find out what he should do, as they had nothing on the people except refusal to consent to search and assaulting the Officer. The woman was a college professor from a large university and the Troopers new some heck was going to be raised about it all. The Trooper needed something to get himself out of hot water with his superiors as well as something to help avoid a law suit with these people. They forgot all about searching the auto more, and were trying to figure out what they could do to quiet this whole situation down. At the time I was talking to a good friend of mine, a Deputy Sheriff working the checkpoint, about all of the commotion. I told him that they had not made a thorough search of the vehicle and that these people had come up the ramp, trying to avoid the checkpoint for a reason, and the Troopers needed to find out why. I asked him to go tell the Troopers to search the auto again with a fine-toothed comb to find out what these people where hiding. The Troopers listened to the Deputy and everything set out on the street. One Trooper happened to pick up a bag that was sitting behind the seat, within reach of the driver. Guess what!? Two loaded hand guns were in the bag. The Trooper was no longer in trouble, but would have been if they had not gone back to do the second search. My friend, if you start a search, do a good job, because if you don't find anything it may come back on you in the courts. Get your reasonable suspicion (checkpoints are excellent ways to obtain this) before you run a K-9 around the vehicle to get your probable cause to search, then search until you find something, or until you know for a fact there is nothing there.
INDICATIONS OF LOADED VEHICLES
- TYPES OF VEHICLES - Traffickers seem to prefer mid to full size vehicles. These include the Ford Taurus, Oldsmobile Cutlass, Pontiac Grand Am and Lincoln Town Car. Other frequently used cars are the Chevy Camaro, Chevy Lumina, Dodge Intrepid, Honda Accord, Cadillic DeVille and Toyota Camry. Pickup trucks and vans, whether they have a camper shell or not are used repeatedly for drug trafficking and money transportation. Keep your eye out for the Chevy Silverado, Dodge Ram and Ford F-150. Traffickers will almost always use rented or third party vehicles. Rarely is the authorized renter or owner of the vehicle present.
- TINTED WINDOWS OR SUNROOFS - these are used so Officers cannot see inside the auto. Most traffickers know the Law uses indicators to catch them and they don't want to make your job easy.
- OPEN WINDOWS OR SUNROOFS IN EXTREME WEATHER - most people do not ride with the windows down when it's extremely cold out unless they are trying to air out a vehicle. If there is a large load in the trunk, an enclosed auto will trap all the odor, letting it out only when the driver rolls down the window to speak with you. Many times the windows will be down because they just finished smoking a joint. I've hauled 2 pounds of marijuana in my dog training van before and I can smell it from time to time. I don't care for the smell, and I don't want my dogs getting accustomed to the odor, so I will open the windows and air it out. The same goes for drug traffickers and users.
- EXCESSIVE MILEAGE ON LATE MODEL AUTOS - the average person puts approximately 1,000 miles per month on a vehicle. Any more than this can mean that drugs are being trafficked in it, whether the person says the car belongs to him or not. Find out what they do for a living. Does it require long distance travel? If the car is a rental however, excessive mileage is not unusual, and it cannot be used as an indication. See below for rental car indications.
- RENTAL CARS - many drugs are transported across the U.S. in rental cars. It's becoming harder and harder to tell rental cars from normal ones at first glance. Most companies no longer brazenly display their name across the back bumper, due to the number of car jackings taking place. Instead, most companies now place very small bar code stickers in the back, drivers side windows. Look for this as your approaching the vehicle. Ask the driver for his rental agreement (it should be carried in the car with them). If the car is not rented in the drivers name, find out if the driver knows the name the car is rented under. If he doesn't, it is a very good indication of drug trafficking. If the driver can tell you who the car is rented too or if it's rented to the driver himself, further investigation for other indicators will be needed.
- CARS PULLING SMALL U-HAUL TRAILERS - this has become popular just recently. Most of the time, the traffickers will try to look like a family on the move. If you come across this, look for characteristics of drug traffickers in the driver and passengers, or conflicting stories of where they're going, where they came from, etc... Traffickers also use the larger U-Haul trucks many times, so keep your eyes open for these as well.
- TELLTALE LICENSE PLATES - we discussed earlier a 30 year old man trafficking with a 19 year old woman he had hired to make the trip with him. This same character had license plates that said "FIXER". Fixer of what? Needless to say, he wasn't a TV repair man or mechanic! Amazingly enough, some of these drug runners have been doing it for so long without getting caught that they become brazen enough to display these types of indicators. Look closely at personalized plates, they can tell a lot about the driver.
- CAR-TOP LUGGAGE CARRIERS - many traffickers will use luggage carriers on top of the car in the hope that drug dogs will not smell the drugs up high (and they're right, if the K-9 has not been trained to search high). Phelps County Missouri got 60 pounds out of a car-top luggage carrier. Many times there will be no luggage or bags in the back seat of the car, which is unusual for true travelers.
- BACK END OF AUTO SITTING TOO LOW - this is an excellent indicator of drug trafficking autos. When you're transporting hundreds of pounds of drugs in the trunk, it tends to load the auto down, causing it to sit low in the rear. Ask them what's in the trunk causing it to sit so low. Much can be gleaned from their answer, as they may not even realize it's sitting low and will be surprised when questioned about it.
- BACK END OF AUTO SITTING TOO HIGH - air shocks will cause a vehicle to sit higher than it normally should. Usually, the only vehicles that have air shocks should be on are those that have trailer hitches or 5th wheels. Air shocks are used on other vehicles to compensate for weighted down trunks or pickup beds. Many times, the trafficker will pump up the shocks too much trying to compensate for a heavy load, causing the car to sit higher than it should.
- UN-NEEDED AIR SHOCKS - if the car your stopping is not sitting unusually high, still check for air shocks as you approach the vehicle. The car could contain a load and the air shocks could be pumped up accordingly, leaving the vehicle looking normal. If you see air shocks on a vehicle that has no trailer hitch and looks as if it's sitting normally, then something is weighing down on those shocks. Definitely question the driver about it and possibly ask for consent to search.
- LOOSE OR NEW PANELING IN OLDER VANS AND BOX TRUCKS - if you see this indication, check for the following as well...
- NEW SCREWS IN PANELING OR SCREWS MISSING - this indicates that paneling has been removed for some reason, quite possibly to hide a load of drugs. Look for this on floor and door panels, trunks and running boards as well. This can also indicate a false wall in a box truck. Use your measuring tape for inside and outside dimensions to see if they add up.
- OLD REFRIGERATORS OR DEEP FREEZES IN THE BACK OF PICKUPS - almost always these will be tied shut. Meat salesmen will often have these deep freezes, but they won't be tied shut.
- WOODEN BOXES OR CRATES IN THE BACK OF PICKUPS - these will also be tied shut almost every time if they contain a load of drugs. If they are metal they will be welded shut and the entrance on the bottom or towards the front of the truck.
INDICATORS OF COMMERCIAL CARRIERS WHO RUN DRUGS
Some of the largest loads of drugs have been seized off of semi trucks and trailers. First I'll give you a few statistics. The average marijuana load seized from tractor-trailers is around 1,000 pounds. The average cocaine seizure is around 900 pounds and the average currency seizure is around $400,000. It's been found that approximately 75% of all drugs entering the United States are coming in through the southwest borders of Texas and Arizona and 70% of that is being carried in tractor-trailers. Approximately 60% of the drivers are Hispanic, 30% Caucasian, 5% African-American and 5% are other nationalities. The majority of the time, Peterbilt trucks are preferred over Kenworth for hauling illegal drugs in. This is due to the fact that Peterbilt trucks can be custom-ordered to the buyers specifications. The only thing the manufacturers control is the frame of the truck, the suspension system and all the sheet metal or aluminum work on the vehicle. Peterbilt tractors do not use sheet metal, instead they opt for the lighter weight materials such as aluminum and fiberglass. The typical tractor-trailer hauling drugs will probably be a late model, heavily equipped with customization features and rigged for all-weather long hauls (i.e. Oversized fuel tanks, sleeper compartment, etc.) This doesn't mean you should ignore other makes of tractor-trailers, only that you should pay special attention to these types. It costs around $170,000 for a typical tractor/refrigerated trailer with a 63" sleeper cabin. A 30% down payment is required before production will even start. For owner/operator rigs, there should be some logical source of income that could account for being able to put out such a large sum of money.
Many time commercial carriers running drugs will spend a long amount of time (3 days or more) at one location, such as a hotel or truck stop, waiting for their load of drugs to arrive from the storage site. Most of the time the drugs will arrive in smaller trucks and be packaged in cardboard boxes. If you see a semi-truck staying at one place for an extended amount of time, you may want to keep your eye on him/her.
Here are some indications of a commercial carrier who's hauling drugs:
- Owner/Operator rigs - not affiliated with a large trucking fleet, normally operated by two males.
- Driver/Passenger have criminal records - pay special attention if they have been previously arrested on drug charges!
- Older trucks/trailers - normally used in cases where the ONLY thing the truck hauls is drugs, never hauling any legitimate loads.
- Fraudulent or lack of adequate documentation
- No consignee or fictitious consignee - if they have a consignee and you are suspicious, call the consignee to verify the load.
- Most commonly from New Jersey, New York, Illinois, Florida, Texas, Arizona and California.
- Light and or inexpensive cargo - this allows the driver to unload the rig by hand (if they are also carrying a legitimate load) without the risk of detection from backing into a commercial off-load site.
- Usually coming from and headed to cities with large populations - if the rig is headed from one small town to another, in all probability it is not trafficking drugs.
- Medical card
- Bill of Lading (cargo and destination)
- Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
- Log Book (drivers involved with trafficking will keep two log books, one for the police if stopped and the second for the trafficking organization.) Loads being carried by drug traffickers are not normally cost effective. Usually, your typical driver will not, under any circumstances, haul their trailer empty, one way, to pick up an inexpensive load, but traffickers will. Most of the seizures made involved a cargo of produce/perishable goods. A load of produce is very inexpensive and if the load is lost or seized there is not a large amount on money lost by the trafficker. Also, rigs that haul produce are exempt from many of the permits required by rigs that haul heavy equipment or hazardous material. Traffickers believe that Officers will not readily search the inside of a trailer hauling produce, as they do not want to assume liability if the perishable produce is ultimately spoiled.
INDICATIONS OF DRUG TRAFFICKERS
This section includes physical indicators you will see in the car as well as verbal and physical indications of the traffickers themselves. First we'll address the former.
- RADAR DETECTORS - you don't see too many traffickers using this method, as most do not plan on speeding. But when you do see one, you will normally see tinted windows and a CB as well. These are the serious traffickers that have made a living running drugs for quite awhile.
- CB RADIOS - you will see this a lot as traffickers like using them to listen to truck drivers, who pretty much know where the Law is at. Many will tire of hearing the chatter on their CB's and will turn them off. That's when they get caught at checkpoints. There have been many caught at checkpoints who had their CB's off. If they hadn't, then they would have known about the checkpoint, because the truck drivers see the signs and talk about it. I timed it one time on I-44 in Missouri and I-40 in Tennessee. No less than every 8 minutes you'd hear a truck driver telling his buddies how to avoid the drug checkpoint.
- PAGERS - you can't see a pager from the highway, but after the stop is made,
look to see if there is one present anywhere in the car. Ask the driver about
his job and what it is he does. See if the pager might fit into his work. If the
person is unemployed, the pager should be very suspect. Most traffickers will
not connect your questions with their pager. If his job does not require one or
if he is unemployed, ask him point blank why he has one. You can get a reaction
here, because if it's drug related, there will probably be some stammering and
lying. If you get consent to search, look at the numbers on the pager. If it
doesn't contain any full numbers, but just code numbers, then definitely be sure
to do a thorough search. Also, if you make an arrest, you can use the pager to
find out what numbers have been sent to it and from where. His connections will
be recorded. This could be evidence for you in court, if you make a follow up
arrest.
I will add here some information that most departments like. Where the big money comes from is with the follow up arrest. In most cases, the mules (or traffickers) only have enough money to travel with and will not get paid until the end of the delivery. Some times the mules will also deliver the money back to the supplier. Do a follow up on every case that you can. - CELLULAR PHONES - if you see this, the question should be the same as with a
pager...what is this guy doing with a cellular phone. Does he fit the type? A
large majority of drug traffickers have a phone with because they're supposed to
call their connection, report their location and let them know everything is OK.
They will have a set time to do the calling. If you're going to be doing a
follow up, it's very important that you find out if the mule was supposed to
make any calls to the connection. This point is illustrated well here...In one
bust made, the mule had appointed times he was to call his connection to let
them know all was OK. He would travel evenings and nights, from 7pm to 7am and
would sleep through the morning. His call in times where 7am before he went to
bed, 2pm when he got up, and then 7 pm again that night before he hit the road.
He got arrested around noon one day and was trying to roll for the department.
But in processing the case, the guy was not allowed to call his contact at the
2pm time and when he called late, they refused the load suspecting something was
wrong. The follow up case was lost because someone did not understand the
importance of those phone calls. The contacts felt it was better to lose a load
of drugs than go to jail. Always find out what your arrested trafficker is
supposed to be doing if you plan on making a follow up.
If for some reason the mule won't roll, you can hit redial on the cellular phone and it will ring the last number called. Some traffickers will even store the frequently called numbers in the phones memory. Get these numbers and find out where they are located. Again, this could be evidence for you in court if you do have a follow up case.
Now we will discuss verbal and physical clues the trafficker may give. These clues indicate deception of some sort on their part. It is best to have the subject standing to properly assess these indications.
Physical
Indications
|
Verbal
Indications
Key Phrases Used By Subject:
|
Truthful Person:
|
Deceptive Person:
|
MASKING ODORS
As you walk up to a vehicle and begin to question the driver, have your nose be on alert for strong or heavy odors coming from the car. These odors are called masking odors. Most all drug offenders, whether they're using drugs or trafficking them, use masking odors. These are odors used to cover up the overwhelming scent of drugs. With drug users, it's an attempt to cover up the scent escaping the car as you approach. With drug runners, it's normally an attempt to fool drug dogs. While a dogs nose is able to "see" through these odors, as a human, all you can do is use them as an indication of illegal activity. If you smell any of these, further investigation may be needed.
Here is a list of commonly used masking odors. These are also some of the strongest and easiest for you to detect.
- FABRIC SOFTENER - will be wrapped around the illegal drugs, especially marijuana, to hide the odor.
- TALCUM POWDER - normally sprinkled around the drug packages. Use caution here, as what looks like talcum powder could be a chemical that will ruin your K-9 or even you!
- RED OR BLACK PEPPER - usually scattered all over the floor and around the drugs. They are trying to shut down the K-9's nose and cover the odor at the same time. While it may burn your K-9's nose, it will not hide the scent of drugs from him.
- RED PEPPERS - one time I helped search a semi-truck that had peppers scattered all over it. Unfortunately, the drugs had been delivered just before the truck was stopped, but the red peppers alerted the Officers that this was a drug runner so they could watch for him on later dates. Just recently on I-44, 6,500 pounds of marijuana was seized from a semi-trailer that had red peppers scattered all over the top of the load.
- COFFEE - this is one used in mostly small amounts unless you're dealing with a commercial carrier. The drugs will be wrapped and inside a 2 pound coffee can. Dogs trained with coffee as a masking odor will still alert on the drug odor coming from these containers.
- ORANGES - sometimes oranges will be used. If you find a case or large amount of oranges in the trunk of an auto, look farther as they could also have drugs hidden in with them.
- BARS OF BATH SOAP OR BOXES OF DISH SOAP - often times liquid soap will be placed between layers of plastic wrapped around bundled drugs. Check inside boxes of powered soap.
- PERFUMES - poured around where the drugs are located. Look in these places first.
- INCENSE - Roane County Tennessee got 1,100 pounds of marijuana that was packed in with candles and incense.
- DETERGENTS - this will be in the outer wrappings of packages of drugs.
- GREASE - this will be mostly in packages that are wrapped with several layers of plastic wrap. A coat of grease is added in between the layers. Again, this does not hide the scent from K-9's.
- CEDAR SHAVINGS - I have not seen much of this, but if you get a truck with a load of cedar in the back, dig through it some or run a dog around it, as this would be a great place to conceal drugs due to the strong odor.
- BAGS OF DOG FOOD - this can be used as a masking odor and the bags themselves act as a good hiding place. A department locally made a raid on a dealers farm home. They searched to no avail in the barns, house and out buildings. No drugs were found. Then one of the Officers opened up the refrigerator to search. On the bottom shelf was a 5 lb bag of dog food, but it wasn't the kind that was supposed to be refrigerated, it was just pellets. He opened it up and inside, with dog food, found tightly packed marijuana. Then the bells went off, because in the barn there were several bags of dog food. After a second look at the bags in the barn, they came away with close to a ton of marijuana. It would never had been found if that one Officer hadn't decided to look closer at that first bag. If you find bags of dogfood in a car and there's no dog present, or even if there is, you may want to look a little closer.
- MOTHBALLS - very strong, chemical odor. For those that do not know, mothballs are used in storage closets to keep moths away from clothing. There is no reason this smell should be present in a car. Smell a package of mothballs the next time you go to the store so you can recognize this odor if you come across it.
- CARPET FRESHENERS - again, a very strong odor. You may still be able to see the white powder from it scattered on the floor and/or seats of a vehicle.
- LETTUCE, CABBAGE, CELERY, ONIONS - coming from the southern and western states are semi-truck loads of drugs hidden in with these vegetables. Many of the loads do contain good vegetables, but in most cases the drug runners will buy a bunch of spoiled vegetables, as they dispose of the cover load after the drug load is delivered. The drugs will be buried under this produce and some may even have crates with ice on top. Most Officers will not crawl back into a load like this as they don't want to soil their uniforms, and most of these loads are kept very cold with reefer units, making it a very uncomfortable search. Drug traffickers know this and utilize it.
- HANGING AIR FRESHENERS - this is a big one. Almost every drug dealer and user will have air fresheners hanging from their rear-view mirror or just around the car somewhere. Many times they will have more than one and normally the pine scented, pine tree shaped fresheners are most common. One Officer I know says this is a "felony forest" when he sees more than one hanging up. It's a good indicator to watch for, even as you drive your patrol route.
- ETHER/AMMONIA - both of these can shut down a dogs nose, but cannot cover up the scent of drugs. If a dog gets a nose full of either of these he will start sneezing and coughing. It burns his nose. If you smell either of these, I suggest not working your dog on it unless it's a "have to" case. If this happens with your dog, put him up and make a complete search of the vehicle.
- http://www.onlinepot.org/legal/copstops4.htm
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