Two brothers were killed and another man was injured in a shooting at a medical marijuana grow site in Pixley on Saturday night, the Tulare County Sheriff’s Department said. Deputies were dispatched to a home on the 2500 block of East Sierra Avenue around 9:15 p.m. for calls of shots fired. When they arrived, deputies found two men dead of apparent gun shot wounds, the Fresno Bee reports. The two men were identified as brothers Moises Padilla, 22, and Antonio Padilla, 28, both of Pixley. Soon after discovering the men, deputies received a call that [...]
A man in his mid-20s was shot to death Wednesday morning in a marijuana grove near Strathmore, the Tulare County Sheriff’s Department said. The victim, who lived in Los Angeles and was visiting here, was asleep in a home when he heard a noise outside and went to investigate. He was shot about 5 a.m. by someone trying to steal marijuana, the Sheriff’s Department said. The victim, whose name was not released, was shot several times, the Fresno Bee reports. The incident took place in the 20100 block of Road 244. Anyone with information is [...]
A man shot and killed south of Dinuba on Monday was tending to a marijuana garden, the Tulare County Sheriff’s Department said Tuesday. The victim – Cesar Ramirez, 39, of Hayward – was staying on the property on the 38600 block of Road 64. He was found in the garden about 3:45 p.m. with a gunshot wound. He died at the scene. Deputies went to the property after a 911 call about gunshots heard in the area, Eddie Jimenez reports in the Fresno Bee. The marijuana garden had about 315 plants, deputies said. The Sheriff’s [...]
Tulare County Sheriff’s Department officials have served four medical marijuana operations near Visalia, Ivanhoe and Seville with notices of violation requiring they shut down within the next 10 days. If the owners and operators refuse to comply, the county will file for a preliminary and permanent injunction to enforce compliance, Tulare County officials announced Thursday. The move comes nearly four weeks after a Tulare County Superior Court judge found the Foothill Growers’ Association, a medical marijuana cooperative that was previously located in Ivanhoe, violated a county ordinance adopted by the Board of Supervisors in 2009. [...]
Pot may be a huge cash crop in California – but don’t call it an agricultural crop. In what is believed to be the first such finding in the state, a Tulare County Superior Court judge has ruled that a marijuana collective can’t operate on land zoned for agriculture, Lewis Griswold reports in the Fresno Bee. In his ruling that was finalized Tuesday, Judge Paul Vortmann dismissed a property owner’s argument that a medical marijuana collective’s cultivation of marijuana is legal because it is in an agricultural zone. “In this state, marijuana has never been [...]
Seville’s 400 residents have lived years with tainted drinking water from their only well, but they say there is a new problem in town — water-hogging marijuana gardens. The outdoor gardens planted in the last year are taking so much of the town’s water that it sometimes takes 45 minutes to fill the kitchen sink for dish washing, they say. But it appears little can be done to fix the problem in this Tulare County community north of Visalia, Mark Grossi reports in the Fresno Bee. Law enforcement authorities say the gardens are legal because [...]
Tulare County has sued a medical marijuana operation for growing and distributing in an area zoned for agriculture — not for medical marijuana. The lawsuit, filed in mid-October in Tulare County Superior Court, wants a judge to stop the Foothill Growers Association collective from operating out of a former dental office near Ivanhoe. Worries about violence in the region prompted the Board of Supervisors to vote unanimously in closed session in late September to file the lawsuit, said Supervisor Allen Ishida. Visalia Times-Delta coverage Two murders in Tulare County have involved people trying to steal [...]
A 27-year-old Farmersville man died of a gunshot wound to the head Thursday as he was trying to steal marijuana, the Tulare County Sheriff’s Department said Saturday. Deputies found Miguel Valencia’s body in the area of Avenue 264 and Road 156, south of Farmersville, shortly after responding to reports of a shooting in a second location. The shooting happened at Avenue 256 and Hypericum Street, where deputies seized about 50 pounds of marijuana. Both cases are under investigation and may be connected, the Fresno Bee reports. Anyone with information regarding the two incidents may contact [...]
Sep 222010
The Porterville City Council will wait until voters cast ballots on Proposition 19 this November before determining whether to fine those who violate the state’s marijuana growing and possession laws. While several members of the City Council appeared inclined Tuesday night to require all legalized, essentially medically purported, marijuana growth to occur indoors, they recognized that the legalization initiative could be a game changer if it’s passed. It would require allow local governments to regulate, set and collect fees and taxes and authorize various criminal and civil penalties, the Porterville Recorder reports. “We never want [...]
Sep 212010
A 17-year-old shot while reportedly taking part in a Sept. 14 robbery at a legal-marijuana garden died Monday, the Tulare County Sheriff’s Department reported. The boy’s name and the nature of his injuries were not disclosed in a release, the Visalia Times-Delta reports. Two men were arrested Monday on charges of robbery and kidnapping in connection with the crime, which is believed to have been gang-related. The suspects were identified as Gustavo Gonzalez, 21, of Porterville and Jorge Mendoza, 31, of Poplar. A fourth person believed to have taken part in the Lindsay-area crime, Carlos [...]
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