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――――― • ―――――

PLAINTIFFS’ EXHIBITS (VOL. 7)

MATTHEW PAPPAS (SBN: 171860) CHARLES SCHURTER (SBN: 174261) LEE H. DURST (SBN: 69704) 22762 Aspan Street, Suite 202-107 Lake Forest, CA 92630 Phone: (949) 382-1485 Facsimile: (949) 242-2605 Attorneys for Plaintiffs

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

SOUTHERN DIVISION

GREEN EARTH CENTER, INC.; DANK CITY PATIENTS GROUP INC.; NATURECANN, INC.; INDUSTRY GREEN COLLECTIVE, INC.; KAI KEM INC.; CHRONIC COLLECTIVE; COMPLETE ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE; PATIENTS REPUBLIC COLLECTIVE; 562 COLLECTIVE; DEMITRI WOODARD and CHRIS WOODARD, Plaintiffs, v. CITY OF LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA; DAVID STROHMAN; OSCAR VALENZUELA; ALDO DECARVALHO; CHRIS VALDEZ; DOUGLAS LUTHER; and DOES 1 to 10,

Defendants.

No.: SACV 13-0002 AG (JPRx)

PLAINTIFFS’ EXHIBITS (VOL. 7) IN SUPPORT OF APPLICATION FOR T.R.O. AND O.S.C. RE: PRELIMINARY INJUNCTION Date: May 9, 2013 Time: N/A Courtroom: D10, Judge Guilford

EXHIBIT VOLUME #7

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――――― • ―――――

PLAINTIFFS’ EXHIBITS (VOL. 6) - I I

TABLE OF EXHIBITS (VOLUME 7)

EX. #: DESCRIPTION PAGE

DECLARATIONS (VARIOUS RAIDS)

115 DECLARATION OF KATHERINE ALDRICH (5-2-2013) 408

116 STILL PHOTO IMAGES OF RAID ON 10-21-2012 414

117 DECLARATION OF BRIAN BALESTEROS 416

118 DECLARATION OF ANTOINE HANCOX (1-2013 RAID) 417

119 DECLARATION OF JAHEID WOODS (4-30-2013 RAID) 418

120 DECLARATION OF JUAN P. TORRES (1-2013 RAID) 419

121 DECLARATION OF ANTOINE HANCOX (10-11-2012 RAID)

421

122 DECLARATION OF JUAN TORRES (3-2013 RAID) 422

123 DECLARATION OF OSCAR ELENES 424

124 DECLARATION OF ALANA HANCOCK 426

125 DECLARATION OF SERGIO SANDOVAL (5-2-2013) 427

ADDITIONAL EXHIBITS INCLUDED IN VOLUMES 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, & 6

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EXHIBIT #115

DECLARATION OF KATHERINE ALDRICH - 1

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DECLARATION OF KATHERINE ALDRICH

I Katherine Aldrich, declare as follows:

1. I am over 18 years old and I live in Los Angeles County, California.

2. I am a managing member of the Patients Republic Collective and was previously a

managing member of the 562 Collective which was forced to close due to the strong arm tactics

of the City of Long Beach and its police force.

3. Throughout the past three years, I have been constantly badgered and harassed by

the City of Long Beach and its police force. Even after the 562 Collective was closed, LBPD

would park outside my home. Men followed my daughters and photographed them. I am

certain I was of special interest to the city and police because it was known that I was assisting

Mr. Pappas in helping the patients fight the city and its discriminatory ordinance.

4. On December 27, 2011, I was taking my children and their friends to the San Diego

Zoo until I was pulled over by plain clothed LBPD in an unmarked car in Oceanside,

California. My children, their friends and I were removed from the vehicle. Our cell phones

were taken from us and my vehicle and belongings were searched without my consent. At no

time did they identify themselves as officers. They did not show me a badge, identification or

provide me with their names. It was only after a Border Patrol agent asked me where I was

from did I learn that the men searching my vehicle were LBPD. When I inquired as to why

LBPD was driving an unmarked car with a plain clothes Border Patrol agent, I was stone

walled and then informed that my car was going to be impounded and I was going to be

arrested unless my attorney could come get me. After finally being released, I called the Long

Beach Police department to attempt to find out the names of the officers that were patrolling in

San Diego County. I was told that there were none. I then called the Border Patrol office and

was given the same response. I was committing no crime, the officers did not find anything in

my vehicle or in our belongings and I was never informed as to why I was pulled over let alone

408

DECLARATION OF KATHERINE ALDRICH - 2

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why my children and I were removed from the vehicle and forced to sit on the side of the

freeway.

5. In July of 2012, a collective in Long Beach was struggling to remain open and

asked for my assistance thus beginning my position at Patients Republic Collective; PRC

Collective. PRC was raided on October 11th, 2012 and November 15th, 2012. During those

raids, LBPD came in heavily armed with assault rifles, arrested the volunteers, shook down

patients and confiscated all of the money, medication, computers and the digital recording

device. They drilled out both of the safes, permanently ruining one of them. All of the

medication, money and time cards were taken. Every single security camera was ripped from

the ceiling as were all of their wires. The filing cabinets were rummaged through and I am

certain that patient files were missing. All of the jars in the display cases that medication is kept

in were empty and strewn about. The cash register was empty. Long Beach Police Department

left behind an inventory of what they seized except that it did not accurately reflect what was

taken. The amount of medication and money was considerable but was simply itemized as dried

marijuana. Money that belonged to the volunteers was also seized and never inventoried or

returned. I would also like to mention that the search warrants that are obtained by the Long

Beach Police Department never mention that the collective is operating as just that, a collective

pursuant to the guidelines set forth by the Attorney General. At no time do the Long Beach

Police charge anyone with anything other than violating Long beach Municipal Code 5.89. The

search warrants always include that they are looking for other drugs and at no time have they

found any. The search warrants also never state that they have previously raided the collective

and not found anything that they are requesting the warrant for.

6. On January 24th, 2013, I was notified that PRC was being raided again. I drove to

the collective to find that the police had blocked off the streets. The volunteers were arrested

again and everything was again confiscated including the cash register this time. We have come

to refer to these raids as “LBPD smash and grabs.” During this raid, LBPD decided to board up

all of the windows and the doors of the collective. When I returned to the collective I was

409

DECLARATION OF KATHERINE ALDRICH - 3

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unable to remove any of the boards. I called Eric Sviatek, another managing patient, to remove

them. Several patients helped Mr. Sviatek and the police responded and threw Mr. Sviatek face

down in the street at gun point. I was very concerned for his safety as one officer held him

down by placing his foot on Mr. Sviatek’s neck while the other continued to aim his gun at Mr.

Sviatek’s head. Mr. Sviatek repeatedly told the officers that they were hurting him and asked

why they were doing this. They informed him that he was being arrested for burglary. He

repeatedly told the officers that he had a lease for the property and the keys in his pocket. They

said they didn’t care. The officers also held all of the people that had been helping Mr. Sviatek

and called for more officers. At NO time did anyone resist or fail to yield to all of the officers’

requests. After Mr. Sviatek was arrested, I was able to post bail through a bail bond company.

When Mr. Sviatek was finally released, his clothes were torn and he had minor lacerations on

one of his wrists. He explained to me that the officers handcuffed him so tightly, the cuffs cut

his skin. The police also returned to the collective and had a contractor re-board up the facility

with two sets of boards and approximately 200 bolts. Mr. Sviatek was informed by the officers

that he was being charged with burglary but his booking paperwork indicated that he was

charged with violating the city municipal code 5.89. The search warrant yet again alleged that

they were there looking for other illegal drugs and again they did not find any.

7. On March 7th, 2013, I had missed a phone call from Eric Sviatek, managing

member of the PRC Collective. I returned his call only to have someone else answer his

personal cell phone. After attempting to trick me into giving him information, I asked who I

was speaking to. The person answered, “Detective Dave Strohman.” He then proceeded to tell

me that he was taking everything out of my collective. That he knew where I lived and that he

was going to be coming for me and hung up.

8. I am genuinely concerned for the safety of my family. I have three teenaged

daughters. I am paranoid that something will happen to them while they are on the way to or

from school or out with friends. I have severe anxiety and trouble sleeping. I almost never sleep

more than a few hours at a time. I express concern that if Long Beach Police do come and act

410

DECLARATION OF KATHERINE ALDRICH - 4

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upon Detective Strohman’s threat, my dogs will be executed. I went so far as to have a

surveillance system installed in my home complete with cameras that record and store the data

off site. I have unfortunately learned through multiple experiences, that the Long Beach Police

do not adhere to any rules other than their own. I knew the Zerby family and had the wonderful

pleasure of being a student of Mrs. Amici’s for two years. I am fearful that either I or my loved

ones will endure similar tragedies. I have been witnessing for three years the city and its police

force’s rampant violation of people’s rights. I have witnessed at least half a dozen requests for

relief be denied and I without a doubt have witnessed the police department become more

destructive and aggressive towards people each and every time the court denies relief, insists

that we must wait for the Supreme Court to rule, grants a delay or delays on its own. I am

perplexed at how the issue pending before the Supreme Court has anything to do with excessive

force, violation of constitutional rights or search warrant requirements. The police are omitting

critical information to these judges when they requests these warrants but I am now curious as

to how a judge keeps signing warrants for the same address over and over again without at

some point questioning why the officer keeps needing these warrants. Are they even reading

the affidavits?

9. Unfortunately, this declaration doesn’t end there. PRC was raided again on March

29th, 2013. The volunteer, Oscar Elenes was closing up and leaving early. Eric Sviatek typically

drove him home. However, on March 19th, 2013, Mr. Sviatek was given an ultimatum by a

Superior Court judge in department 1 of the Long Beach Courthouse. He could either plead

guilty and sign a ‘stay away’ order or plead not guilty and go back to jail and she would be

increasing his bail to $30,000. Mr. Sviatek signed the order. He was required to be at least 10

yards away from any collective in the city of Long Beach. On this particular day, Mr. Sviatek

parked far away from the collective. Long Beach police arrested him anyway. They

apprehended Mr. Elenes and him. They confiscated all of their personal money and the money

that Mr. Elenes had taken with him from the collective. None of these items were accounted for

nor were they returned. Also, despite the collective being closed, the police officers shattered

411

DECLARATION OF KATHERINE ALDRICH - 5

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the glass door and rummaged through the collective anyway. They took the remaining

medication and the money that was left in the drawer as change for the next shift. Mr. Elenes

had a broken wrist at the time and Detective Strohman said he didn’t care and handcuffed and

arrested him with force anyway. Mr. Sviatek was also arrested for violating his ‘stay away’

order and his car was impounded. I used Google earth to determine the distance of where Mr.

Sviatek’s car was impounded from as indicated on the tow yard receipt from the collective, he

was over 170 yards away, more than 17 times the required distance.

10. On April 16th, 2013, the PRC Collective was raided again. The collective is

suffering severe financial difficulty as a result of the constant raids. The police broke the track

for the iron gate that secures the building at night. They took the door handle. The ripped a

rolling door that was installed prior to us moving in from the wall, tore it open and ripped out

the fiberglass insulation. The pried apart a section of the wall and also removed the insulation.

They took the router, the phone modem and the stereo. They took Oscar Elenes’ personal

laptop that he needs for school and had been working on a slide show for his family on. The

Long Beach police are at this point just vandalizing the collectives. They take whatever they

want, personal property never gets returned, they destroy property and make up the ‘rules’ as

they go along and tailor them to fit whatever their needs be at that time.

11. The patients who come to the collective are serious disabled. I have many patients

who endure radiation and chemotherapy. I have many patients that are missing limbs. However,

there are many, many patients whose ailments are not so obvious. Multiple sclerosis, gunshot

wounds, people who have been hit by cars or are on dialysis, many have undergone invasive

surgeries. There have been many times where I have not only given patients their medication

without accepting reimbursement but I’ve driven it to their homes because oftentimes they are

unable to drive. These are most certainly not people that should be discriminated against or

mistreated in any way especially not by city officials who are elected to serve the constituents

in their community. These people deserve our utmost compassion; their days will be much

shorter than ours.

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EXHIBIT #117

DECLARATION OF BRIAN BALLESTEROS

- 1

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DECLARATION OF BRIAN BALLESTEROS

1. I Brian Ballesteros, declare as follows:

2. I am over 18 years old.

3. I am a resident of Los Angeles County.

On January 11th 2013, I was volunteering at the L.S.M Collective. At around 1pm in the afternoon

I was told we were getting raided by the Long Beach Police Department. I opened the door and got pulled

out at gunpoint and then handcuffed and searched. After they pulled out the other volunteers they

proceeded to take us to the front of the shop and us in a line so that the people waiting on the platform for

the train can see us and then the police said that we are bad people and we were going to jail. Passengers

who tried to record it on their phones got a flashlight shined at them so it could not be recorded. At that

point they brought us back and put us in squad cars and took us to jail where we were booked and jailed to

await bail.

I declare under penalty of perjury of the laws of the United States that my declaration is true.

April 29, 2013

_____________________________________________Brian Ballesteros

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EXHIBIT #118

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EXHIBIT #120

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DECLARATION OF JUAN P. TORRES

1. I Juan P. Torres, declare as follows:

2. I am over 18 years old.

3. I live in Los Angeles County.

On the day of January 11th 2013 I was coming out of the restroom of the L.S.M

Collective and started walking over to the waiting room at the front of the collective. This is

when I heard a male voice at the far right window. When I looked up at the window officer

Strohman was pointing a gun at me and said, “Long Beach Police Department, if you fucking

move I will shoot you.” So I raised my hands to let him know I had no weapons or intentions to

harm him. Then I said, “do you want me to open the door?” Officer Strohman said, “not you”

meaning me and pointed to Brian standing behind me. So Brian walked to open the door and

that is when we saw several officers with firearms pointing at us. They told us to come out. As

we came out they grabbed us, handcuffed us and shoved us up against the wall on our porch.

They walked us down and sat us down underneath the outside canopy. Where we sat for 30-40

minutes while they questioned us individually. When they got to me one of the officers asked

me “who owns the place? Who allows you to volunteer?” I replied “I have nothing to say to

you, if you have any questions talk to my lawyer.” After they finished questioning us two

officers walked us to the curb on Long Beach Blvd. where there were several pedestrians and

patients of our collective watching us as the two officers had us there in handcuffs while they

belittled us verbally and letting passerby’s videotape us. When I looked over asked one of the

officers “what is the point of this?” He replied “to let everybody in the area know that guys are

bad people and what you are doing is illegal and to let them know not to come here.” They had

us stand there for a few minutes. Then they marched us back onto the property and set us all

into the back seat of a beige undercover car. About ten minutes later we took off with the two

officers that had us standing out front of the collective and took all three of us to the police

station for booking. While en route to the police station the two officers were making fun of us

and that we use medical marijuana for no reason. One officer asked what was our made up

reason for using medical marijuana? I replied with I was born with Amniotic Band Syndrome,

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Arthrit

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EXHIBIT #121

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EXHIBIT #122

DECLARATION OF JUAN PABLO TORRES

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DECLARATION OF JUAN TORRES

1. I Juan Torres, declare as follows:

2. I am over 18 years old.

3. I am a resident of Los Angeles County.

On the day of March 22nd 2013 I was sitting at the computer in our waiting room of the L.S.M

Collective with five patients waiting for verification of their doctors recommendation’s. I looked outside

and saw six officers doing a quick march towards the shop with their guns drawn. I looked back and

calmly said “hey guys the cops are coming in.” This was so as to give the volunteers a heads up about

what was going to happen. When I looked back outside the window I saw that they had a battering ram.

By this time they were more than half way to the door. So I yelled out the window “we’re opening the

door!” As Brian Ballesteros reached for the door and opened it, they swung the battering ram hitting in the

face with the door. He stumbled backwards with his hands on his face. The first officer pushed Brian back

and when Brian removed his hands from his face the officer already had a gun pointing at his head telling

him “don’t fucking move!” By that time several more officers rushed into the room slamming me and

several patients up against the wall. One of the officers asked me if I was a volunteer and I replied “yes.”

Then after being handcuffed they walked myself as well as our patients outside. They sat me on the porch

and the patients underneath the canopy. One detective walked up to us and asked “I’m pretty sure that you

don’t want to say anything to me but I have to ask this question, do any of you want to talk to me.” I

replied “I don’t want to talk, talk to my lawyer.” He replied “ok thank you very much.” After he walked

away officer Strohman approached us and asked “which one of you signed the stay away order?” I replied

“none of us here signed your stay away order and I am not sure about the rest of the guys but I am ever

going to sign it.” Mr. Strohman then said in an intimidating voice “it would be in your best interest to sign

that paper because the judge is already pissed off at you people and she is going start increasing your bail

amount.” So I told him “she is going to do what she has to do.” After that we were placed into an

undercover car and taken to the police station. Brandon was released on site. One of the officers taking us

in said “we don’t think that what you guys are doing is illegal, but we are just doing our job. Hope you

don’t take it personal.” Then we were taken out of the car and taken into processing. The booking officer

was a female and she asked me “what are you here for?” I replied “for volunteering at a collective.” She

said “my god they really need to stop arresting you guys because they are wasting the city’s money.” A

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male boo

I was hel

oking officer

ld until I mad

_____Juan P

r responded

de bail later

___________Pablo Torres

DECLARAT

“that’s what

that night.

__________s

TION OF JUAN

- 2

t I keep sayin

___________

N PABLO TOR

ng every tim

__________

RRES

me they com

___

e through heere.” After thhat

423

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EXHIBIT #123

DECLARATION OF OSCAR ELENES

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DECLARATION OF OSCAR ELENES

1. I Oscar Elenes, declare as follows:

2. I am over the age of 18.

3. I am a resident of the state of California.

4. On April 16th, 2013, I came to PRC and the day was a normal day until the raid. At the

time of raid, I was located behind the desk on the opposite side at which I wouldn’t be able to

see the front door or any people that would come in. So, the door opens and I hear “Long

Beach Police, put your hands up.” Officers came in with guns drawn and a camera on,

recording the raid. Six officers rushed through the entrance to the main bud tending room and

more officers rushing the lobby apprehending my co-volunteers and myself. At this point, they

brought us to the front half of the dispensary, handcuffed us. Even after I was kindly asking

them to watch my broken wrist, I was still badly treated. They sat us down for questioning.

During the questioning, Det. Strohman started taking pictures of my stuff and went inside my

backpack, taking everything inside out and photographing all my personal stuff and I watched

him pocket my $300 rent money that was in my backpack pocket. He also took my gateway

laptop thinking it belonged to the collective. They also took the cash register. This is when the

officers turned the camera off and began pocketing cash, gathering all the meds into one black

garbage bag, and they sent an officer to check to see if anything was stashed above the ceiling.

They were asking if we knew that marijuana kills all of your brain cells and makes you

retarded. Det. Strohman stated “I hate having to come back every week for you guys, because

this will never be legal. So why break the law?” After they questioned all of us, we were

escorted to the squad car with 2 female LBPD officers where we then proceeded to the

downtown station. The next day, I saw the damage the police did. The iron gate latch and track

was ripped off, the big blockade door on the inside was torn off its hinges, along with the door

that leads to the back half was dismantled (even when they saw it was opened) and fiberglass

was ripped out of the walls. All the electronic equipment for surveillance was unplugged and

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scatte

for th

__O

ered through

e DVR) wa

__________OSCAR ELE

hout the sho

as gone, my

___________ENES

DECLARA

op. Scales w

y personal m

__________

ATION OF O

were gone, t

money, as w

___________

OSCAR ELE

the amplifie

well as the c

______

ENES

er for the so

collective’s

ound system

money.

m (mistakenn

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EXHIBIT #124

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1

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started t

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EXECUTED

__________ALANA HAN

DE

na Hancock,

17 years old.

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pril 29th, 201

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f Los Angele

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__________

ATION OF ALA

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ION OF AL

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ANA HANCOC

LANA HAN

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of Californi

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EXHIBIT #125

DECLARATION OF SERGIO SANDOVAL (MAY, 2013) - 1

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DECLARATION OF SERGIO SANDOVAL

I, Sergio Sandoval, declare as follows:

1. I am a resident of Los Angeles County, CA.

2. I have worked for attorney Matthew Pappas since 2011. I am assigned, for the most

part, to coordinating efforts to advocate for patients in the City of Long Beach, California. My job

duties include responding to police raids of patient groups, communicating with patients, coordinating

and paying bail when patients are arrested, communicating with reporters, drafting and editing

declarations after talking with the declarants, obtaining search warrants affidavits when applicable

following raids, helping patients who have been injured during raids, filing documents, helping

coordinate with patients when they appear in court, photographing raids when I am notified there is a

police raid taking place, helping to clean-up the substantial damage caused by police during the raids,

obtaining and reviewing video footage, if the video surveillance systems have not been removed by

police, following raids, and other general law office activities. I am very familiar with the state

guidelines governing the operation of collectives in California. Part of my job duties include reviewing

and ensuring that all collectives we work with are in compliance with state law. Although I cannot

observe collective activities at all times, I have inspected various collectives that participate in

advocating with us on behalf of patients. If I determine a collective is not in compliance with state law,

I work with the collective to make sure any compliance issues are corrected. Collectives that fail to

maintain compliance or correct compliance issues are not allowed to participate in the group that helps

advocate for patients.

3. I am the law office’s primary contact for Aladdin Bail Bonds in Long Beach. Over

the period the raids have taken place, I have coordinated the bail approximately one-hundred (100) times

for patients arrested under the Long Beach municipal code for misdemeanors. Patients have been

arrested and charged under LBMC Chapters 5.87 and 5.89 since 2011. The bail for patients arrested

under the municipal code is usually between $65 and $250.

4. Before the permitting provisions of LBMC Chapter 5.87 were stricken by an

appellate court, I personally know that there were at least seventy-five (75) people arrested under that

city law. I also personally am aware of at least over 100 people have been arrested under LBMC

Chapter 5.89.

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5. On at least ten (10) occasions, I have gone to the site where raids are taking place

after being notified by patients of the raids. I have, on some of those occasions, taken video footage and

still image digital photographs of the raids and actions taken by the police. In every raid I have

personally observed, police officers with guns drawn or with assault rifles pointed at patients. I have

observed officers holding guns at patient’s heads while those patients are on the ground. In all of the

raids I have observed, I have never seen any patient offer any resistance to police officers. In every raid

I have observed, the people detained by the police are compliant and obey officer commands. Despite

obeying the commands of the police, I have personally heard officers tell patients that they are drug

criminals, use expletives, and threaten patients with violence even though the patients are complying

with the officers. For instance, I have heard officers with guns drawn threaten a patient who had her

hands on her head and who was being completely compliant with officers tell the patient that he would

“shoot her if she moved.”

6. Following raids and the posting of bond, I have met with patients arrested by police

and have observed physical injuries including injuries to legs, lacerations, and bruises. I have also

visited the patient collective locations immediately following the raids I have witnessed and observed

substantial destruction to the collectives including broken equipment, smashed video cameras, broken

boards and walls, broken doors, and materials strewn and thrown onto the ground.

7. I have personally visited collectives as part of my law office duties prior to raids

and observed computer equipment and the areas where patient files are securely stored. I have then

visited those same collectives immediately following raids and noted computers, files, and printers are

missing from the collectives. When I have observed raids of collectives by police, I have seen officers

and plain-clothes personnel carrying equipment and what appears to be cannabis medication from the

locations. When I have entered the collectives following raids, all medication is gone.

8. Approximately forty (40) raids of collectives took place between February, 2011

and April, 2012. When, as part of my job duties, I investigated those raids, I investigated whether police

had obtained search warrants. In the raids conducted between February, 2011 and April, 2012, I have

been unable to locate or obtain any warrant for those raids. When I have contacted the Long Beach

Police Department and identified the raid dates and locations, I have been told that the Police

Department has no record of the raids. When I have, during those calls or visits to the Police

Department, asked for the inventory of property taken during the raids, I was again told there is no

record of the raids or any inventory. For example, I contacted the Long Beach Police Department

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multiple times in November and December, 2012 to obtain the “F” numbers, affidavits, and base search

warrants for raids. One of the raids I inquired about was conducted on March 21, 2012 at Naturecann

Collective on Atlantic in Long Beach. I was told there was no search warrant and no record of the

property taken from Naturecann on March 21, 2012.

9. I also went to the Green Earth Center on the afternoon of May 29, 2012 when I was

notified a police raids was going on at that collective. When I arrived at Green Earth Center, the police

were still present in the location. I stayed away from the collective and observed officers (both plain-

clothes and in uniform) placing equipment and cannabis medication into unmarked vehicles. I

personally know Detective David Strohman and saw him at the collective. After the police had left, the

collective was left open with nobody inside. I went across to secure the collective for the patients and

found the interior of the location had been substantially vandalized. Furniture was broken and there

were parts and materials all over the floor. The door had been damaged and it appeared walls had been

broken. All of the computers were gone and it was clear all cannabis medication had been taken.

10. On September 13, 2012, I was in the Long Beach courthouse of the Los Angeles

Superior Court. Detective Strohman, who I have met previously, came up behind me while I was on the

escalator. He put his hand on my shoulder and said, “hey, I know you.” He then said, “you must be

here for the marijuana thing – that whole thing is a bunch of bull shit.”

11. After a flurry of raids and press reports about the City raiding collectives in

October, 2012, I was assigned responsibility for obtaining police reports, search warrants, search

warrant affidavits, and “F” numbers for all prior raids from the Long Beach Police Department. In

November and December, I called and visited the police department and the court in an effort to obtain

the paperwork and “F” numbers. At almost every turn, I was being “stonewalled” by the City. I was

transferred to different people who then transferred me to other people – I was shifted from one

department to another. When I finally went personally to the police station and the court, I was again

given the “run around.” After at least fifteen (15) calls and multiple visits, I was finally able to obtain

“F” numbers showing that officers began obtaining warrants for their raids sometime around April,

2012. It was only after April, 2012 that patients present during raids, in some of the raids, provided me

with warrants. For instance, I received a warrant from the managing patient of Naturecann for a May,

2012 raid that he said had not been served, but rather was left amongst the trash and papers strewn on

the floor of the location.

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12. In December, 2012, while in my house and working over the phone with one our

colleagues Yvonne Ortiz to jointly obtain the F numbers on the still missing search warrants, after I had

been on the phone being transferred and then on-hold with the police department to obtain warrant

paperwork and police reports, five (5) Long Beach police cars double-parked on the street directly in-

front of my house. Several of the officers got out of their cars and looked directly at my apartment

which is the upstairs unit in a house. The officers remained in front of my house without doing anything

except looking up at me for approximately five to eight (5-8) minutes.

13. In April, 2012, while I was again working to obtain warrant information and on the

phone with the police department, I heard a loud banging at my downstairs door to my house. I called

out my office window, which is nearly over the door and asked who it was. The person replied that it

was the police and he was there investigating “911” calls made to the department from my address. I

opened my window and stuck head outside so that he could see that I was no kind of threat and said, I

had not dialed “911.” I asked him what number the calls were coming. He replied what is your

landline? I reported that I am not even sure since it is connected to a fax machine and the fax machine is

not even working. After I gave him my number he said that that was the number that was calling the

police station and sometimes these things happen.

14. Back in December, 2011, when Naturecann had donated a totally separate office

space several units down from its location on Atlantic, I was helping Tori Pappas, who was setting up

the officer for her Dad, complete the business license approval process for Long Beach. After Tori had

expressed frustration at the city, I accompanied her several times to city hall to assist her. During

December, 2011 through February, 2012, I periodically helped Tori when she was unable to get city

inspectors and personnel to call her back. During that time, the front door of the law office was locked

almost all of the time with a paper sign noting the office was not open. When I went to city hall with

Tori, I noticed that she was getting the “run around.” When I tried to help by talking to city personnel, I

too was given excuses and reasons for why the process was taking so long.

15. In January, 2012, while I was in the office with Mr. Pappas who was infrequently

there but periodically would come to the office to bring up equipment or to get papers, a man came into

the back door of the office. Eric Sviatek, who was working on the computers at the office, was also

present. The man showed a badge and identified himself as a city officer. The officer was in plain-

clothes. Since the front door was locked, the officer said he had come around to the back. He cited Mr.

Pappas for operating the office without a business license. This was after I had gone to city hall with

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Tori Pappas and even though there was a sign on the front of the office saying it was closed. One of the

things I had done with Tori in helping her with the business license application process was to review

the business license application and other city documents related to business licenses. I knew they were

harassing Mr. Pappas because the business license instructions state that the office must be completely

setup with everything in it and ready-to-go before the license will be issued. Mr. Pappas was very polite

and accepted the misdemeanor ticket from the officer.

16. Between the months of October, 2012 and May, 2013, there have been, on average

two to three police raids of collectives each week. Because I primarily handle the bail for patients for

the raids of collectives that participate in our group, I have bailed what seems like countless people out

of jail. I have been told of and I have seen police with assault rifles and pistols who look like they are

dealing with a hostage crisis or bank robbery in almost every raid. I know personally that the patients

are being charged only with alleged misdemeanor violation of LBMC Chap. 5.89, a municipal

ordinance. People working at Aladdin, in the court, and in the Long Beach jail have made comments

including, “why is the city arresting these people?” I’ve observed officers who are rough with patients

and who point guns at their heads and who push guns into their faces. These raids are ongoing and

continuous.

17. In early-September, I personally read articles in the Long Beach press reporting that

a Los Angeles Superior Court judge had found LBMC Chap. 5.89 was invalid. In late-2011, I

personally read articles in the Long Beach press reporting that a state appellate court had stricken-down

the $14,742 non-refundable lottery fee and permit system including in LBMC Chap. 5.87. The medical

marijuana issue is widely reported in Long Beach. I have personally read a late-2012 letter written by

deputy city attorney Kendra Carney to attorney Richard Brakefield telling Mr. Brakefield there was no

finding in August, 2012 that LBMC Chap. 5.89 was preempted by state law. I also saw the August 17,

2012 minute order issued by the Los Angeles Superior Court overruling a motion filed by Long Beach

based on the invalidity of LBMC Chap. 5.89 – the finding Ms. Carney said had not been made. I’ve

gone to state court with Mr. Pappas at least ten (10) times where he has asked the courts to enjoin

enforcement of LBMC Chap. 5.89. At almost every hearing the judge would refer to the California

Supreme Court cases. Mr. Pappas would leave frustrated after explaining to the judges he was not

seeking relief on the same basis as the Supreme Court case. I have heard, during several hearings, the

deputy city attorneys for Long Beach refer to the Supreme Court case and ask the judges to delay for the

Supreme Court decision. I found it quite inappropriate for Long Beach to urge continuing stays on the

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state court cases against it but then turns around and conducts regular raids of collectives between two

and three times per week.

18. I personally know medical cannabis patients in Long Beach with AIDS, who are in

wheelchairs, and who have cancer. I have observed elderly, clearly ill, and wheelchair-bound people at

every one of the collectives. I have also observed people who do not appear outwardly sick or disabled

at the collectives. Following every raid that I have witnessed, when I am at the collective locations that

have been raided, there has been between one (1) and maybe five (5) different patients who arrive and

who I can tell are agitated and scared because the collective had been raided. For instance, after two (2)

raids just week apart from one another in June, 2012 of the same collective, I was present outside the

collective following the raids when an older man with a cane came up and was clearly distressed

because the collective was closed and he was unable to access medication. I spoke with him – he was a

veteran. While I was talking to him, a man pushing a very frail woman in a wheelchair walked up and

inquired about what had happened and told the woman he was sorry but they could not get her

medication.

19. When reading the warrants affidavits I was eventually able to obtain, I noticed that

each of the officer affidavits are almost exactly the same with a few minor changes including the address

and name of the collective. Every affidavit talks about drug trafficking and narcotics. Every single

warrant I have seen when there has been a warrant refers to methamphetamine and other drugs. As I

have stated in this declaration, I’ve had to deal regularly with the bail bonding companies for probably

more than 100 patients and workers arrested by police. Over the several years I’ve been doing this and

after all of the many raids, there has never been a drug felony charged. I have seen rejection letters from

the Los Angeles District Attorney’s office rejecting felony charges when Long Beach has tried to submit

those charges. For instance, Long Beach tried to charge a patient wearing a belt-buckle that looks like

brass-knuckles with a felony. In the hundreds of raids that have gone on, there have never been charges

for methamphetamine or heroin or other drugs. Also, all of the charges against patients that relate to

anything that has to do with marijuana have not been felonies under state law, but rather are always

misdemeanors for violating either Long Beach 5.87 or 5.89. This is because I know the between eight

and ten patient groups we help in Long Beach work to be completely compliant with state law and

provide for patients. There are now only about five collectives left – several have had to stop operating

because the raids have essentially destroyed them.

432

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433