Ohio Food Co-op Swat Team Raid Trial This Week

[Joanne98]

John and Jackie Stower run the Manna Storehouse in LaGrange, Ohio. Last December their organic food coop and homeschool were raided by a SWAT team, who invaded their home with guns drawn, held them and their family captive for six hours, and confiscated a large amount of food. No charges were ever filed. The Buckeye Institute is helping the Stowers sue the The Lorain County General Health District, the Ohio Attorney General’s Office and the Ohio Department of Agriculture. The trial will open October 8 and 9 at 8:30 am.

mieprowan's diary :: :: From what I can gather, all this happened because the Stowers were running a buying club, buying in bulk with a bunch of people who pre-ordered with them organically grown food, grass-fed meat, and such other healthy food that they could not afford if they did not buy it in bulk. They were raising their own meat, and had the animals slaughtered by a licensed USDA butcher.

The Stowers did not have a retail food selling license, though.

The search warrant was expired. The SWAT team took computers, personal food stocks of the Stowers, the meat had been delivered back to the Stowers by the butcher shop the day before (this was not long before Christmas, right?)

The Stowers tell their story:

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/10/5/789783/-Ohio-Food-Co-op-Swat-Team-Raid-Trial-This-Week

This is probably Monsanto again trying to criminalize anybody who grows their own food. I hope the defense lawyers can bring this out in court.

[druidity33]

1. This is important. K&R. nt.

[Gman2]

2. Four times cop raid, no warrant, twice swat here. No charges, No crime.

[DKRC]

3. Step away from the peas Ma'am!

How surreal must that have been?

:wtf:

K&R

[bertman]

4. Thank goodness those SWAT guys are raiding people selling food instead of trying to

stop mobsters, murderers, kidnappers, rapists, and Republicans.

I'm sending a donation to the Buckeye Institute, whatever that is.

More fascist bullshit.