TheAgitator.com
SWAT Raid on Ohio Christian Food Co-Op?
Tuesday, December 9th, 2008It’s hard to tease everything out on this one, because I’m not sure about the sources. The only newspaper account I can find doesn’t mention the SWAT team.
But it appears that Ohio’s Department of Agriculture (which has a history of enforcing regulatory law with aggressive tactics) raided a Christian food co-op, complete with a SWAT team that held adults, children, and grandparents at gunpoint for a matter of hours. The family appears to at worst be guilty of regulatory violations, including not obtaining a retail license to sell food (though it’s not even clear they’re guilty of that, given that they’re a co-op).
This appears to be the most detailed account, but it’s from an interested party. Here’s the co-op’s website. Other accounts here, here, and here.
did they shoot the hot dogs?
So they bring an armed force (maybe a swat team) to a grocery store? What’s up with that?!
“Put down the cucumber, step away from the lettuce and no-one has to get hurt, watch it there, that broccoli might be loaded……..”
Somebody’s head needs to roll on this one!
Thou shall not co-op!
http://www.peacechicken.com/2008/12/05/action-item-swat-raids-co-op-in-rural-ohio
So why no SWAT team when the FBI arrested the Illinois governor this morning? He got a polite phone call from the SA in charge letting him know that he was about to be arrested. Why no concern about the governor locking himself down or destroying evidence?
Kristen, I’m bettin that Radley is burning up a new CPU right now over the no SWAT team needed approach the Gov got.
Then to think he got out of jail for 4500$!
That story is horrible and depressing and like the many similar cases, I can’t figure out what possible purpose it could serve. Is someone actually go to argue that food regulations need to be enforced so brutally? That an unauthorized(!) piece of beef in a university freezer necessitates some undercover dick trying to entrap a bunch of hippies, then calling in the SWAT team when he can’t?
Pantry Raid
Katherine Mangu-Ward | December 9, 2008, 2:50pm
See: the list of the legit justifications for a SWAT raid:
Reason Online:
http://www.reason.com/blog/show/130467.html
The Cleveland Plain Dealer has a story on this –
http://tinyurl.com/6lvpxs
I tried to post this link here last night, and this blog wouldn’t let me do it.
You can hear the Stowers describe their lives before and after the events of Dec. 1 at http://www.buckeyeinstitute.org
The Buckeye Institute filed today a lawsuit defending the freedoms guaranteed the Stowers and all Ohioans by the state and federal constitutions. Please go to our website for more information.
It is a complete disgrace. Computers and other personal property confiscated. Basically no reasonable response. Even if they behaved inappropriately, which by all accounts they were law-abiding (son-in-law is serving in IRAQ nonetheless). Even if they were rude, there is no justification for the actions.
Personally I would like to see the judge who approved the raid removed from office, and the person who turned in the request charged and removed from whatever office he is in.
This is beyond the scope of acceptable behavior.