Tommy Chong Gets Nine Months

[DdC]

Pittsburgh — Tommy Chong, who played one half of the dope-smoking duo in Cheech and Chong movies, was sentenced to nine months in federal prison and fined $20,000 on Thursday for selling bongs and other drug paraphernalia over the Internet.

The 65-year-old Chong was allowed to remain free until federal prison officials tell him in a few weeks where he must report to prison.

Chong also forfeited about $100,000 for his arrest on federal drug paraphernalia charges. He'll spend a year on probation after he's released from prison.

Chong's business, Nice Dreams Enterprises, which made a line of marijuana bongs and pipes, was to be sentenced later Thursday.

Chong pleaded guilty in May to conspiring to sell drug paraphernalia and also pleaded guilty on behalf of Nice Dreams Enterprises, which did business under the name Chong Glass.

Chong's plea came after federal Drug Enforcement Administration agents purchased his paraphernalia and had them shipped to an undercover business in Beaver Falls, a city northwest of Pittsburgh. Agents also confiscated his company's paraphernalia during raids of "head shops" in numerous states and confiscated "thousands of marijuana bongs and pipes" in a raid of his Gardena, Calif., business.

His plea followed a series of raids in February by the DEA in which at least 55 people were charged with trafficking in illegal drug paraphernalia. Federal officials said the investigation targeted the nation's biggest Internet distributors of paraphernalia.

Prosecutors said Chong was the first person to plead guilty in the raids.

The actor-comedian recently had a recurring role on Fox's "That '70s Show."

Complete Title: Comedian Tommy Chong Gets Nine Months on Paraphernalia Charges

Tommy Chong Gets Nine Months
Source: Associated Press
Author: Dan Nephin, The Associated Press
Published: September 11, 2003



Comedian Tommy Chong Gets Nine Months on Paraphernalia Charge
Updated Associated Press Article
By Dan Nephin, The Associated Press
September 11, 2003

PITTSBURGH - Tommy Chong, who played one half of the dope-smoking duo in Cheech and Chong movies, asked for leniency from a judge Thursday for conspiring to sell drug paraphernalia - saying he kicked his drug problem by taking up salsa dancing - but was sentenced to nine months in prison.

Chong's attorneys argued for no jail time, saying Chong would use his celebrity as a role model against drugs and would dedicate his life to public service.

Chong, 65, apologized to the court and his family, saying he "got carried away" with his movie character, "but I'm back to who I really am." He admitted once having "a drug problem with marijuana" but said he beat it by redirecting his energy to salsa dancing.

"It's a Latin American dance that's awesome," Chong told U.S. District Judge Arthur J. Schwab before the judge imposed the sentence, which also included a $20,000 fine.

Chong said he's been working with youth through two organizations, teaching filmmaking and speaking out against drug use.

When they "saw that I was not the character that I played in the movies, they were surprised. Some were disappointed," Chong said.

"I played a loser for laughs," Chong said, adding he wouldn't - and couldn't - make a movie like "Up in Smoke" today. The 1978 cannabis comedy follows characters played by Chong and Cheech Marin as they search for marijuana while being pursued by inept cops.

But Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary Houghton said Chong grew wealthy glamorizing drug use and trivializing law enforcement in his films, noting the movies are still available. Chong called his movies nonviolent and lighthearted and said he has fans in law enforcement.

Houghton said Chong used the persona to promote his catalog and Internet business.

Chong admitted that his business, which operated as Chong Glass and employed 25 glass blowers, sold some 7,500 bongs and pipes until Feb. 14, when federal drug agents raided his California home and business. Authorities also seized about one pound of marijuana.

U.S. Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan said the marijuana would be turned over to Los Angeles police, but that she believed it's unlikely Chong would be prosecuted for it based on the outcome of the federal case.

Chong's attorneys said the business, now defunct, never turned a profit.

Houghton said that's because federal investigators stepped in.

"Tommy Chong used his celebrity status to promote his business by appearing at head shops," she said. "It was his money and his persona that were necessary for this business."

Richard G. Hirsch, one of Chong's attorneys, urged Schwab not to punish Chong for his films. "The government is asking you to blur the distinction between reality and satire," he said.

Chong's attorneys said Chong has already been punished - the case cost him a recurring role on Fox's "That '70s Show" and a planned reunion movie with Marin.

Chong said nothing after his sentencing. Michael Nasatir, another Chong attorney, said he was disappointed Schwab sentenced him to jail time. He said no decision has been made whether to appeal.

Schwab's sentence was in the middle range of federal sentencing guidelines, which called for six months to one year in prison. The maximum possible punishment is three years in prison.

Along with the fine, Chong will forfeit more than $103,000 and agreed not to profit from his case. He'll also be on probation for a year after his release. The business, though defunct, was also placed on probation for three years and its Internet domain name must be relinquished to federal authorities, along with any remaining paraphernalia.

Chong was allowed to remain free until federal prison officials tell him in a few weeks where he must report to prison. He pleaded guilty May 13 to conspiring to sell drug paraphernalia and pleaded guilty on behalf of his business.

The plea came after federal Drug Enforcement Administration agents purchased his paraphernalia and had them shipped to an undercover business in Beaver Falls, a city northwest of Pittsburgh. Agents also confiscated his company's paraphernalia during raids of "head shops" in numerous states and confiscated "thousands of marijuana bongs and pipes" in a raid of his Gardena, Calif., business.

The raid was part of a series of raids in February by the Drug Enforcement Administration in which at least 55 people were charged with trafficking in illegal drug paraphernalia. Federal officials said the investigation targeted the nation's biggest Internet distributors of paraphernalia.



Actor Tommy Chong Going To Federal Prison
News Brief -- Associated Press & WXII12.com

Actor-Comedian Convicted Of Selling Drug Paraphernalia
September 11, 2003

Actor Tommy Chong -- part of the famed Cheech and Chong comedy team -- was sentenced in Pittsburgh Thursday to nine months in federal prison and fined $20,000 for selling bongs and other drug paraphernalia over the Internet.

Chong, 65, will be told in a few weeks where he'll have to report to prison.

Chong -- who starred with comedy partner Cheech Marin in the marijuana-themed cult film classics "Up in Smoke" and "Still Smokin'" -- pleaded guilty to conspiring to sell drug paraphernalia and pleaded guilty on behalf of his company, Nice Dreams Enterprises.

The company will learn of its sentence later Thursday.

There's no word on how this will affect Chong's reunion with Marin. The two reportedly have been writing a script for a movie.

Chong also appeared on the television show "That '70s Show" from 1999 through 2002. According to the Internet Movie Database, he is currently in production with several family members on the film "Best Buds."

The Associated Press



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Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong Biography

DEA: Results Not Demonstrated -- Or Are They?
A performance chart from the White House report on the DEA --

Cheech and Chong.com

[DdC]

Tommy Framed?...

Tommy Chong's factory, Chong Glass, as well as his home in California were raided by the feds today.
http://www.cheechandchong.com/newsstories.html

Tommy Chong's Chong Glass factory , as well as his home were raided by federal drug agents and other officials today. It was part of a nationwide DEA plan to close companies that manufacture and sell drug paraphernalia. It's unknown if charges have been filed against Chong or Chong Glass. "Those under indictment face a maximum three years in prison, and/or a $250,000 fine, per count, if convicted." The bust was organized by John Ashcroft and the Bush administration. Ironically, President Bush was a major drug user in his youth. It's unknown if he and his wife, Shelby, will still be performing their stand-up act tonight and tomorrow at Laff's in Tucson, AZ.

Feds Smoke Out Chong?

Tommy Chong's Chong Glass makes a promise to its customers. All of its products--chiefly, handmade pipes that the Los Angeles Times once wrote "could double as a bong"--are, the company Website says, "for legal blend and tobacco use only." Or maybe not.

Chong, once one-half of the high-flying (literally) comedy team, Cheech & Chong, saw his Gardena, California, factory and Pacific Palisades home raided Monday by federal drug agents and other authorities, Los Angeles TV station NBC4 reported. The Chong sweep was said to be related to nationwide Drug Enforcement Agency-led crackdowns on businesses that trade in what U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft called Monday the "illegal drug paraphernalia industry." The initiatives--dubbed, in the tradition of double-entendre-titled Cheech & Chong flicks, Operation Pipe Dreams and Operation Headhunter--swept up 55 people from California to Florida, with most of the arrests coming in Pennsylvania.

Neither Tommy Chong, nor Chong Glass, was named in the indictment. A message left on Chong Glass' answering machine ("Okay, damn, you just reached Chong Glass," its owner intones on the outgoing message) was not returned Monday. A DEA official said search warrants were served on Chong's business and home. It was not immediately known what came of the raids. Chong Glass, with its stock of handpipes and hammers and sidecars, is described in the comic's official bio as a family business providing "a unique collection of high-quality, original functional art and signature merchandise." "When he is not at Chong Glass testing the merchandise," his Website notes, Chong, 64, is on the stand-up circuit twice a month with his new partner in gags, wife Shelby. Chong's show-biz career started smoking in the 1970s when he and Cheech Marin played tie-dyed stoners in a series of pot-joke comedies, such as Up in Smoke.

The duo split in 1985. Marin went prime-time, playing Don Johnson's straight-shooting partner in Nash Bridges. Chong continued to bill himself as a hemp advocate and a "born-again doper," playing Hyde's stoner tie-dyed boss on That '70s Show.

Last month, Chong's daughter, actress Rae Dawn Chong, told E! Online that she has penned a script aimed at reuniting her father with Marin. Its title: Cheech & Chong Get Blunt. The people indicted Monday, many of them owners of either real-world retail shops or cyber-space e-commerce sites, were charged with selling items that, the feds say, are "primarily intended or designed to be used in ingesting, inhaling or otherwise using controlled substances." Translation: Bongs, crack pipes, roach clips, miniature spoons. Those under indictment face a maximum three years in prison, and/or a $250,000 fine, per count, if convicted.

Feds Smoke Out Chong?
by Joal Ryan
Feb 24, 2003, 4:45 PM PT



ALERT: DEA to Redirect Seized Websites!!
from Ron Bennett

State and federal authorities recently conducted raids of various companies/individuals that sell "drug paraphernalia", such as pipes and related materials. Pipes, etc were seized along with their websites.

According to a Voice of America article, Mr. Ashcroft says they plan to redirect the seized websites to to the DEA website.

A frightening quote from the a Voice of America article

"Mr. Ashcroft says customers who want to visit some of their favorite drug paraphernalia websites are in for a big surprise in the days ahead. They will be automatically redirected to the website for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration."

In essence the DEA is going to usurp the freedom of speech and expression of the people who run those seized websites. This would be akin to the U.S. Dept of Justice redirecting the "aclu.org" website to the "usdoj.gov" website.

And then there are the serious privacy issues involved if the DEA redirects the seized websites, since they'll be logging all visitors, obtaining their IP address and other highly personal information.

I encourage everyone here who values the freedom of speech and expression to contact their local ACLU chapter (list can be found at http://www.aclu.org and/or other organizations that works with such issues.

Bottom line is this is a serious issue and if the DEA is able to do this, they could potentially redirect *ANY* website - remember that the owners of the websites seized have *NOT* been convicted of any crime.

Ron Bennett
Date: Tue, 25 Feb 2003 07:33:43 -0800
From: "D. Paul Stanford" stanford@crrh.org

[DdC]

Head-shop owner is jailed, and his shop is shuttered
By Meredith Fischer, INQUIRER SUBURBAN STAFF

A Main Line shop specializing in drug paraphernalia was shut down permanently and the owner sent to prison yesterday, the result of two days of police surveillance last winter. Leslie Mark Joblin of Wynnewood, owner of Critters on Lancaster Avenue in Rosemont, was sentenced in Montgomery County Court to six to 12 months in prison and two years probation. He was charged with selling pipes, rolling paper, urine-purifier kits and bongs -- water pipes often used for smoking marijuana -- in violation of the Pennsylvania Controlled Substance, Drug, Device and Cosmetic Act. The Critters trademark logo now belongs to the Montgomery County District Attorney's Office. "We want to make sure no one benefits from this trademark," Assistant District Attorney Kevin Steele said. "This individual was very successful in his store, with its location in the area . . . with a number of college students and young people around."

Steele said Joblin also would have to forfeit $200,000 seized from his bank accounts. Joblin was arrested Feb. 26 after two days of surveillance by county detectives who said they had seen at least "100 young people coming out of the store," according to court records. Some were carrying five-foot bongs, Steele said. Before Joblin's arrest, detectives conducted a search of the store that netted 673 pipes, 51,250 pieces of rolling paper and 193 bongs, among other items, according to authorities, Joblin also sold syringes and literature on planting, cultivating, growing, harvesting and manufacturing marijuana, heroin and psychedelic drugs, according to court documents. "A store like this provides the means for young people to get involved in drugs," Steele said. "It has serious ramifications, which is why we are taking such a hard line." Joblin's lawyer, Stephen P. Patrizio, could not be reached for comment.

While shopping in the store, detectives spoke with Joblin and told him they were looking for a present for a friend who "loves to get baked," according to the probable-cause affidavit. "What he did is provide the means for people to use drugs," Steele said. "Closing this store is terrific from a community standpoint."

For more information, write to speak@hound.com
Date: Thu, 28 Oct 1999
From: NewsHound@hound.com

This is Not a Pipe!

Justice Department Goes After "Paraphernalia" Vendors

In the latest expansion on the "War on Drugs," Attorney General John Ashcroft reported today that the Department of Justice has launched two new major anti-drug operations aimed at targeting companies that sell items that drug users might use to ingest their unapproved drugs. At a press conference held earlier today, Ashcroft proudly announced that "Operation Head Hunter" and "Operation Pipe Dreams," have already resulted in the arrest of 55 people.

Read More at: http://www.cognitiveliberty.org/topnews.html

55 Charged in Drug Paraphernalia Sales

Yeah, I can't believe any of this. It effects me hugely since I order from colorchangingglass.c om. I have changed my site to begin adapting to people who have anything to say about all of this.

Please visit http://www.JGEproducts.com and follow the email link to voice your concerns on the government or anything partaining to this "paraphernalia" issue. I want to compile opinions and post messages on my site.

Now, instead of using this picture for advertising, I wave it as a flag of anti-censorship and personal liberty:

If bongs and glass pipes are illegal, then why did no one mention this before. Just because some political authority (i.e. Ashcroft, Bush) made this their personal political agenda do overstep their boundaries as an elected official, now innocent people are suffering, indicted on felony charges, and stripped of their businesses and livelihood. FUCK THAT

GlasssKolector posted February 25, 2003

New & Improved #1 Source for Glass Pipes & Bubblers

[DdC]

Latest articles are saying he's seen the light and has stopped his sinning ways and is now into salsa dancing. But this ain't really about Tommy or his bongs. Its about Askrapts Culture war with the pissant Philanthrapist DEAth czar Waldo lying and spending a fortune in taxes removing glass art and ditchweed and totally making a sham out of the Justice system as a politician campaigning against state initiatives and censoring and prohibiting research. This is a censorship issue. And Chong dong should have fought it and if I was doin the advising I'd say go to Canada, make the BC flick and tell Askrapt to Kiss his Canadian refugee ass!
Peace, Love and Liberty or Treason and DEAth
DdC

Tommy Chong Gets Nine Months for Selling Pot Pipes
September 11, 2003
By Torsten Ove, Post-Gazette Staff Writer
Source: Post-Gazette

After describing himself as a former marijuana user who beat drugs by learning to dance to salsa, 65-year-old actor Tommy Chong told a federal judge yesterday that he's now a role model for young people in Los Angeles and wants to help them stay off drugs.

He and his lawyers were hoping for a community service sentence as punishment for distributing thousands of bongs and marijuana pipes online through his California company, Nice Dreams Enterprises.

Read More... http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread17280.shtml

Hollywood movie begins filming north of Kamloops
Last Updated 2003-09-11
Arts News

KAMLOOPS, B.C. - A new film production is set to shed a ray of light into British Columbia's North Thompson Valley, a region that has suffered from this summer's wildfires.

Shooting for the psychological thriller Deepwater begins Sunday in the central interior communities of Clearwater and Little Fort, one of the film's producers told the Kamloops Daily News.

Produced by Halcyon Entertainment of Los Angeles, the movie is about a drifter who arrives in a town called Deepwater and becomes involved in a game of murder and deceit.

Thompson-Nicola film commissioner Vicci Weller says that the production will help the area's struggling economy, possibly bringing in $250,000.

"They've already been up there for a month or so and they have opened a production office," Weller said.

The five-week production schedule will employ 74 people. The cast includes Edmonton-born Tommy Chong, one-half of the 1970s comic duo Cheech and Chong.

His participation may be in question as Chong was sentenced to nine months in a U.S. federal prison Thursday for selling bongs and other drug paraphernalia over the Internet. Prison officials will tell him in a few weeks where he must report to serve his time.

The closest fire is to the south, in the McLure-Barriere region and, as of Sept. 10, was listed by the B.C. Ministry of Forests as 95 per cent contained.

Drug Czar Claims Canada is Too Lax
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Drug Czar Blasts City's Initiative 75 on Marijuana
President Seeks More Anti-Terror Authority
Event Planners Accountable Under Drug Law

[kameelyun]

Zeig Heil! Zeig Heil! Zeig Heil! Zeig Heil! Zeig Heil! Zeig Heil! Zeig Heil!!!!!!


Heil to the Fourth Reich!!! Heil to Heinrich Himmler II, John Ashcroft!!!

[patriot]

Yep, that Tommy Chong is a big time criminal. Now he is a part of the "just us" system.

Maybe he should have taken some of his money and fought the prohibition.

I fight it every day the best way I can.

[jamf]

Its pretty retarded. Its the equivelant of jailing those who make syringes. They can be used to inject illegal drugs. Or how about arresting makers of lighters and matches because they can be used to light illegal drugs.

[Pepper_I]

Tommy Chong plea bargained to protect his wife and son who he was told would get indicted if he didn't take the deal. He was railroaded by tyrants who would torch your barn and offer to sell you lumber the next day.

[ZenSkin]

I think we should launch a prayer campaign that Ashcroft gets a rare and deadly scrotal infection.

[ZenSkin]

Bad enough to have a vengeful Attorney General. but a hypocritical one too?

http://dir.salon.com/politics/featur...hew/index.html

Ashcroft's nephew got probation after major pot bust

Although his arrest for growing 60 plants could have landed him in federal prison, Alex Ashcroft was tried in state court and avoided jail, despite his uncle's crusade for tougher federal drug laws and mandatory prison sentences.


So, if you are a grower and related to Jesus' personal super cop you won't be buttraped in prison. Tommy Chong, on the other hand, is a serious criminal engaged in heinous criminal acts.

Lawdy! Bring back Janet Reno -- at least she had some balls!

[patriot]

It's okay when they do it. Just don't you do it.

Heil Dubya!!!!!!!

[Lions & Christians (PB)]

why on earth did he plead guilty?

fight it man, fight it. They couldn't get his family... he's smarter than that.

[DdC]

Chong To Appeal Prison Sentence
September 19, 2003
Source: Associated Press

Pittsburgh -- Attorneys for actor and comedian Tommy Chong are considering appealing his nine-month prison sentence for conspiring to sell drug paraphernalia on the grounds that a federal judge sentenced Chong based on the character he played and not the person he is.

"The United States attorney made a big deal about Tommy's movies and how he portrayed drug usage and law enforcement," Stanton B. Levenson said Friday. "We didn't think it would be appropriate to consider his public persona. ... That's not him."

Read More... http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread17356.shtml


http://www.cheechandchong.com

[K2nme]

Originally posted by kosh


This shit is insane, it is out of control...you poor yanks, you are losing your country to a very small bunch of fanatics...rave act, patriot act...for fuck sake...and its almost like its too late to do anything what so ever, cause the governments power is simply too great....just the one party, and you raise a whisper and your a target too. Totally and uttery fucked to high heaven.

But Kosh,
you said it best.

[DdC]

DON'T LET AYATOLLAH ASSCROFT LYNCH TOMMY CHONG!!!
SIGN THE PETITIONS AT
http://www.freetommychong.org

bush and ayatollah asscroft are promoting the latest version of kristallnacht..we culture freex must rise to defend our diverse cultures of race, rap, rock, rainbow and reggae music, art and dance from the jaws of the fascist machine-which is attempting to perpetrate a a nation of blind obedience. we must make sure they get the glitches in their machine so the people will prevail


http://www.cheechandchong.com

ARON KAY- http://www.pieman.org

BONGS NOT BOMBS!
NO TO DUMBYA'S RAW DEAL!
BUSH OUT THE DOOR!!! ON OR BEFORE 2004!!!

[Real Corona]

Alright who here will donate to my paypal account, if I receive $10,000 I will take out the upper reaches of the government. My pretzel plan failed but I have more coming.

[DdC]

I prefer more of a non-violent way so I sent him this...

ComputerUser.com High-Tech Dictionary

Ain't my fault if he can't handle it...