Sept 2024 Newsletter - Cannabis sales and events may increase crime
September 17, 2024
Cannabis Sales and Events May Increase Crime in Sonoma County's Rural Areas
Dear Neighbors,
Sonoma County’s proposed Cannabis Ordinance amendments present clear and present dangers to rural areas. The County proposes allowing retail sales at rural cultivation sites, up to an eye-popping 104 cannabis events per year/per location, in addition to industrial cannabis processing in our rural lands and neighborhoods. These proposals present frightening public safety dangers to residents. The California Highway Patrol's Santa Rosa Commander underscored that assessment, stating, “We have certainly seen an increase in violent crime in and around more rural cannabis operations. Violent crime would include armed robberies of the processing facilities which obviously puts public safety at risk as well as expends local law enforcement resources.”
A crime report from the Neighborhood Coalition, published September 3, 2024, documents the undeniable connection between cannabis operations and increased crime, including armed robberies. Data from public safety agencies shows Sonoma County has experienced 904 cannabis-related public safety incidents over the past four years, or 1.2 incidents daily!
Recent articles reporting these crimes include: a burglary ring that targeted cannabis dispensaries, and an August 9th 2024 robbery at a Santa Rosa dispensary with 5 arrested, a dispensary employee physically assaulted, a suspect physically confronted an officer, 2 separate high speed car chases, ending with the suspects armed, fleeing from their cars on foot into a residential neighborhood before being apprehended in an innocence family’s yard. Our September 3rd report chronicles many more.
Even in urban areas with greater access to law enforcement, and despite security measures required by local and state laws, cannabis dispensaries have proven to be magnets for crime. These risks multiply in rural cultivation sites where law enforcement response times can range from 30 to 45 minutes, meaning neighbors have virtually no protection from the threats inherent in these activities. The County’s proposal of rural retail sales and “cannabis events” creates dangers not only for the public living near these sites, but for the operators and law enforcement. There is no justification for inviting urban crime into our quiet neighborhoods.
The Neighborhood Coalition strongly opposes these ordinance changes and urges the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors to make public safety the top priority by prohibiting expanded cannabis sales and events in rural areas.
What’s Next?
Take action - DONATE TODAY to stop Sonoma County from approving the most dangerous elements of a cannabis ordinance that will increase crime and put our rural neighborhoods at risk. These proposed changes would expose families to violence, impaired driving, and health impacts.
Your tax-deductible donation will fund technical experts and research that is critical to force the County to protect our environment, children, and the health and safety of our neighborhoods.
You can also mail a check to:
Sonoma Neighborhood Coalition PO Box 1229 Sebastopol, CA 95473
Thank you for donating today.
The Neighborhood Coalition team