Robert “Bob” Walker
Washington County Sheriff
Robert “Bob” Daniel Walker, 65, is set to serve two years in prison after pleading guilty to a felony marijuana charge with intent to deliver, NWAOnline reports.
The Class C felony is punishable by up to 10 years, but Circuit Judge William Storey suspended eight years of Walker’s sentence.
Walker was arrested in April and accused of smuggling over 10 pounds of marijuana through FedEx from California.
Brian Lamb, Washington County deputy prosecuting attorney, reportedly said Walker could be released in nine months if he completes a drug treatment program and is paroled.
Walker recently moved to Fayetteville to re-open his brother Bruce’s landmark Dickson Street business, Flying Possum Leather, at a new location on Block Avenue. Bruce died in a fire at the store last March.
According to the report, Walker apologized to Storey and Fayetteville residents and said he hopes to return to the community “as a legal and productive contributor.”
OMG. This is horrible.
So, a guy comes back, re-opens a longstanding business and hires people in the community, revives his iconic brother’s memory, and makes a mistake that costs him two years of his life? He’s 65. This is justice?
No, this is a travesty.
How many Wall Street banksters and corporatists are serving time for the things they did that had a lot more negative impact on my life than an old pothead?
ZERO.
Sickening. Hang in there, Bob.
How stupid. Mailing weed? Probably was high lol.
Terrible…
“FREE THE LEAF.”
Seems a little harsh.
This makes me sick. Obviously it is stupid to have done what he did. But 2 years?? Is this a standard sentence? Is there a scale of how much weed one is caught with = a certain amount of time? Is it possible he is paying a price because he is known in the community and they’re making an example of him? I feel like I see rapists get less time than that…
The entire Fayetteville prosecuting attorneys office needs a good cleaning. I am not sure why these d-bags are still running rough shod over the express wishes of the citizens of Fayetteville. Maybe it is because too many of the Villains are smoking too much grass to get out and change the system that is working against them. All I know is that a change is necessary and too many folks are too apathetic to make it happen. Get fired up and kick some of these people out. I am sick of people complaining but doing nothing to change the system. I am VERY jaded about Fayettenam right now. Too much apathy….
For enforcing the law? They are just doing their job as mandated by statute. You want change? Call your legislators and vote.
Folks
He had 10 pounds on him. He wasnt using it for medicinal purposes. He admitted he broke the law. He was sentenced maximum time but will serve way less. Fayetteville voters supported making simple possession a low priority, not delivering 10 pounds of high grade marijuana. Well deserved punishment.
His maximum sentence was 10 years. Dude mailed 10 lbs… Very fair sentence considering the law.
Dude its not even a month per pound
Our system is jacked up. If you truly think this is “well deserved punishment” you’re part of the problem. And who cares if it was high grade. Would it help if it was schwag? Did some people overdose and die from his lethal strand?
I’ll be curious to see how Bob’s sentence compares to the two idiots who robbed that guy at gunpoint on Frisco Trail.
I still think its a slap on the wrist, do you think he should just be able to walk scotch free? I’m all for getting it legalized but we aren’t there yet.
Scotch free? Yes, please.
Yeah, I think the dude should walk. Just like everyone involved in growing, selling or smoking. The fact that we aren’t there yet is embarrassing. The hypocrisy of our so-called justice system is almost more than I can stand sometimes. It is, indeed, a travesty.
Like I said before….
Who is most threatened by the prospect of ultimate legalization/decriminalization of marijuana?
* Alcohol producers and distributors. According to the Distilled Spirits Council of the U.S., the alcohol business was responsible for about $388 BILLION in 2008. That’s big, big, big money, which would be threatened tremendously by an alternative that many if not most consider safer and less destructive. The World Health Organization in early 2011 said that alcohol is responsible for 4 percent of all deaths — more than AIDS, tuberculosis or violence.
* Tobacco producers. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Fact Sheet on the US Tobacco industry reports that in 2008, the industry spent more than $10 BILLION on advertising and promotion…. $29 MILLION PER DAY. That’s PER DAY. Just on advertising. Their statistics also point out that about $40 billion per year is lost in health costs. Globally, 8 million people die every year with tobacco-related illnesses. One in 5 Americans smoke. These people live on average 13-14 years less than nonsmokers. Big tobacco doesn’t care, because they are making so much money. They don’t want marijuana competing for their customers. Especially since it’s nonaddictive and has NO known deaths attached to it. Think of the difference between solar energy and fossil fuels. Similar analogy.
* Law enforcement agencies. The “war on drugs” is a well-established failure, but is still funded in bigger bites every year. For FY 2013, ONDCP got a bump of more than $415 million over its 2012 budget of more than $25 BILLION. Marijuana, a relatively harmless product (certainly no worse than legal products such as tobacco and alcohol) is lumped in with dangerous drugs like meth, cocaine/crack, heroin. That $25B is just ONDCP’s budget. It would be too labor-intensive to dig out all the funding law enforcement agencies get to fight drugs, but hopefully you are smart enough to connect the dots and conclude that law enforcement agencies get a ton of money to “fight drugs.” I’m against all those drugs they fight, except marijuana.
A PBS Frontline piece on pot estimates that US pot production is a business worth about $40 billion annually, and that the “imported” weed business from (primarily) Central/South America is worth another $100 billion.
If Americans are consuming $140 BILLION of pot each year… hell, be conservative, say it’s $100 BILLION… imagine if that business became LEGAL… and TAXABLE. First of all, once the government got a hand in it, prices are going to go up. So it’s reasonable to assume that at a minimum pot will be at least a $200 BILLION a year business because of price increases and people “coming out of the closet” who will try it and become consumers.
As it is, the Federal government brings home more than $24 BILLION annually in alcohol and tobacco taxes. The State of California says its annual tax revenue from marijuana would add $1.4 BILLION per year to its coffers. (Coughers?) It’s reasonable to assume that the US could add anywhere from $6-$12B per year to its budget from a pot tax. Maybe more. Hard to nail down those figures.
This makes sense, but powerful, moneyed efforts are allied to stop it. Are you going to let them? Corporations are not people, my friends.
How do you expect price increases? The only reason prices are where they are is because it is illegal and dealers understand they can charge higher prices because accessibility is low. You would instead see a drastic decrease in prices. For example, In the netherlands, great quality can be purchased for less than 10USD/ gram..comparable to $20/ gram in the US. Decreased pricing is what kicks the criminals out of the ‘game’; there is no longer a benefit to them to sell because if they matched market prices their profit margin would be next to nothing(compared to current times), and if they kept their prices the same people would pass and go to the store/coffeeshop/whatever and have selection of high quality trusted products at a fraction of the costs, with zero risk. If the government increased prices, there would be no incentive for consumers to purchase the ‘legal weed’, when they can keep purchasing it at the same costs they’re used to. I’m all for the legalization, the pros out way the cons tremendously and those that do not see it, are simply choosing not to do the research (because the facts are out there) or they’re profiting from its illegality.
Things regulated by the government go up in cost.
Mr. Observer, In the states were marijuana is legal, and regulated by the state government, the drug is actually cheaper and gone down in price-cost. High grade marijuana on the streets of pretty much anywhere its illegal averages sixty dollars for an eighth of an ounce. In Colorado, California, and Montana, (the only states I know from personal experiences) medicinal shops charge an average of $40 for an eighth of dank, straight fire.
I think that $40 an 8oz is pretty much the industry standard across the US, and the govt still makes taxes. I may stand corrected, but from many years of personal experience, marijuana has always been cheaper in states were its legal and regulated by te state government. Probably the reason its lucrative to ship it from California (regulated) to Arkansas.
It’s “scott” free
Actually, it’s “scot-free”.
Actually, it’s “hopscotch” free, and if he can pull that off, more powder to him.
Just think, if it we weren’t jailing people for having plants God created then we would have another successful business owner here in f’town.
http://billhicks.tumblr.com/post/10687771177/to-make-marijuana-against-the-law-is-like-saying
Successful business decisions are not this man’s forte.
Bob seems like a nice fella, regardless of his failure to grasp logistics.
Free Bob.
Legalize weed.
Not necessarily in that order.
This wasn’t a “mistake”. This was well-thought-out plan to sell an illegal substance to make money.
I do have one question, though…how many of you that are yelling for the legalization of marijuana (primarily used by smoking) are the same people yelling about how horrible tobacco use is? Anyone else see the inherent contradiction here?
jmo
I’d have a different view of marihuana if it had the additives found in the average ciggy.
Not to mention the fact that someone smoking two packs of joints a day would not be asleep for about three days straight.
Last I checked, there was no ammonia in pot, or any of these: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cigarette_additives
And as IO mentioned, nobody has ever sat next to me at a bar and smoked 10 joints in three hours.
I don’t smoke pot and am not a dirty hippie, but cigarettes ARE vile, disgusting, smelly, addictive and I think I heard people die from long-term tobacco use. I think I heard that somewhere. I don’t know. Probably.
Dinosaur Jr, —
That’s a reefer madness scare tactic.
And tobacco is bad…mmmmmkaay
not be awake that is. Maybe I’m too high!
“Don’t bogart that joint, my friend…”
What about Bob’s son?
FYI- he will serve 9 months given he behaves himself. While I certainly disagree with the drug laws, they are the laws. He willingly and knowingly broke these laws. 9 months seems fair.
The Dallas Observer has a story about some of the costs of our epically failed “War on Drugs” and another reason to legalize: http://www.dallasobserver.com/2012-08-02/news/mexicans-pay-in-blood-for-america-s-war-on-drugs/