| THE COURIER POST (Feb. 11th, 2000)
(Camden-NJ) State Assembly and Camden County Freeholder candidate Edward "njweedman" Forchion, who built a political platform on a desire to legalize marijuana, was held Wednesday in the Camden County jail, ostensibly for acting on his belief's. Forchion, 35, was arrested Tuesday Oct. 8th, by Collingswood police during a traffic stop on route 30 and charged with possesion with intent to distribute 15 pounds of marijuana. In a probable cause statement attached to Forchion's arrest warrant, Detective Jeffery Frampton describes Forchion as "a threat to the community." The complaint list Forchion's address in Browns Mills NJ. When he ran for election last November he gave a Chesilhurst address. Forchion is already scheduled to go to trial March 13 in Superior Court in Camden on charges of possesion with intent to distribute 40lbs. Those charges were lodged last fall. Superior court Judge Thomas Brown, assigned to hear that case, was notified of Forchion's latest arrest and set bail at $50,000 cash or bond. Forchion had sought election in November as a Camden County freeholder and as an Assemblyman in the 8th legislative dist. An independant his campaign literature identified him as a representative of the Legalize Marijuana Party . He has recently announced plans to again run for the 1st Congressional dist. House of Representatives seat as he also did in 1998. The seat is currently held by (D) Rep. Rob Andrews. Forchion as Rastafarian by faith has said marijuana is an integral part of his religion and should be permitted under the Constitutions 1st amendment "free exercise clause". He has his own website promoting the legalization of marijuana and his personal arrest ridden plight since coming out of the closet in what he says, is his illegal religion RASTAFARI.
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His website address is www.njweedman.com and his e-mail address is njweedman@yahoo.com Forchion who was heard thru-out
the delaware valley, yesterday calling collect from the
camden county jail to Philadelphia Talk Radio station WWDB 96.5 (Jay & Hillary
show) claiming he is now a "Political
Prisoner" and this arrest was nothing but a
prosecutor/police action to silence him. ( he's a regular
caller ) He say's, "I had no marijuana on me, and
had no plans to buy or sell any at the time". Mr
Forchion say's these bogus charges will not stop him from
running for office in Nov. He feels he wil produce
a hung jury on the pervious charges in his upcoming
trial. "True believer's and user's will still
vote for him Forchion say's. I must be reaching the right
people, and pushing the right buttons for the
prosecutor's office to attemp to create a crime. I
beleive it is my planned advocation of Jury Nullification as a
defense that provoked the prosecutor's office to file
these bogus political charges."
I'M NO THREAT TO THE COMMUNITY, I'M A ASSEST TO THE COMMUNITY. I PROVIDE WUNITY WANTS"! WHAT THE COMMUNITY WANTS"!
A LEGALIZE MARIJUANA PARTY "press release" |
