Campaign Against Marijuana Planting
Encyclopedia
Created in 1983, the Campaign Against Marijuana Planting (CAMP) is a multi-agency law enforcement task force managed by the California Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement and composed of local, state and federal agencies organized expressly to eradicate illegal cannabis cultivation and trafficking in California. With more than 110 agencies having participated, CAMP is the largest law enforcement task force in the United States.
CAMP's stated primary objectives include "reducing the supply of marijuana to the illegal drug trade by eradicating the large marijuana crop sites; increasing public and environmental safety by removing marijuana growers from public and private lands; investigating indoor growing operations; deterring potential growers; and promoting public information and education on marijuana." http://www.ag.ca.gov/bne/camp.htm
CAMP agents are divided into five teams covering Northern, Central and Southern California regions. Headed by the California Department of Justice
California Department of Justice
The California Department of Justice is the department in the California executive branch under the leadership of the California Attorney General.-Description:It has 5344 employees and a budget of $791 million...
's Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement, CAMP includes local, state and federal agencies that work to eradicate illegal indoor and outdoor cannabis cultivation and trafficking throughout California. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration
Drug Enforcement Administration
The Drug Enforcement Administration is a federal law enforcement agency under the United States Department of Justice, tasked with combating drug smuggling and use within the United States...
, Bureau of Land Management
Bureau of Land Management
The Bureau of Land Management is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior which administers America's public lands, totaling approximately , or one-eighth of the landmass of the country. The BLM also manages of subsurface mineral estate underlying federal, state and private...
, U.S. Forest Service
United States Forest Service
The United States Forest Service is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 155 national forests and 20 national grasslands, which encompass...
, California National Guard
California National Guard
The California National Guard is the component of the United States National Guard in the U.S. state of California. It comprises both Army and Air National Guard components and is the largest national guard force in the United States with a total authorized strength of 22,900 soldiers and airmen...
, California State Parks, Department of Fish and Game and dozens of local police and sheriff departments from across the state participate in the program.
Compassionate Use Act
In 1996, California voters approved ballot propositionInitiative
In political science, an initiative is a means by which a petition signed by a certain minimum number of registered voters can force a public vote...
215, the Compassionate Use Act
California Proposition 215 (1996)
Proposition 215, or the Compassionate Use Act of 1996, is a California law concerning the use of medical cannabis. It was enacted, on November 5, 1996, by means of the initiative process, and passed with 5,382,915 votes in favor and 4,301,960 against.The proposition was a state-wide voter...
, legalizing the medical use of cannabis. As a consequence, CAMP's commander, a California law-enforcement officer, has been specifically ordered by the state Attorney General to respect the state's medical marijuana laws in the course of his duties. Consequently, CAMP has shifted priority to large commercial grow operations on public lands, and coordinates with county authorities so as to not interfere with medical grow operations known to them, which in any event tend to be smaller. Nevertheless, as these medical grow operations remain fair game to the DEA
Drug Enforcement Administration
The Drug Enforcement Administration is a federal law enforcement agency under the United States Department of Justice, tasked with combating drug smuggling and use within the United States...
and subject to federal prosecution, they continue to require secrecy.
See also
- Cannabis
- Legal issues of cannabisLegal issues of cannabisThe legality of cannabis has been the subject of debate and controversy for decades. Cannabis is illegal to consume, use, possess, cultivate, transfer or trade in most countries...
- Medical cannabisMedical cannabisMedical cannabis refers to the use of parts of the herb cannabis as a physician-recommended form of medicine or herbal therapy, or to synthetic forms of specific cannabinoids such as THC as a physician-recommended form of medicine...
- California Proposition 215 (1996)California Proposition 215 (1996)Proposition 215, or the Compassionate Use Act of 1996, is a California law concerning the use of medical cannabis. It was enacted, on November 5, 1996, by means of the initiative process, and passed with 5,382,915 votes in favor and 4,301,960 against.The proposition was a state-wide voter...
- Gonzales v. RaichGonzales v. RaichGonzales v. Raich , 545 U.S. 1 , was a decision by the United States Supreme Court ruling that under the Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution, the United States Congress may criminalize the production and use of home-grown cannabis even where states approve its use for medicinal...
- Drug Enforcement AdministrationDrug Enforcement AdministrationThe Drug Enforcement Administration is a federal law enforcement agency under the United States Department of Justice, tasked with combating drug smuggling and use within the United States...
- War on DrugsWar on DrugsThe War on Drugs is a campaign of prohibition and foreign military aid and military intervention being undertaken by the United States government, with the assistance of participating countries, intended to both define and reduce the illegal drug trade...
- Office of National Drug Control PolicyOffice of National Drug Control PolicyThe White House Office of National Drug Control Policy , a former cabinet level component of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, was established in 1989 by the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988...