NJWeedman

Robert Edward Forchion, (born 1964 and widely known as NJWeedman) is a counterculture icon, published author, black intellectual, and a leading figure in the American cannabis legalization movement. He first gained fame in the 1990s, when he created the Legalize Marijuna Party and campaigned in local elections in New Jersey. He was widely covered in the press for holding smoke-outs and smoking inside the offices of politicians. As a black Rastafarian, NJWeedman suffered numerous incidents of police brutality. He defended himself in court numerous times, famously applying the tactics of jury nullification to have his cases of possession thrown out.

NJWeedman

NJWeedman first received his nickname when he chose to only transport cannabis as a cross-country trucker. He began calling himself under this name after he was busted with nearly 40 pounds of marijuana in New Jersey in 1997. He decided to apply the tactic of Jury Nullification, which no defense attorney was willing to support, leading NJWeedman to represent himself. As a way to spread his pro-legalization message, NJWeedman created the Legalize Marijuana Party in 1998 and ran for local offices. He also used the tactics of direct action and civil disobedience to gain publicity for his cause. He is known for having witty remarks for reporters, and he shared all of his stories on his popular website NJWeedman.com.

1990s Arrests

NJWeedman's fame came from the creative direct actions he applied. The most dramatic actions usually took place on government property or inside politicians offices. He first gained publicity by smoking a joint inside the office of Congressman Rob Andrews in Haddon Heights, New Jersey, on April 27, 1998. The first joint was tossed in the toilet by the receptionist, so the police had no evidence against NJWeedman, but he returned an hour later with another joint and was promptly arrested. The next day, April 28, he attempted to smoke inside the Democratic Party Headquarters in Cherry Hill, NJ, but was locked out of the building, although he was still arrested. He was arrested after being pulled over by Stratford, New Jersey, police, and was found to have warrants out for his arrest for missing court. He was also known for protests where he wasn't arrested, but still gained press attention. He organized the first cannabis "Smoke-Outs" in Camden, NJ, in 1998 and 1999.

He also gained publicity for arrests that weren't planned or organized, such as getting pulled over with cannabis. NJWeedman later filed a $17 million lawsuit ^[1] against the state for the following arrests and incidents of police brutality, although he didn't end up winning the case. On May 2, 1998, NJWeedman was pulled over and maced in the face by Gloucester Township police , and was later charged for possession of a joint inside the car. He was arrested on June 26, 1998, for merely campaigning in a vacant parking lot in Winslow, NJ.

Legalize Marijuana Party

NJWeedman founded the LMP in NJ in 1998. That year he ran for Camden County Freeholder and for Congress in the 1st District, garnering 3,468 votes. In 1999, he ran for Camden County Freeholder and State Assembly, receiving 3,100 votes. In 2000, he received more than 4,500 votes running for Burlington County Freedholder and in the 1st Congressional District. NJWeedman kept receiving more votes each year he ran. By 2004, NJWeedman collected more votes than any other Third Party, with over 7,000 votes in the 3rd Congressional District and the Burlington County Freedholder, despite having no funding and facing constant arrests.^[2] He received 9,075 votes in his Congressional run in 2005. He placed third in 2012 for the 3rd Congressional District, with a total of 1,965 votes.^[3] He placed fourth for the NJ Senate in 2006, receiving 11,362 votes, or 1 percent of the total votes. NJWeedman ran into trouble several times over the years. In 2014, the Democratic State Committee challenged his collected signatures in a record-breaking 15-hour "marathon hearing," which NJWeedman claimed was done to prevent NJWeedman from ciphering votes away from the Democrats.^[4]

2000-2004

NJWeedman believed he was arrested out of punishment for advocating jury nullification several times in 2000. This included a sting set up by Collingswood, NJ, police on February 8, 2000, when he was arrested for intent to distribute 15 pounds of cannabis. NJWeedman later learned in court that in the probable cause statement attached to Weedman's arrest warrant, he was unjustly described as "a threat to the community." His most famous political act took place on March 16, 2000, when he openly smoked a joint inside the Assembly Chambers in Trenton, NJ, while wearing a black and white striped prison costume. He swallowed the joint when he was taken away by guards, and he remained in jail until his March 24 Trenton Municipal Court case for a child custody case, which resulted in the judge ordering NJWeedman to be jailed. The state later dismissed the Trenton case. He was arrested outside the Burlington County Administration Building in Mt. Holly, on June 8, 2000, for lighting up a joint in front of the press.^[5] He gained press attention for hosting his third annual Smoke-Out at the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia, PA, on May 6, 2000. He smoked there again in August during the 2000 Philadelphia Republican Convention, and he was not arrested. He was arrested again on September 1, 2000, outside a Dunkin Donuts in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, stemming from a complaint issued by his ex-girlfriend, landing him in jail over the next few days. That same month his Camden court case concluded with him beginning a 17-month jail sentence in December 2000. Only a few days after his guilty plea in September 2000, NJWeedman was busted for trying to buy three ounces of cannabis in Philadelphia.

Released from prison and into parole in April 2002, NJ Weedman was ordered by his probation officer to not openly talk about cannabis. NJWeedman ignored this and contacted the press on numerous occasions. This landed NJWeedman in the Burlington County jail from June 6–10, 2000. He was placed back in the probation program, until he was kicked out again after filming commercial advertisements under the Legalize Marijuana Party. NJWeedman was imprisoned for filming the commercials for five months, from August 2002 - January 2003. He was released after his case gained significant publicity, with many media outlets coming out in support of NJWeedman's right to free speech in the commercials.

He was released from probation in December 2003, which is when he began his monthly Smoke-Outs at the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia, PA. Once a month for the next six months, NJWeedman and crowds of less than a hundred persons held a religious prayer on the Federal Property before openly consuming the drug. NJWeedman's goal was to get ticketed for smoking in order to challenge the law by using the Religious Freedom & Restoration Act (RFRA) of 1993 as a defense, which previously protected religious consumption of cannabis and other drugs on federal property. NJWeedman was ticketed three times for smoking (December, March, April), but his appeal against the state was quietly killed over a year after the trial.

2005-2008

NJWeedman was arrested on May 11, 2005, inside the New Jersey State House, while trying to announce his campaign for Governor at "press row" - a free public space used for press releases. But NJWeedman was denied entrance in the public area, after a NJ State Trooper maliciously attacked him without any apparent reason. He was arrested again on the political campaign trail at Seaside Heights beach, May 30, 2005. This arrest spawned from a debate between NJWeedman and a police officer over whether NJWeedman had the right to politically campaign for legalization. NJWeedman lost that round, but won later that year when his court case was dismissed. On November 3, 2005, five days prior to the election, NJWeedman held a rally in Trenton, NJ, in support of his campaign.

NJWeedman lived in California and worked at a marijuana dispensary from February–April 2006. He returned to New Jersey after some problems, but he eventually settled in California. At the end of 2006, NJWeedman created the Reefer Raffle in order to give out as prizes an ounce of cannabis for those who donated to his campaign. On April 20, 2007, NJWeedman organized a rally with Philly NORML at the Liberty Bell. NJWeedman politically exiled himself from NJ in early 2008, moving back to California to work in a marijuana dispensary.

Restaurant

As of May 2015, Forchion opened NJ Weedman's Joint and Liberty Bell Temple III, a combination "restaurant and spiritual sanctuary" across from City Hall in Trenton, New Jersey, to reach out to the local marijuana and arts communities.^[6]

References

1. http://www.njweedman.com/civil_rights_violated.htm
2. "2004electionresults". www.njweedman.com. Retrieved 2016-01-16.
3. "New Jersey's 3rd Congressional District election, 2016 - Ballotpedia". ballotpedia.org. Retrieved 2016-01-16.
4. "Weedman fights Dems ballot challenge June 11, 2014". NJWEEDMAN.COM. Retrieved 2016-01-16.
5. "times-06-09-00". www.njweedman.com. Retrieved 2016-01-16.
6. Ray, Penny. "NJ Weedman opens restaurant, sanctuary across the street from Trenton City Hall", The Trentonian, May 25, 2015. Accessed January 17, 2016.