Woodland council hopeful is colorful – and committed to marijuana cause

Woodland council hopeful is colorful – and committed to marijuana cause

By Hudson Sangree - hsangree [at] sacbee.com
Published 12:00 am PDT Thursday, May 29, 2008

Bobby Harris said he rolled into Woodland last year in a U-Haul filled with
cannabis plants – determined to grow a crop, run for City Council and change
people's perception of medical marijuana in the conservative farm town.

It was a homecoming for Harris, a well-known character who had run for a
Woodland council seat in 1990.

In the midst of that race, police raided his Victorian home on Walnut Street
and found 20 pot plants – enough to yield about a half-pound of marijuana –
growing in his basement.

A second unsuccessful City Council run followed in 1992, the year he pleaded
guilty to a charge of cultivation and was sentenced to probation and a
$1,400 fine.

Months later, prosecutors seized his 100-year-old house, with its rental
cottage, and sold it under California's tough asset-forfeiture law.

After losing everything, Harris left Woodland.

He went into self-imposed exile in Arcata, in Humboldt County. For most of
the last decade, he worked as a pot farmer, grocery clerk and community
activist.

He said he returned to Woodland to be near the state Capitol to lobby for
medical marijuana and other causes.

Harris admits he has almost no chance of winning a council seat. For him,
the race is a way to talk about another passion: rejuvenating Woodland's
struggling downtown.

Main Street, he argues, should be a pleasant place for pedestrians to shop
and eat, not a noisy traffic corridor with vacant lots and run-down
buildings.

Harris is well-versed in state and local politics, in areas that interest
him.

He's an expert on Proposition 215, the state's medical marijuana law and is
often credited with innovating local implementation of it.

At his prompting, Arcata established dispensaries where patients can buy
high-grade, low-cost marijuana. Farmers there grow it without fear of
prosecution.

The issue is personal for Harris, who said he has a prescription to treat
his alcoholism and post-traumatic stress disorder.

"I'm a veteran of the drug war," he said with a smile outside a Mexican
restaurant on Main Street.

Harris considers Woodland home. He settled there in the 1980s because it
resembled his native farm community in Utah.

His return, however, has proved difficult.

First, the marijuana plants Harris brought from Humboldt died because he
couldn't find a place to grow them.

Then, in March, police arrested him for failing to pay the fine from his
1990 drug bust.

Last week, a judge in Woodland dismissed the charges, ending the
long-running case and freeing Harris to pursue his third council bid.

And right now, he's homeless.

Harris and his six cats live in a tent in a friend's backyard. He survives
on pocket change and a daily sandwich.

"I'm willing to sacrifice my own comforts because I believe in good
politics," said Harris, a 56-year-old neatly clad in green overalls and a
flannel shirt, his long, graying hair twisted into a ponytail.

Though practically destitute, he is nonetheless energized. He wants Woodland
to be like Arcata, a haven for medical marijuana.

"I am the agent to accomplish the goal," he said. "I am going to bring the
revolution to the Central Valley."

Harris said he recently met with Woodland's police chief to explain
Proposition 215. Local police can't arrest those operating under the state
statute, he insisted.

The visit didn't go well. According to Harris, he was told that police would
continue to enforce more restrictive federal laws.

Harris is undeterred.

"The law-enforcement community needs to follow the law," he said. "I want to
help resolve their confusion."

He's also talking with voters in anticipation of Tuesday's council election
for three seats. His opponents are Martie Dotie, Alfred Lopez, Jeff Monroe,
Art Pimentel and Frank Sieferman Jr.

On Sunday, Harris walked to the green Victorian home he once owned on
Walnut, a tree-lined avenue of well-kept older homes.

Seeing him, former friends and neighbors called out in support.

Guy Matta, 42, a utility worker with close-cropped hair and a booming voice,
shook Harris' hand warmly and asked if he had lawn signs for the council
race.

Harris said he didn't. In that case, Matta said, he'd make one himself.

"He's a good man who got railroaded," Matta said. "I know he's got a lot to
provide the community. He's got independent judgment."

Bill Jones, 64, rode up on his bicycle to say hello.

A bail bondsman who sprang Harris from jail in March, Jones said he supports
his longtime friend's council run.

"No one would work harder," he said.

Harris wasn't home in 1990 when police kicked down his door. He was a few
blocks away visiting Gary Sandy, a city councilman who later became mayor.

"Bobby is an interesting blend of policy wonk, populist politician and
huckster," Sandy said. "What you get from him is three-quarters legitimate
public-policy insights and one-quarter just off-the-planet wackiness."

Harris fails to understand that Woodlanders care about jobs, schools and
health care, the former mayor said.

"Woodland is a family town," he said. "Nobody gives a flying fig about
marijuana laws."

Sandy urged Harris to focus on downtown redevelopment and avoid further
trouble.

"He's a great neighbor, very well liked, clearly intelligent and very
articulate," Sandy said. "He provides entertainment, and lord knows Woodland
could use some of that."

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