Posted on 09/22/2012 12:41:22 PM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
A soft-spoken Minnesota farmer was cleared of violating state laws for distributing raw milk Thursday, a verdict advocates for such foods called their first major legal victory.
After a three-day trial and more than four hours of deliberation, a Hennepin County jury found Alvin Schlangen not guilty of three misdemeanor counts of selling unpasteurized milk, operating without a food license and handling adulterated or misbranded food.
The trial highlighted a deep national divide between raw milk advocates who contend unpasteurized dairy products can relieve allergies and prevent illness and public health officials who warn that raw milk can cause serious and sometimes fatal diseases, such as E. coli, salmonella and listeria.
"It's a big step in the right direction," Schlangen, 54, said Thursday, flanked by celebrating supporters. "I have a hard time understanding how this basic freedom has been so hard to maintain."
The raw milk debate emerged in Minnesota two years ago, when eight people were sickened by E. coli bacteria in raw milk that was linked to Minnesota producer Mike Hartmann. Hartmann faces similar charges as Schlangen did and is expected to be tried this fall. He also faces a lawsuit filed by the father of a boy who got sick from drinking raw milk.
Schlangen, an organic egg farmer from Freeport, Minn., doesn't produce milk himself but operates Freedom Farms Co-op, a private club with roughly 130 members who buy various farm products, including raw milk. Schlangen picks up the milk products from an Amish farm and delivers them to members.
(Excerpt) Read more at startribune.com ...
Could be that busybodies are all or mostly all democrats..
New York city of full of them.. and lets not talk of Chicago..
But then Mexifornia is in another class.. mostly peons, nosey peons..
But the Busybody Capital is Washington D.C...
The place is a Donkey Rodeo.. with clowns and everything..
HEE HAW is lawyer-speak..
I’ve only tried raw milk a few times, and, while it’s good, I wouldn’t go too far out of my way to get some. However, if I was on the jury it’s likely that I would have gone for nullification. The government has no business regulating the knowing purchase of raw milk, just labeling to ensure that buyers know it is raw milk and not pasteurized.
I used to live just south of Elbow Lake, MN when I was attending Avionics school in Alexandria, MN and we used get raw milk from local dairy farmers.
My son is very healthy now at 35 years of age and probably the better for it. He has a Master in Physics and Computer Modeling.
Growing up on a farm site and running and poking at snakes and bugs made for a strong immune system.
Hoffman, MN had a dairy co-op that had fresh warm curds you could buy.....we called them squeakies because of the way they would squeak against your teeth when eating them.
Too much regulation has the unfortunate affect of isolating the immune system from being exercised.
Life, in the US, is now akin to “Boy in a Plastic Bubble” life, too sterile.
I couldn’t believe that the State would do this. Good for the farmer and all farmers. Screw the State Government gone wild.
Which is why kids are now allergic to everything.
Raw milk has been safely used for 1000s of years, and the State uses force of arms to ban it.
GMOs are brand new, with questionable safety, and the State does not even want them to appear on ingredient lists.
Every single person who drank raw milk before pasteurization was invented is now dead. How much evidence do you need? (/s)
I work as a contractor in Afghanistan and both deployments, with separate companies, has resulted in the few times I’ve gotten sick since childhood.
But, this hasn’t been from being here, but from the requirement for flu shots prior to deployment.
I’ve always passed up company offered flu shots back stateside without contracting what everyone else was suffering.
Once I’m recovered from the flu shot....no problems.
Flu shot.....I don’t need no stinken flu shot.
I have always believed thsat jury nullification is an important defense of our American liberty.
That is true. However, there is a considerable population that has consumed raw milk since pasteurization was invented that is still very much alive. We also know that the stuff they sell in stores that is labeled 'whole milk' isn't...
And those of us who grew up in farm country know that if a cow only gave 3.5% butterfat content milk, that cow would be called 'hamburger' tomorrow...
Same here. No problems. Miss Mom’s churned butter.
Hmmm, could Congress pass a law that creates jury trials before Scotus?
I think it would probably tke a Constitutional amendment. Good idea, though.
Thanks for the ping!
As our country goes more and more nanny state/commie and up-side—down, we are going to be forced to do jury nullification on oppressive and stupid laws passed in service to the interest of campaign donars and activists.
That is the way it is going. I would not hesitate.
I looked the topic up in Madison’s very terse notes to the Constitutional convention. From that and Historian Forrest McDonald, I confident of the following.
When we were colonists, jury nullification was a contentious, yet accepted practice of actually participating in government. Royal governors and the King’s judges found effective opposition in colonial juries. We had no representation in Parliament, and the Royal Governors had wide powers over our colonial assemblies, so jury nullification was more or less our only means to affect legislation via the people’s veto.
On independence and with the Constitution, the GOVERNMENT WAS US! No law could pass without our consent through the House of Reps.
The idea was to not enshrine the concept in our Constitution because the people could not, would not enslave themselves.
FABULOUS NEWS!
As a kid, we lived in inner-city Milwaukee but Mom shipped us all to her cousin’s farm each summer as indentured slaves, mainly to get us out of her hair and into the fresh air and sunshine. The reason I have a farm today is from LIVING the stark difference between City Life and Country Life. *HEART*
I never knew that all that milk I drank STRAIGHT from the cow or goat was BAD for me. Funny how those Nanny Staters knew how to live my life better than the adults in my life did back then!
B@stards. But, score one for US!
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