How a prison-turned-pot-farm is helping those behind bars for cannabis crimes | Green Room
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Published 2023-01-26
It was after I posted the last of those "Green Room" videos to social media several months back someone swiftly responded: "I wish for everyone of these 'weed is good' stories, we learned about the nonviolent offender who is going to die in prison for being caught with an [eighth of an ounce]8th." It was a good point, and one that really resonated with me. That's why I was excited to find out about the former prison in Coalinga, Calif., that Ocean Grown Extracts has turned into a pot farm where cannabis is grown, processed and packaged in what look like police evidence bags. In addition to a portion of sales going to Last Prisoner Project, a nonprofit dedicated to cannabis criminal justice reform, the fact that the Evidence brand exists at all helps raise awareness that there plenty of people are currently behind bars for nonviolent cannabis crimes.
Evidence brand's co-founder Casey Dalton explained the idea to us this way: "We grow weed at a prison to get people out of prison for growing weed." And, as we found out during our tour, repurposing a prison for such a purpose has other upsides too. For example? "It's got really good security," Dalton said.
Now who's ready to go to prison — for a tour?
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All Comments (21)
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All of us over at "Green Room"central were stoked to work on this episode. While we went to Coalinga knowing that there as symbolic importance to Ocean Grown Extracts' decision to use a former prison for pot production, what we werent prepared for was how well-suited such spaces are for all the various aspects of cannabis cultivation and manufacturing.
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It's crazy to have locked people up just to do the same thing that got the people arrested anyway,and most likely they were probably only selling it and not growing it
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Prisons should never be a for profit business
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The USA has half of the world prison population. Imagine the whole populations of Alaska, Wyoming, and North and South Dakota all in prison. That’s the prison population in the USA. Unbelievable
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First of all nobody should be behind bars for marijuana. Wtf
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Starting up regular crop farms for them and other prisons in order to be more self sustaining would be cool too! I bet it would help people in there with anxiety and depression, while giving them tangible skills to start gardens and farms for when they get released.
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Good job! We the pot people don't deserve to be in prison with the animals
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I don’t see the point in buying a regular 8th anymore. If I can get those infused prison shortys for $30, what’s the point of buying a weaker product, like an alien labz 8th, for $50+. In my opinion a highly slept on company in the Za Za industry.
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probably the only decent prison weed that exists
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If we emptied our prisons, used them for growing of cannabis, employed former persons convicted of cannabis offences, made this beneficial plant available to everyone at a low cost, maybe we could actually heal our hurting country. What a dream, huh?
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It’s helping out Doritos company’s bottom lines
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That's very cool. Yeah 40,000 people still in prison for pot crimes. That's a crime in itself
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I love this! Cheers from eastern WA!
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Captivating story, with growing influence. Spicolli's paradise.. duuude
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This system is mess up..need reform ..ppl stand up
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What a mess California is.
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Right on. About time....
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I applaud this gentleman 👏
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I picked up 4 of these bags Seriously really really good weed I have the sativa strain ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
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Such little good news these days.... this was a great idea!!
