Our Friend Casey Hardison

    
 

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Hear Casey's recorded message played in the closing ceremony of the World Psychedelic Forum in Basel, Switzerland on the 24th of March 2008
View Transcript

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Free Casey - help end the global "War on some people who use some Drugs"

This website provides an opportunity for you to be informed about and participate in the legal efforts of Casey William "Freeblood" Hardison, an entheogenic activist, unauthorized researcher and psychedelic chemist best known for his indefatigable good mood and enormous energy.

Background

Free Casey

Having come of age in the touring music scene of the Pacific and Mountain West of the United States, Casey attended entheogen-related conferences, wrote articles for MAPS and contributed to Erowid. In 2002, shortly after moving to England, Casey chose to fulfill his ten-year spiritual journey to make LSD.

After a 4-month investigation precipitated by a US DEA informant, however, Casey was arrested in February 2004 on the suspicion that he was manufacturing the psychedelic or entheogenic-type drugs LSD, DMT and 2C-B in Britain.

Casey acted as his own lawyer during his trial and, instead of arguing he did not commit the alleged acts, he argued that, as long as he harmed no one, he had the human right to engage in his chosen entheogenic praxis. In essence, Casey challenged the drug laws as a discriminatory affront to Cognitive Liberty, therapeutic choice and free religion.

The trial judge rejected these human rights arguments and an eight-week trial ensued after which Casey was convicted in March 2005 and sentenced to 20 years imprisonment in April 2005. On appeal, Casey submitted substantially similar human rights arguments but these were rejected and his conviction and sentence were upheld in May 2006.

Casey then submitted his human rights arguments simultaneously to the European Court of Human Rights and to the House of Lords, the highest court of appeal in the United Kingdom. Unfortunately, these appeals, though capturing the spirit of his perceived injustice, were not viewed as proper legal arguments by the courts but rather as an attack on Government drug policy.

Free CaseyThis prompted Casey to delve deeper into law, shed in some respects his egoic attachments, righteousness and arrogance, integrate his insights and present the core legal arguments with minimal obfuscation by his upsets.

As a result of this paradigm shift Casey now views his legal arguments through the lens of equal rights and equal protection, recognizing that a fair balance has not been struck between the public's right to protection and the individual's right to autonomy. 

Crucially, Casey has come to see that the English Parliament has crafted a beautifully evolutive and dynamic legal framework with inherent regulatory flexibility suitable to all 'dangerous or otherwise harmful drugs', including alcohol and tobacco, but that the United Kingdom Government has not been operating the law in a consistent and evidenced-based manner as Parliament intended, i.e., regulation proportionate to objective evidence of risks posed by different drugs property when used. Instead, Government has the balance tilted in favor of the electoral majority who exercise property rights in the 'dangerous or otherwise harmful drugs' alcohol and tobacco based on arbitrary historical and cultural factors which lack the consistent and objective basis mandated by the Rule of Law. 

Casey believes, and now has the evidence and Government admissions to demonstrate it, that Government under-regulates the conduct of the electoral majority who prefer to exercise property rights in drugs property such as alcohol and tobacco whilst over-regulating the conduct of minorities who prefer to exercise property rights in other drugs property with substantially similar or even less potential to cause harm to individuals and/or society when misused.

This unequal treatment is contrary to the common law principle of equal applicability of neutral laws and illegal in terms of Government's statutory duties under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. As such, Casey believes this unequal treatment denies equal rights and equal protection to all citizens whilst contributing to tens-of-thousands of unnecessary deaths and imprisonments each year on both sides of the irrational distinction and that neither the people nor Parliament intends these consequences.

In addition to his criminal litigation, Casey has launched civil legal actions challenging the UK Government to honour their commitment to implement evidence- based policy making where like cases are treated alike and unlike cases are treated differently. Each step of the way, Casey has received concessions from the Government, the Parliament and the Court which contribute substantially toward his ability to launch an effective criminal appeal against conviction and/or sentence.

Casey continues to work through the English legal system to question the basis of his and others imprisonment but he feels as if he has gone as far as he can on his own and accordingly he requests your help. Ultimately, the legal principles Casey has uncovered have the potential to cause enormous transformation in the global "War on some people who use some Drugs"

How You Can Help

You can help in three ways:

  1. Educate yourself as to the basis of Casey's legal arguments. When it is understood that democratic Governments worldwide are implementing their drug laws unlawfully then the entire paradigm of drug law administration will transform from a predominantly polarized and punitive approach rooted in a subjective historical and cultural distinction to an evidence based approach committed to reducing potential harm from drug consumption whilst maximizing the benefits. You can find all of Casey's legal documents at the bottom of this page.
  2. Spread the meme of Drug Discrimination for it lies at the heart of Government's failure to implement drug law via "a balanced strategy focused on outcomes, based on evidence and delivered through partnership". Drug discrimination is the implementation of drug law based on a false distinction between familiar drugs property, used, traded and preferred by the electoral majority, and unfamiliar drugs property, used, traded and preferred by minorities, rather than distinguishing the objective risk potential presented by different drugs when consumed by humans and regulating accordingly.
  3. Donate money to Casey's legal fund, either through the purchase of merchandise on this website or through direct donations (see below for the various ways in which you can donate). This will be used entirely for legal expenses as set out below. A page will appear shortly on this site giving a transparent and full account of all monies received and all expenses paid.

These are some of the initial legal expenses we are seeking to fund by May 2008:

  • Obtain professional legal advice on each of the interconnected 16 points of law and 5 legal distinctions which Casey has identified in his four-year study of Government's maladministration of UK Drug Law. Casey firmly believes that these questions when answered properly and placed before the appropriate courts will precipitate the end of the "War on some people who use some Drugs".
    Estimated Cost £30,000 (GBP) or $60,000 (USD)
  • Instruct legal team to launch Criminal Appeal against conviction and/or sentence based on the advice provided on the 16 points of law encompassing both the Common Law equal rights and equal protection argument as well as the Human Rights Argument based on the concept of Drug Discrimination.
    Estimated Cost £20,000 (GBP) or $40,000 (USD)
  • Obtain complete transcripts of the trial and first appeal.
    Estimated Cost £10,000 (GBP) or $20,000 (USD)

Total of Initial Fund Raising Desire: £60,000 (GBP) or $120,000 (USD)

Please consider donating some money for Casey's Legal Defense Fund!

There are several ways you can donate:

  • Donate online by PayPal by clicking on this link
  • You can make non tax-deductable cheque donations via MAPS, please clearly indicate that the donation is for Casey's Legal Defense Fund and send to: MAPS, 10424 Love Creek Road, Ben Lomond CA, USA 95005. Make all cheques payable to MAPS. Phone: +01 831 336 4325 Fax: +01 831 336 3665 Email: askmaps@maps.org 
  • Cash, cheques, or real goods contributions can also be made directly. Please contact us by e-mail at: donate "at" freecasey (dot) org and we will provide instructions.

Send Mail to Casey!

His mailing address in prison is:

Casey William Hardison LH5330
HMP Swaleside
Eastchurch
Kent
ME12 4AX
United Kingdom

When writing from the UK, please send Casey a book of stamps for return correspondence.

Casey can accept cash, money orders and cheques from any jurisdiction. Cheques and money orders must be made payable to "the governor". You must include your name and address when making a donation, anonymous donations cannot be accepted at the prison. It is also advisable to send donations by registered post. For larger donations please use this site or MAPS.


Articles and Letters by Casey
Civil Legal Submissions
Criminal Legal Submissions
Court Judgments, Orders & Declarations
Links
News

Personal

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"...the so-called 'War on Drugs' is not a war on pills, powder, plants and potions, it is a war on mental states - a war on consciousness itself..."

- Casey to the Judge (Quoting RGB)

"A government that is permitted to set punishments for drug 'offences' in which a person has done nothing more than grow, manufacture, distribute, or use, the psychoactive agents which have been denoted as "controlled substances," participates in an even more pernicious form of censorship - a censorship of consciousness itself - by choosing to punish people for no other crime than choosing to experience or enable particular states of mind."

- Casey to the Judge (Quoting RGB)

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