The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Anything about distilling ya read in news.

Moderator: Site Moderator

Post Reply
magnetic_tarantula
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 603
Joined: Mon Feb 20, 2012 8:26 pm

The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by magnetic_tarantula »

magnetic_tarantula
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 603
Joined: Mon Feb 20, 2012 8:26 pm

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by magnetic_tarantula »

Apparently this is the first charge of its kind in San Diego county in decades, seems like a waste of taxpayer money.
magnetic_tarantula
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 603
Joined: Mon Feb 20, 2012 8:26 pm

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by magnetic_tarantula »

ex wife called the sheriff for a child welfare check saying I was moonshining in my home. She is angry because I have 66% custody of the girls since she is a terrible parent. The sheriff said it wasn't a big deal but did have to file that I had distillation equipment(i was cleaning a copper coil on my porch).
magnetic_tarantula
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 603
Joined: Mon Feb 20, 2012 8:26 pm

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by magnetic_tarantula »

Someone is going to create gofundme for my legal fees so I will likely post info about that somewhere. I am trying to convince her to make "Moonshiners of the world unite!" T-shirts.....that or "Save Derek" shirts lol

I think it'll work out just fine. There is lots of evidence that my intentions were to open a distillery and that is why i was researching recipes and building/acquiring equipment.

The funniest part is the sheriff who drove me down to the county jail said to me....."man that whiskey you made smells so good, I wish I could've tried it"

I wish I could've seen the 20 sheriffs/fbi/ttb/abc agents nosing my fucking whiskey.......woulda been a great picture.
magnetic_tarantula
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 603
Joined: Mon Feb 20, 2012 8:26 pm

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by magnetic_tarantula »

Just in case anyone is curious, this past Tuesday the District Attorney dismissed my case. It doesn't appear that I was ever even charged. I have no word whether I will get any confiscated stuff back. A whole box truck was filled with all the equipment I had built to open a distillery in the future. I'm definitely very happy to have this case over with. It took a bit of effort from my lawyer, but it appears her hard work paid off. The total cost, minus lost equipment/whiskey, ran in the range of $7000($5000 retainer plus $2000 bail). For me it worked out OK. The fund my friend started raised $1900, and the ex-wife that called the sheriff on me it cost her $3500. I'm glad I fought it, hopefully this is just one more chink in the armor towards getting this hobby legalized. There is currently legislation up before the House to update the laws surrounding this.
User avatar
Bigbob
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 3128
Joined: Sun Jun 22, 2014 2:57 pm
Location: SE Oklahoma

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by Bigbob »

Congratulations on getting off. Too bad it had to hurt you money wise,but, could have been lots worse. Hope you get your property back but I wouldn't hold my breath. Good luck!
If you wear underwear then it's a dress!
http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... 15&t=62150 How I run a small still
User avatar
Truckinbutch
Angel's Share
Angel's Share
Posts: 8107
Joined: Sun Feb 03, 2013 12:49 pm

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by Truckinbutch »

Bigbob wrote:Congratulations on getting off. Too bad it had to hurt you money wise,but, could have been lots worse. Hope you get your property back but I wouldn't hold my breath. Good luck!
+1 on Bob .
You Might get some equipment back . Bet liquid goods 'evaporated in poor storage'.
If you ain't the lead dog in the team , the scenery never changes . Ga Flatwoods made my avatar and I want to thank him for that .
Don't drink water , fish fornicate in it .
Uncle Jesse
Site Admin
Posts: 3922
Joined: Wed Apr 21, 2004 3:00 pm

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by Uncle Jesse »

Very glad to hear that not only did this work out for you but that it cost our ex some cabbage!
If only the best birds sang, the woods would be silent.
User avatar
T-Pee
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 4355
Joined: Mon Feb 18, 2013 9:20 pm
Location: The wilds of rural California

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by T-Pee »

Uncle Jesse wrote:Very glad to hear that not only did this work out for you but that it cost our ex some cabbage!
You were married to her too?? :wtf:

tp (knows y)
goblin
Bootlegger
Posts: 104
Joined: Fri Jan 11, 2013 7:25 am
Location: Houston

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by goblin »

it probably cost the tax payer more that what it cost you. but that is what they do, what a waste of time and $$$
good luck
hope your kids are well.
User avatar
bearriver
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 4442
Joined: Fri Nov 22, 2013 10:17 pm
Location: Western Washington

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by bearriver »

magnetic_tarantula wrote:Just in case anyone is curious, this past Tuesday the District Attorney dismissed my case. It doesn't appear that I was ever even charged. I have no word whether I will get any confiscated stuff back. A whole box truck was filled with all the equipment I had built to open a distillery in the future.
Seen a similar situation happen, not directly related to distilling but related enough... You have a good chance to get your stuff back from my understanding.
User avatar
MoonBreath
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 2238
Joined: Thu Jan 31, 2013 7:34 pm
Location: Horseshoe Bend, Ky.

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by MoonBreath »

Nice ending to a bad deal ...Gives us all some hope.
Glad to hear it's behind you.
*Spend it all, Use it up, Wear it out*
Beware of sheet-sniffers and dime-droppers!
User avatar
skow69
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 3230
Joined: Tue Dec 06, 2011 3:03 am
Location: Cascadia

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by skow69 »

magnetic_tarantula wrote:ex wife called the sheriff for a child welfare check saying I was moonshining in my home. She is angry because I have 66% custody of the girls since she is a terrible parent.
Ain't that the way it goes. Most of the people I know who ever got busted for anything got it because some crazy vindictive ex got pissed off about some bullshit. The gofundme is still open. I kicked ya a little. Glad it's over.
Distilling at 110f and 75 torr.
I'm not an absinthe snob, I'm The Absinthe Nazi. "NO ABSINTHE FOR YOU!"
magnetic_tarantula
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 603
Joined: Mon Feb 20, 2012 8:26 pm

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by magnetic_tarantula »

goblin wrote:it probably cost the tax payer more that what it cost you. but that is what they do, what a waste of time and $$$
good luck
hope your kids are well.
It certainly cost more than $7000, my hope is that for future cases they take more time to decide how much time and effort they want to put into it. I believe that somewhere along the way they should have taken a step back and looked at everything and said "Is he selling or is he not selling?" and "What is our goal here? And the likely outcome." I think honest answers to those questions would have resulted in a different outcome.

Uncle Jesse wrote:Very glad to hear that not only did this work out for you but that it cost our ex some cabbage!
I basically just refused to sign off on the paperwork from the sale of our home unless she accept half responsibility for this. I accept that it is my hobby and i knew the risk.

Even more than all of that now, I actually have 100% of my girls. She is currently in a drug rehab for a serious meth habit. Its crazy how an addicts mind works, its wrong for me to make moonshine(outside on the porch), but its totally cool for her to be smoking meth while watching the kids. Go figure.

I actually went to a whiskey tasting last night, if I get my whiskey back I might invite the sheriffs, my lawyers and the TTB/ABC agent over for a tasting, and some friends of course. Make it a Bottle Kill Event. I'm sure my lawyer is like "WTF is wrong with this guy!!!", I would say its simply in my nature to share the awesomeness that is whisky and home distilling.
Uncle Jesse
Site Admin
Posts: 3922
Joined: Wed Apr 21, 2004 3:00 pm

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by Uncle Jesse »

T-Pee wrote:
Uncle Jesse wrote:Very glad to hear that not only did this work out for you but that it cost our ex some cabbage!
You were married to her too?? :wtf:

tp (knows y)
now that's funny
If only the best birds sang, the woods would be silent.
User avatar
Snackson
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 517
Joined: Mon Jun 23, 2014 8:03 pm
Location: PNW

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by Snackson »

magnetic_tarantula wrote: I actually went to a whiskey tasting last night, if I get my whiskey back I might invite the sheriffs, my lawyers and the TTB/ABC agent over for a tasting, and some friends of course. Make it a Bottle Kill Event. I'm sure my lawyer is like "WTF is wrong with this guy!!!", I would say its simply in my nature to share the awesomeness that is whisky and home distilling.
I like your style. Been following your story closely as I'm in the same county. Glad you're back active and everything is working out in your favor. Once you start your distillery, let me know if you want some free manual labor, more than willing to help out.
magnetic_tarantula
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 603
Joined: Mon Feb 20, 2012 8:26 pm

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by magnetic_tarantula »

"Active", I wish!! I'm still trying to figure out if I will get any of my equipment back. I had ALOT of nice thick copper, tanks, kegs, wood, fermenters.....Maybe we should get a co-op here in SoCal and start our own distillery/tasting room only. Each member pay $50/month. You get legal still time, and any money we make goes back into the business!! I'm kind of surprised it hasn't been done before. You can rent a door in an industrial park for $700/month. I could put together 10 15 gallon keg stills/columns for almost nothing. It'd be killer!!

I like your Avatar.....can't wait for Super Troopers 2!!
city shiner
Bootlegger
Posts: 126
Joined: Fri Sep 25, 2015 3:06 pm

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by city shiner »

I almost never post, but I been following your story for a bit now. Damn glad they didn't pursue it, damn glad you have your kids.
Tickedmeoff
Novice
Posts: 9
Joined: Tue May 17, 2016 9:15 am
Location: Canuckistan

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by Tickedmeoff »

Congrates! What a life huh?
Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable.
Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/autho ... nnedy.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow
magnetic_tarantula
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 603
Joined: Mon Feb 20, 2012 8:26 pm

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by magnetic_tarantula »

When life throws you lemons, turn it into a good brandy!!

Though I don't think I've ever heard of Lemon Brandy.
thumper123
Swill Maker
Posts: 150
Joined: Sun Mar 10, 2013 8:16 am

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by thumper123 »

Glad you still have the kids, Mag. What a nightmare of a story. Maybe I'm a lot paranoid, but I envision this happening to me all the time. My love of the hobby overides my fears, however, as I'm sure it does with you also, and it's really good to hear of your favorable legal outcome.

I don't think inviting the law enforcement officials involved over for a sample is over the top at all.
User avatar
thecroweater
retired
Posts: 6079
Joined: Wed Mar 14, 2012 9:04 am
Location: Central Highlands Vic. Australia

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by thecroweater »

magnetic_tarantula wrote:"Active", I wish!! I'm still trying to figure out if I will get any of my equipment back. I had ALOT of nice thick copper, tanks, kegs, wood, fermenters.....Maybe we should get a co-op here in SoCal and start our own distillery/tasting room only. Each member pay $50/month. You get legal still time, and any money we make goes back into the business!! I'm kind of surprised it hasn't been done before. You can rent a door in an industrial park for $700/month. I could put together 10 15 gallon keg stills/columns for almost nothing. It'd be killer!!

I like your Avatar.....can't wait for Super Troopers 2!!
Dunno what the Tax laws/rates are there but i can tell ya why that would never do here. I'll be damned if I,'d pay $20 or more tax a bottle for something i made myself for myself, damned if I'd pay a red cent for that plus you got to do a ton of book keeping
Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety. Benjamin Franklin
magnetic_tarantula
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 603
Joined: Mon Feb 20, 2012 8:26 pm

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by magnetic_tarantula »

I meant for people who want to nano-distill. That way we co-op all the legal related costs. Rather than 20 people going through the process individually one company goes through the process once for all its members.Each individual member would have to go through the process of registering their own corporation, but then they would essentially be renting time from a distillery to create product. I don't know that it would work, but for someone like me who wants to put a product on a shelf, I could see myself making 500-1000 bottles a year to sell. Make 125-250 bottle runs 4 times a year to sell(already have my lineup picked out).

There is currently a law up before congress to lower the rates for small distillers. I thought they vote on it next month.
User avatar
Kareltje
Distiller
Posts: 2176
Joined: Tue Feb 09, 2016 4:29 pm

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by Kareltje »

magnetic_tarantula wrote:I meant for people who want to nano-distill. That way we co-op all the legal related costs. Rather than 20 people going through the process individually one company goes through the process once for all its members.Each individual member would have to go through the process of registering their own corporation, but then they would essentially be renting time from a distillery to create product. I don't know that it would work, but for someone like me who wants to put a product on a shelf, I could see myself making 500-1000 bottles a year to sell. Make 125-250 bottle runs 4 times a year to sell(already have my lineup picked out).

There is currently a law up before congress to lower the rates for small distillers. I thought they vote on it next month.
That is a good idea! :clap:

More or less the same idea can be used by real hobby-distillers. With some friends I have a kind of toolpool: when we need a tool, we can freely borrow it from each other. We all mow our lawns only once a week (or two weeks), so the other six (or 13) days the machine sits idle in the shed.
Slivovitz
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 208
Joined: Sat Jul 25, 2020 5:01 pm
Location: Underground bunker

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by Slivovitz »

Did he ever open the distillery?
magnetic_tarantula
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 603
Joined: Mon Feb 20, 2012 8:26 pm

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by magnetic_tarantula »

Nope. Still thinking about it. I think it’ll happen eventually.

At the moment I have bigger fish to fry. I’m more than halfway through an engineering degree, but I expect when that’s done I will move forward.

But then again I’ve been saying some form of that for years lol

My hope is that I’ll make enough money as an engineer, that I can afford to put up my own building, zoned and legal, apply for licenses etc. my goal isn’t really making money, it’s more about having fun and making things that don’t exist and can’t because of economies of scale.

I like the idea of just making barrels and people can come into the distillery and pick which barrel they want to try. If they like it they can buy a bottle.

I have so many ideas, that I never got to try out(I haven’t distilled since this and have found the passion to create still burns strong). Things that even after all this time do not and have never existed.
cob
Master of Distillation
Posts: 2691
Joined: Sun Jul 26, 2009 4:38 pm
Location: little puffs of dust where my feet used to be

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by cob »

Good to see life go on. Best of luck!! Did they return anything?
be water my friend
magnetic_tarantula
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 603
Joined: Mon Feb 20, 2012 8:26 pm

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by magnetic_tarantula »

They returned everything except the still(modified beer keg), column, the various copper I had(I would buy from the recycler and build/sell equipment)….100’s of lbs worth, and the whiskey is made(about 15 gallons of 100% Rye).

They returned:
4-125 gallon stainless fermenting tanks(was going to modify for later use in a legal distillery), 150ish lbs of sugar(just shows their ignorance of the actual process), returned my heating elements and controller, all books/paperwork, my kids electronics, my computer, all my various grains, woods, etc

I literally had to rent a uhaul it was so much stuff.
User avatar
Yummyrum
Global moderator
Posts: 7596
Joined: Sat Jul 06, 2013 2:23 am
Location: Fraser Coast QLD Aussie

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by Yummyrum »

Interesting stuff mt

Curious what you said in your defence that convinced Judge you’re not a bad guy
Snickers902
Novice
Posts: 23
Joined: Fri Dec 04, 2020 10:46 pm

Re: The FBI/Sheriff/ABC raiding my house

Post by Snickers902 »

Just a curious question. Have you ever considered a fuel alcohol license to cover the legalities of having a still?
Post Reply