Update: Idaho Three Press Conference  4-29-13 (Josh Rinehart, Lindsey Rinehart, and Sarah Caldwell)
Channel: Idaho Calling
Date: 2013-04-30

Update: Press Conference with Better Audio here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5t52hxZxG0
Links and Mainstream Media article coverage text in description box
Radical Russ introduction to Idaho Three Press Conference (Video)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRHPHlAqBz0
News Item with response from Boise Police Department Spokeswoman (Article text in description)
http://www.idahostatesman.com/2013/04/29/2556711/boise-mom-cops-took-my-kids-over.html

By Sven Berg

Lindsey Rinehart's two sons are in state custody after police found things in Rinehart's home that warranted removing the children, Boise Police spokeswoman Lynn Hightower said.

At a press conference Monday on the steps of the Idaho State Capitol building, Rinehart accused police of targeting her for her activism in favor of legalizing medical marijuana in Idaho. Rinehart, who said she uses marijuana to treat her multiple sclerosis, is a leading voice for Compassionate Idaho, a group of state residents working to relax marijuana laws.

She has not been charged with a crime.

Hightower said investigators went to Rinehart's home last week after a child at a local school reported being sick. The child was suspected of having eaten marijuana that another child brought to the school, Hightower said. That led police to Rinehart's home, she said, which they entered after receiving permission from a babysitter who was there with four children, two of them Rinehart's sons.

Rinehart and her husband, Josh, weren't home at the time and officers couldn't reach them by phone, Hightower said.

According to a press release from Boise police, investigators say they found drug paraphernalia and what appeared to be marijuana. They secured a search warrant and are continuing an investigation regarding the contents of the home.

Meanwhile, detectives concluded the marijuana and paraphernalia were accessible to children and contacted the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare to remove the children from the home, the release states.

The release noted that Boise police do not normally share details on an active investigation, but chose to respond after the Rineharts spoke about the situation.

Boise Weekly article link with text
http://www.boiseweekly.com/CityDesk/archives/2013/04/29/medical-marijuana-advocate-goes-public-after-children-are-taken-placed-into-foster-care
Josh and Lindsey Rinehart believe the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare and the Boise Police Department erred in their decision to place their the Rinehart's two sons in foster care, citing "imminent danger" because of the presence of marijuana found in the house.

"We're taking issue with the 'imminent danger' charge," Lindsey Rinehart said on the steps of the Idaho State Capitol. "I am a multiple sclerosis patient. The reason I had cannabis in my household is I'm a multiple sclerosis patient."

Lindsey uses marijuana, she said, for medicinal purposes to treat her illness, which can cause violent muscle spasms. Boise Weekly readers may remember Rinehart from her testimony at the Idaho State Capitol regarding medical marijuana. As director of Compassionate Idaho, Rinehart has helped spearhead a petition drive to legalize marijuana in Idaho.

While the couple were on vacation April 23, she told Boise Weekly, Health and Welfare and Boise Police entered their home, confiscated marijuana found there, and ultimately placed her 5-year-old and 10-year-old boys in protective custody.

"We had just gotten cell service, and right when we entered Donnelly my cell phone kicked on and somebody had said the cops are at your house. And I knew," she said.

The Rinhearts told media that on April 30 they will have supervised visitation with their children, and have begun the process of working with the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare to have their children returned to them. She said criminal charges have not yet been filed against her, but she anticipates they may be.

"Right now all I've heard is that they could be pending. There's no warrant. I don't know—it's kind of this constant anxiety attack of when they're going to come," she said.

http://www.kboi2.com/news/local/Rhinehart-Pot-Marijuana-arrest-Boise-Idaho-News-205316951.html
http://magicvalley.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/children-of-idaho-marijuana-activists-put-in-foster-care/article_5650effa-b10b-11e2-9a02-0019bb2963f4.html