Casey William Hardison

Casey William Hardison (born 1971) is an American chemist convicted in the United Kingdom in 2005 of six offences involving psychedelic drugs: three of production, two of possession, and one of exportation.

Background Hardison was born in Washington state in the summer of 1971. He is committed to the entheogenic use of psychedelic substances.

Research

Activism The Drug Equality Alliance, a nonprofit organization working to secure equal rights and protections for drug users, was set up by lawyer Darryl Bickler inspired by Hardison's legal arguments.

Crimes After moving to Brighton, Hardison illegally manufactured three class A drugs: 2C-B, DMT, and LSD. he used £38,386 worth of chemical ingredients to produce hallucinogenic tablets with a street value of up to £5m.

Arrest In July 2003, Hardison sent two packages to the U.S. During a random inspection at the FedEx hub in Memphis, Tennessee,

Trial and conviction In March 2005, after a 10-week trial at Lewes Crown Court,

Subsequently, the House of Lords (then the court of last resort for UK criminal law) refused Hardison's final appeal, and his similar appeal to the European Court of Human Rights likewise failed. he moved to Northern California.

Post-incarceration Death of Anthony Birkholz On January 17, 2017, in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, after drinking heavily, Hardison and two other men consumed a substance believed by the Teton County, Wyoming coroner to be the psychedelic drug 5-MeO-DMT. One of the men, artist and filmmaker Anthony Birkholz, died from aspiration of vomitus secondary to food, alcohol and 5-MeO-DMT ingestion. The jury at the coroner's inquest found that Birkholz's death was accidental but could have been prevented. Hardison called 5-MeO-DMT "a very rare, beautiful experience," but admitted he hadn't done any since the night Birkholz died. "Looking back now," he said, "I'm not so charmed."

Aftermath A day after Birkholz's death, Hardison launched a GoFundMe page, "Tony Birkholz Slips the Mortal Coil," raising $6,100. "This campaign," Hardison wrote, "intends to raise memorial funds and to ensure his remains reach his intended destination. Any remaining funds will be donated to the Buffalo Field Campaign, West Yellowstone, Montana, in the fight to protect the last remaining wild buffalo." After several hundred people attended a vigil at the Pink Garter, Hardison said part of the $6,100 raised online paid for the open bar that night. None of the remaining $3,900, however, was immediately donated as pledged to the Buffalo Field Campaign.

Arrest in Idaho In February 2017, Hardison was stopped in Bellevue, Idaho, for speeding. After a drug-sniffing dog detected controlled drugs, police searched Hardison's vehicle. They found $7,928 in cash, about two pounds (≈ 0.9 kg) of marijuana, a half gram of cocaine and what was believed to be heroin. However, tests by the Idaho State Police labs determined that the suspected substance was not heroin.

In August 2017, all charges against Hardison, including three felony counts and one misdemeanor, were dismissed after a judge ruled that the traffic stop was unconstitutionally delayed without reasonable suspicion, allowing a canine officer time to detect the presence of controlled substances.

Arrest in California On July 28, 2020, Hardison was arrested in Yorkville, CA, by the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office. A $500,000 Fugitive From Justice warrant saw Hardison extradited back to Jackson, to face charges stemming from the botched sting operation by Wyoming officers. On November 17, 2020, in his defense, Hardison planned to present a motion to Dismiss the Indictment based on the premise that the Wyoming Controlled Substances Act, W.S. § 35-7-1001 et seq., ("the Act") violates his due process and equal protection rights guaranteed by the Wyoming Constitution and the Constitution for the United States of America.

Arrest in Black Rock City, Nevada On September 2, 2024, Hardison was arrested at the annual Burning Man festival by the Pershing County Sheriff's Office for Sexual Assault, Arrest on Other-Agency Warrant, and for Possession of Scheduled (1) or (2) C/S LT 14 Grams, 1st or 2nd Offense. The Arrest on Other-Agency Warrant was due to an outstanding warrant related to the prior Wyoming charges, after Casey again left the Jackson Hole area before his legal situation was resolved.

2024 presidential campaign In a January 22, 2021 interview with the Jackson Hole News&Guide, Casey Hardison announced his 2024 bid for president. Before he slipped underground again, Hardison had planned to run for President in the forthcoming general election as a candidate for a revived Democratic-Republican Party, originally founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in 1792.

Media appearances Hardison has appeared on the television shows Hamilton's Pharmacopeia and Trafficked with Mariana van Zeller.