Once he is clothed in the robes of the punitive priesthood, Baxter isn't subject to the law, but rather its embodiment – or so he would have those not similarly attired believe.

Whatever Baxter might claim as his official job title, his actual role is not to administer justice, but to act as an arbitrageur for the prison and probation industry, and the political class whose interests it serves. That conceit was displayed to good effect during an August 28 "restitution" hearing following the trial of William Esbensen and Scott Kangas, two owners of the 45thParallel medical marijuana co-op in Ontario, Oregon.

The judge had presided over a bench trial in which he had found Esbensen and Kangas guilty of "racketeering"  for supposedly delivering marijuana "for consideration." That conviction was achieved under a law that was no longer in effect at the time of the trial – and that became an unpleasant memory last November when Oregon voters enacted Measure 91, which decriminalized most adult recreational use of marijuana.

The Malheur County DA's office had sought prison terms for Esbensen and Kangas, but had to settle for probation. Now it was seeking "restitution" fees to pay the costs of the prosecution.

From Esbensen, whom the prosecution had characterized as the "ringleader" of a business enterprise that provided a legally recognized palliative medicine, the Malheur County DA's office initially demanded $24,000 in "restitution" to defray the costs of prosecution, which were estimated to be in the neighborhood of $40,000.