Pubdate: Tue, 18 Jun 2002 Source: Abbotsford News (CN BC) Copyright: 2002 Hacker Press Ltd. Contact: http://www.abbynews.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1155 Author: Russ Akins ABBOTSFORD IN TOP 10 OF POT PRODUCTION IN B.C. The bluish white haze hanging over the Fraser Valley may not just be smog - it could include a hearty dose of cannabis smoke. A ground-breaking study released this week by the University College of the Fraser Valley (UCFV) shows B.C. marijuana cultivation has grown rapidly by volume and value each year over a four-year period, from 1997 to 2000. And, says Abbotsford's deputy police chief, these are not "ma and pa" operations. Increasingly, organized crime is behind cultivation, police believe. Researchers at UCFV's criminology and criminal justice department and the International Centre for Criminal Law Reform and Criminal Justice Policy completed this first major study on the justice system's response to marijuana grow operations and trafficking in British Columbia. It was funded by the RCMP at a cost of about $115,000. It was released in two reports: Marijuana Growing Operations in British Columbia - An Empirical Survey (1997-2000) and Marijuana Trafficking Incidents in British Columbia (1997-2000). "If our objective so far was to reduce the availability of marijuana in the province, we are not succeeding," said UCFV professor Yvon Dandurand. "In spite of the fact that we are devoting more law enforcement and other resources each year to address the problem, there is more marijuana grown and available in British Columbia from year to year." Abbotsford ranks among the top 10 B.C. cultivation centres. Some findings of the study include: * The number of marijuana grow-ops coming to the attention of the police is increasing by 36 per cent each year. * The average size of grow-ops discovered is increasing by 40 per cent each year * The average dollar value of the grow-ops discovered is between $100,000 and $130,000. In Abbotsford, the report lists a 196 per cent increase in marijuana cultivation files opened by police between 1997 and 2000. In Chilliwack, that number is 200 per cent, and in Delta, a staggering 1,293 per cent. Abbotsford Police Deputy Chief Paul Tinsley said the issue is not one of busting "ma and pa grow ops," but dealing with organized criminal groups who see B. C. as a good place to do business. "If you read the report in whole, it in no way criticizes the police response. It points out the phenomenon where B.C. is becoming the grow capital of Canada, and the reasons for that," he told the Abbotsford News yesterday. Tinsley observed there is a migration of people to B.C., where compared to other jurisdictions the penalties are more lenient. The study shows prison sentences were ordered in only 18 per cent of cases, with an average length of 4.5 months. The typical cultivator is Caucasian (77 per cent), male (80 per cent), 35 years of age, with seven prior criminal convictions, but there is an increasing incidence of suspects of Vietnamese origin. "If somebody does do jail time, the average penalty is only four and a half months. In western Washington, federal guidelines dictate a minimum of five years," Tinsley said. "It's attractive for criminal groups to run grow-ops here. You can't maintain a large grow-op and distribute it on your own." Abbotsford Police have a section devoted to busting grow-ops, and in 2001, Tinsley estimated they shut down 131 in the city. In 2000, 181 cases of cultivation were reported. "This is not a battle for police to win - this requires a multi-agency battle where everybody has to be onside," including corrections, the provincial attorney-general and police, he said. Tinsley noted the report clearly indicates police are spinning their wheels: "If one guy with a $100,000 grow-op does four months (in jail), that's good business." That view is shared by one of the people who helped do research for the report, UCFV professor Darryl Plecas. He believes the incredible growth of the grow industry has outmatched the capacity of the police to respond. However, decriminalization is a separate debate, he stressed. "People are coming here in droves from out of the province. Police no sooner stop known growers and there's new people coming in to take their place. "Once a case goes to the prosecutors, plea bargains take place, and you have about half of your suspects walking away," Plecas added. "There are virtually no grow-ops in Washington state, Alberta has a few. What's the difference? One difference is sentencing." Rather than the popular conception of a benign "farmer" growing one or two plants for personal consumption, Plecas says the average size of a grow-op determined by the study - 192 plants, and a value of about $130,000 - indicates otherwise. "The average person involved is 35 years old and has a 13-year criminal history. This report says we're talking a collection of criminals here. "The tragedy occurs when young offenders or minority groups are drafted into trafficking - they're the ones with the greatest risk of getting caught." Most grow-ops are busted through tips from the public, through CrimeStoppers, for example, Plecas pointed out. "Abbotsford as a police department is clearly doing everything right. But everything that I know about psychology says that if you want to extinguish the behaviour, make the penalties outweigh the benefits." That has already happened in offences such as impaired driving, Plecas noted. On the activist side of the debate, Jon Fulford, who ran for the B.C. Marijuana Party in the Abbotsford-Clayburn riding in the last provincial election - and who is considering running against Abbotsford Mayor George Ferguson in November - told the Abbotsford News the study is "direct proof" police are "absolutely ineffective" in stopping or controlling grow operations. "I feel the B.C. pot industry is here to stay, and it will keep getting larger because tighter borders mean the cash flow is gigantic," he said yesterday. Over the four-year period of the study, police in B.C. seized 1.2 million marijuana plants and 8,646 kg of harvested marijuana. * To view the entire report, see the web page at: http://www.icclr.law.ubc.ca - --- MAP posted-by: Alex