Pubdate: Thu, 06 Jul 2006
Source: Charlotte Observer (NC)
Copyright: 2006 The Charlotte Observer
Contact:  http://www.charlotte.com/mld/observer/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/78
Author: Beth Sussman
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Cannabis)

RESIDENTS ARE ASKED TO REPORT POT PLANTS

Officers Need Help As Warm Weather Is Favorable For Growing

Tomatoes aren't the only crop law enforcement officers expect to see 
this summer.

As weather conditions become favorable for growing plants, including 
illegal ones, narcotics officers anticipate more people growing 
marijuana plants outdoors.

With the increase in outdoor growing, the sheriff's office is looking 
for residents to help identify growing sites.

In 2005, the Union County Sheriff's Office Narcotics Bureau seized 
495 marijuana plants from 10 growing operations. Four of those 
operations were outdoors.

Lt. Macky Goodman said outdoor growers may put marijuana plants in a 
variety of places, from pots on a porch to large wooded areas.

Residents can identify marijuana growing sites by the arrangement of 
the plants.

"Nature is random," Goodman said. "If you go out in the woods and see 
plants potted in a row, man did that. Nature didn't draw them in a row."

He added that growers might put the plants on someone else's property 
without permission, to avoid being arrested. In that case, the 
narcotics officers request that landowners notify the sheriff's 
office rather than trying to remove the marijuana plants themselves.

"I'd rather us go out there and get them because plants can be booby 
trapped, and I've even seen posted armed guards," Goodman said.

Marijuana plants can be identified by an odd number of fan-shaped 
leaves that have ridges along the sides. Other plants, such as the 
Texas Star hibiscus plant, have similar appearances to the marijuana 
plant, leading to occasional misidentifications of growing sites in the past.

Goodman recalled an instance when the narcotics bureau had received 
several reports of a growing site in a front yard. When the officers 
went to investigate, they found that the supposed marijuana plants 
were actually flowering hibiscus plants in the garden of an elderly woman.

Growing marijuana is a felony, and prison time is a possibility for 
those convicted, depending on the amount of marijuana they grew and 
past criminal records.

Seen a Marijuana Growing Site?

Call 704-292-2730 with information about marijuana growers. The 
sheriff's office will pay for information leading to the seizure of 
marijuana plants and arrest of growers.
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman