Pubdate: Fri, 07 Jul 2006 Source: Palm Beach Post, The (FL) Copyright: 2006 The Palm Beach Post Contact: http://www.palmbeachpost.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/333 Author: Allyson Bird, Sarah Prohaska Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/af.htm (Asset Forfeiture) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Cannabis) Note: MAP archives articles exactly as published, except that our editors may redact the names and addresses of accused persons who have not been convicted of a crime, if those named are not otherwise public figures or officials. PORT ST.LUCIE POLICE NIP DOPE-GROWING IN BUD PORT ST. LUCIE - Two months, 51 alleged marijuana grow houses and hundreds of overtime hours later, police investigators in Florida's safest city boast a new expertise. When Port St. Lucie police began busting the grow houses in early May, they followed mail and other documents from house to house. But now they can spot growing operations from the street, officials said. And their experience has brought statewide attention. Police Chief John Skinner said the Florida Department of Law Enforcement recently contacted him, asking whether Port St. Lucie investigators could make a presentation to FDLE officials in Tallahassee. Privacy fences surrounded most of the homes, and a second fence concealed an outside air-conditioning unit, court documents show. Blacked-out windows in the garage areas and electrical wiring that appeared to have been altered also were documented. Interior walls cordoned off farming rooms from other parts of the single-family houses, according to court documents. In many cases, the growing and drying rooms were accessible only from an outside locked door, detectives said, and aluminum foil lined the walls where plants were being cultivated in large pots. The telltale sign described in the court records, though, was the strong marijuana odor police smelled wafting from the homes. "Is it a big deal or a big city?" Skinner said Thursday, explaining that Port St. Lucie's burgeoning population is bound to invite some riffraff. Police hope that, once busted, these houses will remain in their hands. Circuit Judge Ben Bryan found Thursday morning that the city has probable cause to move forward with forfeiture proceedings on four of the houses police hope to seize permanently. Last month, he ruled that forfeiture cases can proceed for six other houses. The probable-cause findings were the first step in a lengthy seizure process that could end in trials. Police officials are reluctant to talk about the end of anything just yet, though Sgt. Todd Schrader said intelligence-gathering is taking longer with each bust. Asked whether he thinks that signals an end in sight, Schrader remembered telling investigators at the first bust to expect two or three. "Would I have expected we'd gotten up to 51? No," he said. "So I'm not a good person to ask." Allyson Bird and Sarah Prohaska are Palm Beach Post Staff Writers - --- MAP posted-by: Derek