Risk: Officers Face Danger Every Day. SUGARLOAF MOUNTAIN -- A coordinated attack on illegal marijuana growers operating in nearby national forests is in full swing with today's large-scale raid on Sugarloaf Mountain. And with nearly 90 grow sites taken out thus far in Tulare County, local, state and federal law enforcement officers are showing they mean business. "We've been planning this for about three or four years, trying to get enough resources together at one time to really make an impact," Tulare County Sheriff Bill Wittman said, "not only to remove the marijuana plants, but to take out the infrastructure." [continues 907 words]
To the Editor: The so-called "War on drugs" in regard to marijuana has failed. We spend a fortune trying to control it, while at the same time filling our over-crowded prisons with inmates. This attempt at control has made growing it very lucrative - one plant is worth $4,000. Marijuana has been around for 5,000 years, and it is very easy to grow. Our state currently has a $15-billion budget shortfall, with cutbacks in salaries for 200,000 state employees. I suggest we legalize marijuana, then tax its sale to the max. Stop wasting money trying to control it. Bill Denneen Nipomo [end]
VISALIA -- Last week's drug bust involving a massive marijuana grow site above Porterville is drawing national attention with the arrival today of the nation's drug czar. Ten media outlets, including CNN and CNBC, converged on the National Guard Armory building in Visalia shortly after noon for a press conference to address the relative success of the joint operation. John Walters, director of the White House's Office of National Drug Control Policy, McGregor Scott, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of California, and Tulare County Sheriff Bill Wittman each spent several minutes answering reporters' questions. [continues 424 words]
As the calendar flips to August, the provincial police force is escalating its effort to uproot marijuana crops before the would-be "farmers" have a chance to cash in. While indoor growing operations have become a major source of the pot supply, police say the old-fashioned outdoor marijuana field hasn't dried up. "We definitely have a problem with our indoor marijuana growing and as well at this time of year our outdoor growing. It's still very prevalent in our communities," said Detective Chris Dobler. [continues 775 words]
Saddled with an economy that's as much about scrambling to hold onto the jobs we've got as trying to create new ones, eastern Ontario has chased many ventures over the years to find that magic economic bullet. Fantasia, anyone? But it turns out there's been a possible economic salvation under our noses all along: marijuana. Weed has been on my mind for much of this week. And before my bosses - and Brockville police - get too excited, let me be clear that it's been more than two decades since I actually crossed paths with pot. [continues 652 words]
A GROUND breaking project aims to shatter the taboo of drug addiction in the Muslim community. More than 50 Muslim women joined an event led by drug and alcohol support charity Drugsline, where they met with volunteers and support workers. In a comfortable environment at the Eton Road Community Centre, Ilford, the women talked openly about the impact of drugs and alcohol use - a subject usually avoided among the Muslim community. The event on Thursday, July 17, was organised following a Drugsline research project which uncovered a gaping hole in support services available to Muslim communities. [continues 213 words]
The ex-common-law partner of a Quebec transport driver denied he smoked marijuana prior to an accident that killed one person and seriously injured another. Joanne Dubeau testified Thursday that she spent the day and evening prior to the fatal collision with Sean Du Jardin and that she never saw him smoking pot. Du Jardin, 41, has pleaded not guilty to charges of impaired driving causing death, impaired driving causing bodily harm, dangerous driving causing death, dangerous driving causing bodily harm and possession of marijuana. [continues 311 words]
A Montreal man accused of being high on marijuana when he killed one person and seriously injured another has no idea how his tractor-trailer plowed into the back of the passenger van. "I can't explain it in my own mind," Sean Du Jardin told police a month after the fatal accident on Highway 401, west of Mallorytown. "I still can't figure out what happened." Du Jardin said he picked up tea and a muffin at Tim Hortons and was heading west on his usual run from Montreal to Toronto when he came upon the van. [continues 440 words]
Driving a vehicle while stoned on marijuana is as criminal and dangerous as driving while impaired by alcohol. That's what the Crown hopes to prove in a case against a Montreal truck driver who's accused of killing one person and seriously injuring another in an accident on Highway 401 four years ago while allegedly high on pot. Sean Du Jardin, 41, faces charges of impaired driving causing death, impaired driving causing bodily harm, dangerous driving causing death, dangerous driving causing bodily harm and possession of marijuana. [continues 402 words]
A California appellate court ruled Thursday that state legislators overstepped their bounds in 2003 by limiting the amount of marijuana that patients could possess for medical purposes. The unanimous opinion by Los Angeles' 2nd District Court of Appeal said legislators acted unconstitutionally when they passed a statute that effectively amended Proposition 215 -- also known as the Compassionate Use Act of 1996 -- to allow patients a maximum 8 ounces of dried pot and six mature or 12 immature marijuana plants at any given time. [continues 491 words]
A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge ruled Thursday that federal law allows landlords to boot medical marijuana dispensaries that rent from them. The decision by Judge Margaret Oldendorf was a strike against dispensaries in their legal battle against the Drug Enforcement Administration. The agency, over the past year or so, has notified landlords who rent to dispensaries that doing so is a violation of federal law, even though medical marijuana is legal in California. The case before Oldendorf stemmed from Northridge, Calif., landlord Parthenia Center's attempt to evict dispensary Today's Health Care Inc. [continues 486 words]
While the federal government continues to use asset forfeiture as well as DEA raids to attack medical marijuana providers, it has become increasingly clear that the current draconian federal ban on medical use of marijuana has lost all credibility ("A budding rebellion," March 10). While the government adamantly insists that marijuana has no medical value, on Feb. 14 the 124,000-member American College of Physicians called on the federal government to reclassify marijuana, stating specifically that the scientific evidence "supports the use of medical marijuana in certain conditions." ACP added pointedly, "A clear discord exists between the scientific community and federal legal and regulatory agencies over the medicinal value of marijuana." [continues 80 words]
When the Drug Enforcement Administration sent letters last year to California landlords who rent to marijuana dispensaries, reminding them - not so subtly - that it's a federal crime to do so, they opened another front in the battle to define how pot clubs operate in the hazy border between state and federal law. The letters state that "federal law takes precedence over state law" and that Proposition 215 - which in 1996 legalized medical marijuana in California - offers landlords no defense against penalties of 20 years in prison and the loss of their property. [continues 933 words]
COLUMBUS - Two former officers have agreed to testify against a third officer who is facing federal drug charges. Former Zanesville Police Officer Trevor Fusner and Genesis HealthCare Systems Police Officer Chad Mills have reached plea deals with the federal government, which will result in at least 10 years in prison for the pair. The two will testify against former ZPD officer Sean Beck, who is still facing charges, and any other law enforcement officials who are engaging in illegal activities, according to the plea agreement. [continues 616 words]
COLUMBUS - The city will re-evaulate the termination of former officer Donald Peterson after the U.S. Attorney's Office was granted a motion to dismiss federal drug charges against him and four others. The charges were dismissed Friday against Peterson, his wife Serritha, Steven Gibson, Gary Moody and Shelly Tyson. Peterson was fired from the Zanesville Police Department in January after being indicted on one count of conspiracy to distribute crack, five counts of selling or distributing morphine, Oxycodone and crack, and one count of conspiracy to distribute crack, morphine, Oxycodone and other controlled substances. [continues 887 words]
A Brockville police constable is recovering this morning after he was shot in the leg by a fellow officer during a drug raid at an Abbott Street residence early Saturday morning. Police said Constable Mark Heffernan was "accidentally shot" by a fellow member of the city force's emergency response team. Heffernan's injuries were described as minor and he was treated and released at Brockville General Hospital. According to Chief John Manoll, Heffernan was one of four ERT members who had entered the upstairs portion of the residence as part of the raid. [continues 413 words]
Three Brockville physicians plan to open a clinic for drug addicts in the city's downtown core early next year. And while the "addiction clinic" will tackle patients' hard-drug habits, Dr. Andrew Everett, who will run the King Street West facility with Drs. George Kolbe and Charles Bonham-Carter, said it will also try to help people who kick such habits to tackle other addictions as well, such as marijuana, drinking and smoking. All three physicians are part of the Brockville Family Health Team, but Everett stressed the clinic is a separate endeavour not linked to that health team. [continues 695 words]
Two men on a "mission" to rob a marijuana grow operation mistakenly raided the wrong home, putting a Kemptville couple watching television through a horrifying ordeal on Labour Day weekend, a court heard Wednesday. Jesse Barkley, 21, and Archie Trepanier, 27, were sentenced to seven years in jail for their part in a home invasion on County Road 44 on Sept. 4. Ontario Superior Court Justice John Waugh said the pair would have got more time in jail if they didn't plead guilty to the crime. [continues 584 words]
COLUMBUS - A former Zanesville police officer has to stay in jail until his trial in March, a federal judge ruled Tuesday because of the severity of the charges. Sean Beck, 28, was indicted by a federal grand jury Oct. 25 on six federal charges - two counts of drug trafficking in Percocet, three counts of possession of a firearm in the commission of a drug trafficking crime and one count of conspiracy to traffic drugs. On Friday Beck was in Judge Terrance Kemp's court asking to be allowed out of the Franklin County Jail on bond to await his trial. According to Kemp's ruling, he took into consideration that the charges had risen out of a pattern of criminal activity involving the seizure of drugs and re-distribution of those drugs from suspected drug traffickers in the Zanesville area and a plan to obtain additional drugs by stealing them from a drug supplier. [continues 258 words]
Medical pot-using patients won a major victory Wednesday when a California appeal court ruled that Garden Grove cops must return the marijuana they confiscated from a Southern California man during a traffic stop. The man's attorney, Joseph Elford, chief counsel for the Oakland-based Americans for Safe Access, was almost breathless from excitement in confirming that the ruling was the first published decision in which a California appellate court ordered the return of doctor-approved medical marijuana. "This is a huge case for us," Elford said. "It's probably the greatest legal victory for medical marijuana patients in California to date." [continues 542 words]
In its campaign for revised laws for students convicted with drug charges, the Students for Sensible Drug Policy group is taking on the Aid Elimination Penalty. The AEP under the Higher Education Act, which was signed into legislation by Congress in 1988, requires that students who apply for federal aid must reveal past drug convictions. SSDP is asking for a full removal of the AEP. According to the SSDP's report titled Harmful Drug Law Hits Home, "the Aid Elimination Penalty automatically strips financial aid from students with any drug conviction, including misdemeanor marijuana possession." [continues 292 words]
ZANESVILLE - The second Zanesville police officer who is the target of a federal investigation will be resigning from the department, according to the police chief. Sean Beck, 28, was arrested by FBI agents and charged with one count of extortion and one count of conspiracy to distribute cocaine. Beck was immediately transported to the Franklin County Jail and waived both a preliminary hearing and a bond hearing this past week. According to Chief Eric Lambes, Beck has notified the department of his intention to resign in the next few days. [continues 324 words]
An Oakland, Calif.-based nonprofit can't put the federal government on trial for saying that marijuana has no medical use -- but it might get to challenge the government for blowing deadlines, a federal judge in California ruled last week. Americans for Safe Access sued in February after two federal agencies refused to alter government-published statements saying marijuana has "no currently accepted medical use in the United States." In an eight-page ruling Tuesday, U.S. District Judge William Alsup agreed with Justice Department lawyers that the federal Information Quality Act provides for only administrative, not judicial, review for people to challenge the "quality, objectivity, utility and integrity" of information disseminated by federal agencies. [continues 127 words]
If Group Can Overcome Standing Challenge, Other Would-Be Litigants Might Mimic Strategy to Oppose Variety of Federal Policies Medical marijuana advocates and federal prosecutors have never agreed on whether the drug has medical value. Now, an Oakland, Calif.-based advocacy group wants a court order that would force the feds to see it their way. Americans for Safe Access is trying to use a little-known Clinton-era law to make federal agencies take back statements about marijuana -- for example, that pot has "no currently accepted medical use." The group says this "misinformation" costs it time and money to refute. [continues 604 words]
It's a difficult subject to discuss, but the organizers of a community-based drug and alcohol awareness program are hoping that a fun theme will help to get the message across. Tuesday was the first of three days that students in Grades 4 and 5 took part in the eighth annual Racing Against Drugs program. Approximately 1,500 students from 28 schools in Leeds, Grenville and Lanark will complete the program, which is held at the Brockville Memorial Centre. Racing Against Drugs aims to inform students in Grades 4 and 5 of the negative impact of alcohol and drug use and about risk-taking, decision-making and refusal skills. [continues 673 words]
An addictions therapy program developed for forensic patients at the Brockville Mental Health Centre has drawn the interest of an international organization that provides a free online service for people with addictive behaviour. The local program was developed over the past five years by registered practical nurse Dawn Adamson in consultation with psychiatrist Dr. A.G. Ahmed, clinical director of forensics at the local site, formerly known as Brockville Psychiatric Hospital. Adamson said parts of the program may be incorporated by Smart Recovery, a self-management program active in the United States, United Kingdom, Australia and other countries, which she studied while developing her own program. [continues 591 words]
An anonymous tip led to Tulare County Sheriff's detectives removing $4.8 million worth of marijuana plants from a Tulare canal Tuesday afternoon, deputies reported Wednesday. Detectives from the Sheriff's Tactical Enforcement Personnel Team received the call at about 11:30 a.m., leading them to a marijuana garden along a canal west of Road 148 and a quarter mile south of Avenue 148. When the dust settled, detectives eradicated 1,203 marijuana plants from the canal. If allowed to grow to maturity, the plants would have had an estimated street value of a little more than $4.81 million, according to a department news release. Deputies are still searching for who planted the garden, and are looking to see if it is connected to recent marijuana garden busts in the Visalia area, the department said. [end]
A public hearing will be held Tuesday regarding a request from the Resource Management Agency for the Board of Supervisors to amend the Tulare County Zoning Ordinance pertaining to the location of medical marijuana dispensaries. County staff based it's recommendations for the ordinance on studies that have shown potential for multiple impact of medical marijuana dispensaries and appropriate buffer distances. The buffer zones restrict dispensaries to at least 1,000 feet from public or private schools, day-care centers, recreation facilities, any park or any other medical marijuana dispensary. [continues 250 words]
An OPP officer busted for dealing drugs and obstructing justice has been released on bail after spending the weekend in custody. Maurice Morrissette, 37, of Kemptville, was freed Monday after his brother Michael agreed to act as a surety and sign a $5,000 bond. The Crown consented to the release after Michael Morrissette, a truck driver from Casselman, promised to do his best to ensure his brother complied with the terms of his release and to report any breaches to police. [continues 388 words]
Bill O'Reilly is right. If you remove the digs on George Soros, fear mongering, and disinformation veiled as fact, his Op-Ed, High on Compassion, hits the mark on these important points: . Cannabis is medicine that should be available to patients. If marijuana can help those suffering with debilitating diseases, then doctors should have the power to prescribe it and licensed pharmacies should carry it. . Cannabis distribution to patients should be regulated. Incredibly, there is no age requirement to secure medical marijuana in California. [continues 186 words]
It seemed like a good idea at the time, the Compassionate Use Act of 1996, which allowed Californians to use marijuana with a doctor's permission to alleviate pain. The act was put on the ballot, and California voters passed it 56 to 44 percent. The biggest bankroller of the referendum was George Soros, the secular-progressive billionaire who champions drug legalization. He pumped about $350,000 into pro-medpot ads, according to published reports. Since the act was passed into law, thousands of pot "clinics" have opened across the Golden State. In San Francisco, things got so out of control that Mayor Gavin Newsom, a very liberal guy, had to close many of the "clinics" because drug addicts were clustering around them, causing fear among city residents. In San Diego, there's another problem. Some high school kids have found a loophole in the Compassion Act. Incredibly, there is no age requirement to secure medical marijuana in California and no physical examination needed either. So some kids tell a doctor they have a headache, pay him $150 for a card, and then buy all the pot they want. Unbelievable, but true. [continues 267 words]
An OPP officer charged with drug trafficking and obstructing justice will spend the weekend behind bars. Maurice Morrissette, 37, of Kemptville, was remanded in custody Friday morning when the prosecution wasn't prepared to accept as sureties the family members who showed up for his court appearance. Federal prosecutor Roderick Sonley indicated he might consider releasing the accused under certain conditions into the care of a brother but that duty counsel had not been able to contact him. Justice of the Peace Ray Switzier said he wasn't prepared to wait for the brother to attend but would run a bail hearing if that was Morrissette's wish. [continues 428 words]
PRESCOTT -- An 18-month probe into the drug and contraband cigarette trade in this community has led to several charges against a Grenville County OPP officer. Maurice Morrissette, 37, a resident of Kemptville, was arrested Thursday on charges of trafficking in an illegal substance, possession of an illegal substance and obstructing justice. A former member of the Prescott municipal police service, Morrissette was sworn into the OPP in September 2004 after the provincial force took over policing in the town. Sergeant Kristine Rae said none of the charges laid against Morrissette on Thursday involve contraband cigarettes. [continues 422 words]
Just about every school district is feeling a sharp financial pinch and is finding ways to tighten its already skin-tight budget. Local school districts know - as the Columbus Public Schools District is finding out - shaving large sums of the student transportation budget isn't a good idea. What's at stake when red lines go through the transportation budget is safety. The Columbus City School District canceled classes Thursday after a contractor responsible for some school bus routes discovered it had not checked drivers for criminal backgrounds. [continues 1115 words]
SMITHS FALLS -- The head of Lanark County's Children's Aid Society painted a troubling portrait of life for some children in the county in a presentation to councillors here this week. Suzanne Geoffrion, the society's executive director, told council in a deputation Monday that a majority of the 148 children now in the agency's care are under age 12. "We have a pretty definite trend," she said of the increasing number of younger children the agency has been forced to remove from homes. [continues 497 words]
When I read the news these days I often shake my head in wonder. Does no one see it? The evidence is posted daily, evidence that provides proof that after three decades of fighting the war on drugs we have gained no ground and are no closer to ending the tragedy of drug abuse. Recent coverage in the Times Recorder spoke of a 10-year-old child living in squalor, in a home where drug use was a daily occurrence with multiple adult users. For the last 30 years, that story has played out across America. [continues 392 words]
FORT PLAIN -- Members of the Fort Plain School Board last week engaged in a discussion about voluntary student drug testing. Additionally, they received input from a group of concerned individuals who are rallying support for legislation requiring all schools in the state to have mandated student drug testing. The meeting took place Wednesday night in the Harry Hoag School conference room. District Superintendent Douglas Burton late last week said about that exchange, "At this point, the board had more follow-up discussion from [Amsterdam Pediatrician Dr. Govind Rao] and [the Rev. Nancy Ryan, pastor of the Fort Plain Reformed Church]. They asked that I do some research and investigate to get more information about the need and various means by which different districts are addressing the issue; then we'll go from there." [continues 730 words]
NEWPORT - The Newport Independent School District will have to wait until 2010 if it wants to consider drug testing any of its teachers because of a collective bargaining agreement passed in June that does not call for the tests. "It is against our contract to drug test teachers," Newport High School teacher Carol Dunn said. Dunn serves as co-president of the Newport Teacher's Association, the union that put together the collective bargaining agreement. She said because the four year contract was just approved in June, the board will have to wait until June 2010 to ask for changes and additions to the next contract. [continues 519 words]
Strathmore Elementary pupils are learning not just how but why they should say no to illegal drugs in the 10-week Too Good For Drugs program, which teachers started including in their kindergarten through fifth grade classes Nov. 19. "It's gone beyond 'Just Say No,'" said Barbara Johnson, Strathmore's program coordinator. "The program helps the kids figure out why they might want to do drugs, and to think about that situation." Johnson trained teachers for the 10-week program, which gets children to think about the things that make them feel good or bad and what they can do about them in a fashion that bolsters their self-esteem. [continues 379 words]
Joshua Starling knows this weekend some teens from his school will drink, or do drugs and then climb behind the wheel of a car, rolling the dice with their lives and those of any passenger or other motorist. A desire to do something to change the final part of that scenario is why the North Grenville District High School Grade 12 student spent the day Wednesday with about 70 other high-school students at Thousand Islands Secondary School. "People don't admit it, but I've heard stories about drinking and driving, or being stoned while driving," said Starling. [continues 496 words]
SMITHS FALLS - The Smiths Falls Focus Community Coalition is holding events and a promotional campaign this week to coincide with Drug Awareness Week, Nov. 19 to 26. The coalition and its many community partners will take the campaign to Smiths Falls, Perth and Merrickville and encourage people to talk about substance abuse issues. On Tuesday, a presentation by Matt Evans will be delivered in "stand-up comedy style" at Perth District Collegiate Institute about risky drinking habits, drinking and driving and making responsible choices. [continues 110 words]
INDEPENDENCE -- Linda Gutapfel thinks that her son might still be alive if he had fully known the dangers of what he was doing. That's why she's set out to make sure it doesn't happen again. Gutapfel's 22-year old son, Johnny, was found motionless in the foyer of their Independence home on August 27, dead of an apparent heroin overdose. Linda says her son was not a drug-user, and was likely just experimenting. "I just want people to know that this can happen the first time you try this," said Linda. "You don't have to be an addict. I don't know for sure if it would have saved his life, but I'm about 99 percent sure he wouldn't have done this if he had known more about it." [continues 784 words]
Eight days after accepting a systems administration job with Sacramento's RagingWire Telecommunications Inc. in 2001, Gary Ross was fired for testing positive for marijuana. The 43-year-old father of two admitted he smoked pot at home for back pain, but explained it was legally prescribed by his doctor under the state's Compassionate Use Act. His new bosses backed their decision, however, by citing federal law that still criminalizes marijuana. Five years later, the dispute shows no sign of losing steam as an employment discrimination suit filed by Ross awaits a full hearing by the California Supreme Court. Although oral arguments haven't been set, a host of high-powered amici curiae have already stoked expectations with hard-hitting briefs on both sides of the issue. [continues 772 words]
FORT MITCHELL --Kentucky's longest-serving D.A.R.E. officer has worked for the program nearly as long as he's been a police officer -- 18 years. Fort Mitchell Police Officer Roy Taylor kept teaching the anti-drug and alcohol program because he loves working with kids. "It took over my life. It's just something that I really enjoy doing," he said. "Working with kids is great." He was a little reluctant at first, after a co-worker volunteered him for the program in 1988. [continues 370 words]
SMITHS FALLS -- About 1,800 Grade 4 and 5 students from the tri-county area will receive a supercharged message next week during the seventh annual Racing Against Drugs program. The event, which features pit stops at some 20 stations around an arena floor, alternates annually between Brockville and Smiths Falls. This year it takes place at the Smiths Falls Youth Arena with morning and afternoon sessions from Tuesday to Thursday next week. Organizers are targeting a slightly younger age group this year. The switch from Grades 5 and 6 avoids a conflict with Grade 6 testing preparations and also reflects a desire to reach a younger audience, said a spokesman from the Leeds, Grenville and Lanark District Health Unit. [continues 84 words]
A 47-year-old Grenville County man probably wishes he hadn't successfully appealed a nine-month sentence he received three years ago for a large marijuana grow operation. Friday, Craig Easterbrook was sentenced to 12 months in jail for the same offence as a result of a jury finding earlier this spring that declared him guilty of producing marijuana and possession of the drug for the purpose of trafficking. Easterbrook was originally charged August 16, 2000, after police raided his isolated rural farm property in Edwardsburgh Township. [continues 454 words]
Minneapolis Has Formed A Special Task Force To Address Convenience Store Issues Last week we described how neighbors on Minneapolis' Northside have launched an "Action Against Corner Stores Campaign" demanding that local convenience stores stop the sale of drug paraphernalia, keep their stores clean and sanitary, and improve security around the stores by discouraging loitering and installing adequate lighting and cameras. This week we look at the City's response to the problem. There seems to be a lot of "passing the buck" among the business owners targeted by the Action Against Corner Stores Campaign. "[The owners] have sold to their cousins," said Jennifer Baxa, a member of ACORN's Northside Neighbors United! "Now they can say in their defense that the complaints are not their problem, but that of the previous owner. Each store is independently operated and no one takes responsibility." [continues 1284 words]
A public hearing on extending a hold on medical marijuana dispensary permits for an additional period of 10 months and 15 days will be held at Tuesday's Board of Supervisors meeting. The Resource Management Agency wants more time to draft a zoning ordinance that would limit where dispensaries could be located. Currently, there are no restrictions. "We came up with it initially because we wanted to establish some kind of zoning ordinance ... with the idea that some places might be appropriate and some might not," said the county's media officer, Eric Coyne. "They are asking for more time to research and determine what they want to recommend for adoption." [continues 255 words]
A month-long project to restore natural conditions to 166 acres of wilderness damaged by illegal marijuana farming has been completed. The effort, which teamed Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks law enforcement and natural resources staff with elements of the California Conservation Corps, the California Army National Guard and the California Air National Guard, saw the removal of 4,650 pounds of garbage and hose, camp infrastructure and 5.3 miles of irrigation hose from 31 gardens and seven camps that were occupied by illegal growers in 2002. [continues 81 words]
Law enforcement agencies and statewide drug enforcement programs are reporting major strides in the war against drugs in the Central Valley. According to statistics provided by the Tulare County Sheriff's Department, the number of methamphetamine labs disassembled by county authorities dropped significantly in 2005. Meanwhile, the number of drug seizures reached new highs. The data on drug activity was collected by the California Multi-Jurisdictional Methamphetamine Enforcement Team program, or Cal-MMET. The program is run in conjunction with the Central Valley High Intensity Drug Trafficking Programs and administered by the Governor's Office of Criminal Justice Planning. [continues 271 words]
