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District Attorney Norm Vroman met with local police chiefs Thursday morning to discuss the problem of marijuana gardens in residential areas.
Vroman wanted to make it clear that his office is not the place to look for a solution to what many in the community believe is out of control pot growing in local neighborhoods.
In two recent incidents, a man was slightly wounded when a pot thief shot at him during an effort to steal pot plants from a back yard garden. Another man died of a heart attack - presumably while trying to climb a fence into a pot garden - and was found dead in another back yard.
These and the numerous complaints of pot plant odors wafting through the city of Ukiah and its outskirts have put pressure on local politicians to do something to curb the growing.
The marijuana growing has steadily increased since the passage of Prop. 215 legalizing medical marijuana in the state of California. As part of the law, people are allowed to grow pot either as users or as caregivers to medical marijuana patients.
Either designation has become relatively easy to get in Mendocino County.
Vroman says each local community has to deal with the marijuana growing problem as a nuisance, not as a criminal event to which his office must respond.
"I get letters every day accusing me of not prosecuting marijuana growing, or not understanding the problem," Vroman said, adding, "There's definitely a problem, but not a law enforcement problem."
Vroman said that if someone sneaks into someone's back yard to steal the marijuana, yes that's a prosecutable offense and he has prosecuted cases of medical marijuana theft as he would prosecute any theft from a home.
But as far as just the fact that pots plants exist in residential neighborhoods, or that they give off an odor, is not law enforcement's problem as long as medical marijuana is legal in California.
"There's a lot of emotion about it from both the public and law enforcement," he said.
As Vroman sees it, most of the concern about marijuana growing in back yards falls under local nuisance ordinances - "and there are adequate laws for that."
Ukiah Police Chief John Williams said that's what he's going to try to find out: what are the ordinances in place now, are they enough and are measures needed to regulate medical marijuana growing specifically, even though it is legal.
"(Prop. 215) has led to problems we're experiencing now where we have individuals in residential areas growing marijuana which is causing concern with neighbors," Williams said. "As things stand right now they do have the right to do that.
"As a city we are investigating what possible avenues are available to us to at least have some control within residential areas, to maybe at least address the concerns of people," Williams said.
Williams said that while the odors from marijuana plants are a problem to some - (Vroman says regulating for odors opens a "whole Pandora's box") of more concern to law enforcement is the "safety aspect which we witnessed here this year."
Both Vroman and Williams noted that the kind of marijuana growing the county saw emerging in the hills 20 to 30 years ago has now been brought down into town.
With people able to see pot plants over a neighbor's fence, it's like growing "a money tree" in your back yard, Vroman said. How do you keep people from inviting crime?
"That's what were trying to determine," Williams said, adding that he will soon be going to the Ukiah City Council with some recommendations. First, City Attorney David Rapport is investigating what legal avenues the city may have to regulate medical marijuana.
"But we do think that we can have some control over it, just to limit the exposure and public safety problem," Williams said. "Eventually it's something the City Council will be looking at."
Source: Ukiah Daily Journal (CA)
Published: Saturday, October 16, 2004
Copyright: 2004 Ukiah Daily Journal
Contact: udj@pacific.net
Website: Ukiah Daily Journal: Breaking News, Sports, Business, Entertainment & Ukiah News
Vroman wanted to make it clear that his office is not the place to look for a solution to what many in the community believe is out of control pot growing in local neighborhoods.
In two recent incidents, a man was slightly wounded when a pot thief shot at him during an effort to steal pot plants from a back yard garden. Another man died of a heart attack - presumably while trying to climb a fence into a pot garden - and was found dead in another back yard.
These and the numerous complaints of pot plant odors wafting through the city of Ukiah and its outskirts have put pressure on local politicians to do something to curb the growing.
The marijuana growing has steadily increased since the passage of Prop. 215 legalizing medical marijuana in the state of California. As part of the law, people are allowed to grow pot either as users or as caregivers to medical marijuana patients.
Either designation has become relatively easy to get in Mendocino County.
Vroman says each local community has to deal with the marijuana growing problem as a nuisance, not as a criminal event to which his office must respond.
"I get letters every day accusing me of not prosecuting marijuana growing, or not understanding the problem," Vroman said, adding, "There's definitely a problem, but not a law enforcement problem."
Vroman said that if someone sneaks into someone's back yard to steal the marijuana, yes that's a prosecutable offense and he has prosecuted cases of medical marijuana theft as he would prosecute any theft from a home.
But as far as just the fact that pots plants exist in residential neighborhoods, or that they give off an odor, is not law enforcement's problem as long as medical marijuana is legal in California.
"There's a lot of emotion about it from both the public and law enforcement," he said.
As Vroman sees it, most of the concern about marijuana growing in back yards falls under local nuisance ordinances - "and there are adequate laws for that."
Ukiah Police Chief John Williams said that's what he's going to try to find out: what are the ordinances in place now, are they enough and are measures needed to regulate medical marijuana growing specifically, even though it is legal.
"(Prop. 215) has led to problems we're experiencing now where we have individuals in residential areas growing marijuana which is causing concern with neighbors," Williams said. "As things stand right now they do have the right to do that.
"As a city we are investigating what possible avenues are available to us to at least have some control within residential areas, to maybe at least address the concerns of people," Williams said.
Williams said that while the odors from marijuana plants are a problem to some - (Vroman says regulating for odors opens a "whole Pandora's box") of more concern to law enforcement is the "safety aspect which we witnessed here this year."
Both Vroman and Williams noted that the kind of marijuana growing the county saw emerging in the hills 20 to 30 years ago has now been brought down into town.
With people able to see pot plants over a neighbor's fence, it's like growing "a money tree" in your back yard, Vroman said. How do you keep people from inviting crime?
"That's what were trying to determine," Williams said, adding that he will soon be going to the Ukiah City Council with some recommendations. First, City Attorney David Rapport is investigating what legal avenues the city may have to regulate medical marijuana.
"But we do think that we can have some control over it, just to limit the exposure and public safety problem," Williams said. "Eventually it's something the City Council will be looking at."
Source: Ukiah Daily Journal (CA)
Published: Saturday, October 16, 2004
Copyright: 2004 Ukiah Daily Journal
Contact: udj@pacific.net
Website: Ukiah Daily Journal: Breaking News, Sports, Business, Entertainment & Ukiah News
