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Having a medical license may make marijuana growers safe from police, but not from criminals seeking their crop.
The violent assault and robbery Tuesday of a Dundee man growing medical marijuana prompted cautions from law enforcement officials.
"If you have a product that is legal for some and illegal for others -- and they want it -- that's an awful big temptation for bad guys," said Yamhill County Sheriff Jack Crabtree. "These marijuana-growing greenhouses aren't exactly reinforced with steel and concrete."
Other law enforcement officials and medical marijuana advocates agreed that thieves have preyed on legal growing operations, leading to a scattered problem across Oregon.
"I've been getting reports from Southern Oregon and Eastern Oregon of thefts and assaults," said Paul Stanford, executive director of the Portland-based Oregon Cannabis & Hemp Foundation, an education and support group for medical marijuana users. "It may not be a real big problem, but it's a real one."
Crabtree said Ernest R. Holter, 50, heard an alarm sounding about 5:30 a.m. Tuesday in his barn along Hagey Road, just northeast of the Dundee city limits.
When Holter went to investigate, he was hit on the head and in the face. Holter passed out and lay on the ground until 7:19 a.m., when he was able to call for help.
Holter was rushed to Providence Newberg Hospital and then transferred to Legacy Emanuel Hospital & Health Center in Portland, where he underwent surgery for his head injuries. He was in serious condition Wednesday in the hospital's intensive-care unit.
Crabtree said Holter, a construction worker who had been laid off, had a valid medical marijuana card, entitling him to grow marijuana to cope with chronic pain. However, Crabtree said the 1998 Oregon Medical Marijuana Act, passed by voters after a statewide initiative drive, has created a large gray area for police.
According to the law, an Oregon resident can obtain a medical marijuana card by applying to the state Health Division after receiving a doctor's recommendation. According to Jan. 1 figures, 9,813 Oregonians now possess the cards, with an additional 1,327 applications pending.
Under the law, those enrolled in the program can possess "three mature marijuana plants, four immature marijuana plants and 1 ounce of usable marijuana per each mature plant" in their homes.
However, the marijuana-growing operations, generally in homes, gardens or outbuildings, are vulnerable to thieves.
In September, a Southwest Portland man was shot and wounded by thieves targeting his medical marijuana. The man was shot in the doorway of his home, and thieves left before taking anything.
In 2002, two Gold Hill residents watched with horror at repeated attempts to steal their medical marijuana. Intruders cut their chain-link fence and stabbed their guard dog. They got into trouble with authorities when they fired a warning shot -- within the Gold Hill city limits -- to scare off the would-be thieves.
And Crabtree related the story of a Yamhill County medical marijuana grower who weathered a shotgun blast by would-be thieves several years ago.
Lt. Craig Durbin of the Oregon State Police drug enforcement section said he was concerned that well-intentioned organizations such as the Oregon Cannabis & Hemp Foundation could find themselves a target for criminals if they have legal marijuana on their premises.
"That's a big temptation for thieves," Durbin said. "There are a lot of guys out there who look for things like that."
Oregon is one of 11 states allowing medical marijuana. Other states with similar programs are Washington, Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, Nevada and Vermont. Arizona has a law allowing medical marijuana, but no active program.
Source:
By Rick Bella
The Oregonian
https://www.oregonlive.com/metrosou...ase/metro_southwest_news/1106225898105631.xml
Rick Bella: 503-294-5114; rickbella@news.oregonian.com
Related Story: OR. - Dundee man attacked, robbed of medical marijuana
The violent assault and robbery Tuesday of a Dundee man growing medical marijuana prompted cautions from law enforcement officials.
"If you have a product that is legal for some and illegal for others -- and they want it -- that's an awful big temptation for bad guys," said Yamhill County Sheriff Jack Crabtree. "These marijuana-growing greenhouses aren't exactly reinforced with steel and concrete."
Other law enforcement officials and medical marijuana advocates agreed that thieves have preyed on legal growing operations, leading to a scattered problem across Oregon.
"I've been getting reports from Southern Oregon and Eastern Oregon of thefts and assaults," said Paul Stanford, executive director of the Portland-based Oregon Cannabis & Hemp Foundation, an education and support group for medical marijuana users. "It may not be a real big problem, but it's a real one."
Crabtree said Ernest R. Holter, 50, heard an alarm sounding about 5:30 a.m. Tuesday in his barn along Hagey Road, just northeast of the Dundee city limits.
When Holter went to investigate, he was hit on the head and in the face. Holter passed out and lay on the ground until 7:19 a.m., when he was able to call for help.
Holter was rushed to Providence Newberg Hospital and then transferred to Legacy Emanuel Hospital & Health Center in Portland, where he underwent surgery for his head injuries. He was in serious condition Wednesday in the hospital's intensive-care unit.
Crabtree said Holter, a construction worker who had been laid off, had a valid medical marijuana card, entitling him to grow marijuana to cope with chronic pain. However, Crabtree said the 1998 Oregon Medical Marijuana Act, passed by voters after a statewide initiative drive, has created a large gray area for police.
According to the law, an Oregon resident can obtain a medical marijuana card by applying to the state Health Division after receiving a doctor's recommendation. According to Jan. 1 figures, 9,813 Oregonians now possess the cards, with an additional 1,327 applications pending.
Under the law, those enrolled in the program can possess "three mature marijuana plants, four immature marijuana plants and 1 ounce of usable marijuana per each mature plant" in their homes.
However, the marijuana-growing operations, generally in homes, gardens or outbuildings, are vulnerable to thieves.
In September, a Southwest Portland man was shot and wounded by thieves targeting his medical marijuana. The man was shot in the doorway of his home, and thieves left before taking anything.
In 2002, two Gold Hill residents watched with horror at repeated attempts to steal their medical marijuana. Intruders cut their chain-link fence and stabbed their guard dog. They got into trouble with authorities when they fired a warning shot -- within the Gold Hill city limits -- to scare off the would-be thieves.
And Crabtree related the story of a Yamhill County medical marijuana grower who weathered a shotgun blast by would-be thieves several years ago.
Lt. Craig Durbin of the Oregon State Police drug enforcement section said he was concerned that well-intentioned organizations such as the Oregon Cannabis & Hemp Foundation could find themselves a target for criminals if they have legal marijuana on their premises.
"That's a big temptation for thieves," Durbin said. "There are a lot of guys out there who look for things like that."
Oregon is one of 11 states allowing medical marijuana. Other states with similar programs are Washington, Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, Nevada and Vermont. Arizona has a law allowing medical marijuana, but no active program.
Source:
By Rick Bella
The Oregonian
https://www.oregonlive.com/metrosou...ase/metro_southwest_news/1106225898105631.xml
Rick Bella: 503-294-5114; rickbella@news.oregonian.com
Related Story: OR. - Dundee man attacked, robbed of medical marijuana
