MARIJUANA CONFISCATIONS WAY UP IN TULARE COUNTY

Tulare County ranks fifth in the state in terms of illegal marijuana
plants confiscated during the growing season that ended in October,
according to the state Attorney General's Office.

Of the more than 2.9 million plants seized in the state as part of the
Attorney General's Campaign Against Marijuana Planting, 160,591 were
found in Tulare County.

At an estimated street value of $4,000 a plant, that's more than $642
million worth of marijuana destroyed by law enforcement here, based on
information provide by the Tulare County Sheriff's Department.

Statewide, the plants seized are believe to be worth about $11.6
billion, Attorney General Jerry Brown announced Tuesday at a
Sacramento press conference.

Tulare County seizures increased by more than 315 percent over the
previous year's totals. The county ranked 13th in 2006, when 38,644
marijuana plants were confiscated.