POT GROWING MOM GETS THREE YEARS IN JAIL

A 42-year-old seamstress and mother, who operated a huge, toxic
commercial marijuana grow operation out of her Airdrie home, has been
sentenced to three years in prison.

Court of Queen's Bench Justice Patrick Sullivan said in his decision
earlier this week that he accepted an expert police witness's
testimony that How Thi Le's home, which contained 822 plants at
varying stages of growth when busted on Jan. 30, 2003, was dangerous
not only to herself but to her 15-year-old daughter and five-year-old
son.

"The most dangerous was that the hot water burner produces carbon
monoxide and carbon dioxide . . . very beneficial to the plants," said
Sullivan, alluding to evidence from Det. Sgt. Roger Morrison, a member
of the Calgary police drug unit.

"But what is important to me is that it also creates, he (Morrison)
testified, an extremely toxic environment for anyone in the residence.

"CO is cumulative in the bloodstream and can be fatal. It was his view
that if you stayed in the basement for a week, you could easily die.
And in children, it can limit proper growth patterns."

Sullivan had found Le guilty of producing a controlled substance, was
in possession of an amount exceeding three kilograms, fraudulently
obtained electricity, and was in possession of $30,000 of cash derived
from the commission of a crime.

The judge also noted there were hazards related to the electrical
bypass, which could cause a "flash" that a person could have their
eyes burnt or receive a shock from an arc.

The 33, 1,000-watt lights used in three different rooms, he said, used
so much power it would make the wire very hot and brittle, again
endangering lives.

Aside from the cash found in the dishwasher, wrapped in a way that is
consistent with how drug traffickers do so in an international
venture, police found receipts for $15,000 to $20,000 in cash payments
for grow equipment.

Morrison, said the judge, conservatively estimated the value of a
potential 116 kilograms of the drug to be worth $900,000.

However, Morrison has testified that, if sold in the United States, it
could be worth more than three times that value.