MARIJUANA BOOM TOO MUCH FOR POLICE: REPORT

Abbotsford, B.C. - A new study shows police are unable to keep up with the
rapid growth of B.C.'s marijuana industry, despite stepped up enforcement.

Researchers from the University College of the Fraser Valley reviewed more
than 12,000 police files.

"There has been an over 200 per cent increase in the number of grows in
B.C. over the four-year window of '97 to 2000, and worse, it's everywhere,"
says the report's co-author, Professor Darryl Plecas.

The study shows police rarely seek out the illegal crops. Instead, they
rely on tips, chance and luck.

Yvon Dandurand co-authored the report. "They are having a hell of a time
responding to all the calls," he says. "Many have waiting lists of actual
cases."

Dandurand says some officers say there's no point arresting people who grow
marijuana, because of they way they're treated by the courts.

Of the 12,000 cases reviewed, just 2,500 led to convictions. Less than 20
per cent of those led to jail time, and when they did, it was usually for
less than six months.

The report shows most of the illegal crops sprout along a narrow band
stretching from Nanaimo to Chilliwack.