SOMETHING WILD IN FIELD GONE TO POT

Low Grade of Marijuana Luring Teens to Summit

The unassuming field in Summit stretches between railroad tracks and a
canal, an unusual place to find summer fun. Sprays of green buds, some as
high as 10 feet, sway above weeds as a train passes.

To a casual observer, or a kid playing soccer in nearby Summit Park, the
area seems like nothing more than swampy, mosquito-infested land. But
police Sgt. Rich Hare of neighboring Stickney had few doubts he would find
teenagers there this week.

They come to pick wild marijuana from among the prairie grasses, hoping to
make the land their field of dreams. Young adults from throughout the
western suburbs see a quick high in these 2 acres in the small town along
the Stevenson Expressway.

And sure enough, along the dirt path that runs by the field, Hare spotted
an 18-year-old who was surprised to come upon a police officer rather than
other teenagers trekking through the field.

"Everyone knows it's here," the teen, whose first name is Wieslaw, said as
Hare searched for friends.

August usually marks the time when wild marijuana fields are destroyed, but
Illinois State Police, unaware that people have been harvesting the field,
delayed burning the property. They had planned to use the land as part of a
marijuana air surveillance training program later this month. Although
authorities have made no arrests in connection with the field, police in
nearby communities want to see the crops destroyed now. They said teens are
taking bushels of marijuana into their towns, possibly using it as filler
for more potent marijuana sold on the streets. "We have been trying to get
rid of it because it's become a problem," said John Zitek, Stickney's chief
of police. "I want to know why they haven't burned it yet."

But after the Tribune alerted state police to concerns about the field
Wednesday, authorities said the plants will be eradicated within days.
Summit police, who say they are patrolling the area, don't believe the
field has caused problems.

"It is just wild. It's not like you're getting something from Colombia,"
said Lt. Charles Wasko of Summit's investigative division, who said the
field also was burned last year. He said Summit police have allowed it to
remain at the request of state authorities, who said they would destroy it
once their training is completed.

Summit police said the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District owns the
land, but a spokeswoman for the district said no marijuana is growing on
property it owns in that area.

Capt. Thomas Lamb, director of the Metropolitan Enforcement Group of Cook
County, said wild marijuana is usually chopped up, carted away and burned
soon after police locate it. Through MEG's federally funded Cash Crop
program, officers spend the summer months searching for and destroying the
wild fields. In 1997, state police said they destroyed 9.7 million plants
throughout Illinois. Still early in the harvesting season, only 1,029
plants have been destroyed this year.

Fields of wild hemp and marijuana weed crop up throughout central and
northern Illinois, usually in the spring, and spread throughout summer,
said Fran Schnorf, state coordinator of Cash Crop, funded by $450,000 in
federal money. The origins of Illinois hemp and marijuana fields predate
the United States itself. Hemp harvesting can be traced to when Native
Americans used it to make rope and clothing. More recently, however, around
World War II, farmers grew it legally for military uses, mostly to make
rope. The federal government even dubbed the rope-making program the "Hemp
for Victory" campaign. The Summit field is likely fed by seeds that date
back to the war era,
authorities believe.

Such wild weed, also known as ditch weed, is very low-grade and, by itself,
likely would sell for just a fraction of what premium marijuana attracts on
the street.

It is uncertain how strong the marijuana in the Summit field is, although
the teenagers said it hasn't had much effect on them. "We have been here
three times to pick it and dry it behind the garage, but it didn't get us
high," said a 19-year-old whose first name is Przemek. "We came to see if
it has changed."

Przemek and Wieslaw, whose baggy jeans pockets held a box of rolling
papers, said they hope other teens don't find the Summit stash. But police
say it's already too late: Crushed weeds show evidence that it is traveled
territory and manmade paths wind through the plants. Now, police fear that
with fall approaching, the weed will start sprouting up in schools.

"That's a felony. I would hate to see these kids get a record because they
start selling this in school," Hare said. "How do you convince a kid not to
pull a $1,800 plant?"

Copyright Chicago Tribune

Checked-by: (Joel W. Johnson)