MARIJUANA POSSESSION CITATIONS UP IN GREEN BAY AREA

Easy access, social acceptance, low cost are possible
causes

Green Bay police report a 51 percent increase in citations for
possession of marijuana over last year's numbers.

Police issued 256 citations for possession of marijuana as of Aug. 9
this year, according to police records. Last year at this time, they
had issued 169 citations.

"It doesn't surprise me," said Lt. David Poteat of the Brown County
Drug Task Force.

Poteat said agents have seen an increased amount of marijuana on the
streets at lower prices.

Authorities arrested 12 people last week and destroyed 10,000
marijuana plants in connection with a massive marijuana-growing
operation in Oconto and Menominee counties. A home at 969 Howard St.
in Green Bay is linked to the operation, and authorities executed a
search warrant Wednesday.

Officials can't explain the increase but attribute it in part to
accessibility, cost and social acceptance.

Marijuana can grow locally outdoors, so it's easily accessible, Poteat
said. And because it can be grown practically anywhere, it's difficult
to stop production, said De Pere Police Chief Derek
Beiderwieden.

Marijuana is cheaper than trending drugs, such as ecstasy or crystal
meth.

And increased social acceptance has fueled its use, Director Eric
Dunning of Ashwaubenon Public Safety said.

The drug might be entering the county from Canada and Mexico, or from
states that have legalized medical marijuana, such as Colorado and
California, Poteat said.

Last year, half of the 951 drug-related charges filed in Brown County
involved marijuana. District Attorney John Zakowski said comparable
statistics for 2008 were unavailable because the county has inadequate
staff to compile data.

City of De Pere numbers were not immediately available, but
Beiderwieden said the department has seen a "substantial increase" in
possession of marijuana citations.

A first offense carries a $366 fine under the city's municipal
ordinance, including court costs. A first offense in Green Bay carries
an $870 fine.