MARIJUANA HARVEST SEASON A VIOLENT ONE

GRASS VALLEY -- Monday night's assault was the third reported violent
attack in Nevada County this harvest season associated with marijuana:

On Sept. 29, two men with guns busted into a home where pot plants
were growing on the 11000 block of Tyler Foote Crossing Road. Alleged
intruder John Scott Shelton of Linda was killed in a gunfight with
homeowner Dusty Beck, who was shot three times and is recovering,
according to his family. Beck has a history of arrest and conviction
for marijuana cultivation, according to police and court records.

Police have not arrested anyone in connection to the shooting.

Early Sunday morning, five people with two guns, crowbars and a
baseball bat broke into a home on the 20000 block of Woodbury Drive,
tied up eight people and beat a majority of them before attempting to
take more than 200 marijuana plants. The intruders were in the
process of loading a rented van with the plants when deputies
arrived. The suspects are still at large, investigators said Tuesday.

One man was severely beaten in the Sunday attack and reportedly had a
broken neck, according to early reports from sheriff's investigators.
The man has been released from the hospital and is walking around
with a neck brace on, Nevada County Sheriff's Capt. Ron Smith said Tuesday.

The man was interviewed by investigators Monday, he said.