Speeding into Trouble

POLICE FIND 38 MARIJUANA PLANTS

It's never wise to speed, but it's really unwise when you are hauling
around marijuana.

A Madison man found that out Wednesday evening after a traffic stop on
Hammersley Road led not only to a speeding ticket, but major marijuana
charges after police found 38 potted plants in his home.

According to court records, [name deleted], 21, was driving down the 6000
block of Hammersley Road at about 6:30 p.m. and was almost home when he
decided to pass a van on the right. Parked nearby was Madison Police
Officer Daniel Nale. When Nale put the radar on [name deleted], he recorded
a speed of 46 mph in the 30 mph zone.

As [name deleted] pulled into his driveway at [address deleted], Nale was
right behind him and ready to write out a speeding ticket. When he
approached [name deleted], "I could smell a strong odor of unburnt
marijuana coming from what I thought was both him and the vehicle," Nale
wrote in his report.

[name deleted] admitted he had some marijuana in his pocket. Nale found a
small packet that later turned out to be 4.3 grams of marijuana. Although
[name deleted] would not consent to a search of his car, and slammed the
door shut as Sgt. Linda Kosovac was about to look inside, police searched
it anyway and reportedly discovered a baggie with 18.9 grams of marijuana
in it.

Court records say that as police approached the front of the house, they
could again smell "the strong odor of unburnt marijuana," and despite [name
deleted] saying at one point that he wanted to talk to a lawyer, the
officers got his consent to search his bedroom. While in the house, police
noticed suspected marijuana residue on a pipe and other hints the weed had
been smoked there.

That, along with a large barking dog, led the officers to do what is called
a "protective sweep" to make sure there was no one around who could harm
them. They came upon a false wall in the basement and discovered the 38
potted marijuana plants behind it.

At that point, police obtained a search warrant and confiscated the plants
and arrested [name deleted] on charges of possession of more than 1,000
grams of marijuana, operating a drug house and possession of drug
paraphernalia. He could face up to 13 years and seven months in prison if
convicted of all counts.