JUDGE VOIDS DRUG CHARGES

Felony drug charges against an Amboy-area man were dismissed Friday by a
judge who earlier ruled that the Clark-Skamania Drug Task Force conducted
an illegal raid.

Michael Orick, 49, has no criminal record. In December, law officers
discovered a sophisticated marijuana-growing operation in a man-made cavern
on Orick's property.

Earlier this month, Superior Court Judge Roger Bennett suppressed the
evidence and said the search was illegal because detectives relied on
information improperly acquired from Clark Public Utilities.

On Friday, Bennett denied a prosecutor's motion to reconsider the ruling
and dismissed the charges.

Deputy prosecutor John Fairgrieve said he'll appeal. Should Bennett be
overturned, Fairgrieve could refile the charges of manufacturing and
possessing a controlled substance.

Orick and his wife, 41-year-old Lori Orick, still face money-laundering
charges, but those are expected to be dismissed as well as a result of
Bennett's Oct. 8 ruling, said Lori Orick's attorney, Mark Muenster.

Among the evidence suppressed were financial records that led detectives to
conclude the Oricks were earning thousands of dollars selling marijuana.
Michael Orick's attorney, Jon McMullen, successfully argued the search was
illegal because it was in violation of a state law that details how a
public utility can turn information over to law enforcement.

One clue that Orick was growing marijuana was the revelation that he'd been
diverting electricity to power the cavern's lights.

The case against Orick began last year after an informant told the drug
task force that he'd heard of someone named Mike who had an underground
marijuana-growing operation.

Detectives worked for six months to find the cavern, on Orick's 9 1/2
wooded acres near Amboy.

Bennett said officers followed state law and wrote a letter requesting
copies of Orick's utility records.

After answering the initial request, however, the utility went on to
provide even more information about Orick.

Bennett said the utility should have waited for a second written request
from officers. To turn over information prematurely, he said, was in
violation of state law.

Utility employees estimated that Orick diverted more than $25,000 in
electricity to operate the 43 1,000-watt halide light bulbs found in the
cavern.

When detectives searched the 2,800-square-foot cavern on Dec. 12, 2002,
they found bits of marijuana leaves but no plants.

Orick, who owns an excavating business, allegedly told officers it took him
about a month to dig out the cavern and about eight months to finish it.

Plastic pipes provided ventilation, and one utility worker who examined the
cavern remarked that the electrical outlets were wired to code, with one
spaced every 12 feet.

According to court documents, Orick also allegedly said that he was a lousy
grower and the most plants he ever had at one time was 400, but had lost
most of these due to an insect infestation.