BYLAW LEAVES HOMEOWNER IN THE COLD

An Abbotsford homeowner says a city bylaw meant to weed out indoor
marijuana gardens has put him out on the street and is forcing him to
prove his innocence.

On March 6, Mike Morino was barred from living in his home and the
water and power were cut off, after bylaw inspectors found defects
that contravened the city's Controlled Substance Property bylaw. He
has a city invoice for $6,500 for inspection and disconnection fees,
on top of whatever it will cost him to fix the defects.

Morino was dumbfounded.

"I can't believe we live in a democracy, it feels like a
dictatorship," Morino said Tuesday.

City workers told him heat sensor testing suggested a grow-op was in
the house, but he said they wouldn't say when the test was done, or
what other evidence the bylaw enforcers have on him, and when it was recorded.

"They've made up their minds and there's nothing I can do. I should
have more rights than this. They should be proving that I'm guilty,
not me having to prove I'm innocent."

Abbotsford created the Controlled Substance Property bylaw in 2004 to
control the number of grow-ops found in residential areas and to keep
the public safe. Bylaw 1392-2004 bans the "unlawful use of properties
for marijuana grow-ops and the trade or manufacture of controlled substances."

Morino, single and 26, bought the modest family home in central
Abbotsford in July for a bargain $296,000. He hoped to invest up to
$15,000 in improvements and to make a bit of money on the flip.

There may have been something shady in the past, he said, but insists
there was no grow-op when he bought the house in July and there
hasn't been one in there since.

Yet on March 6, while cleaning the house with his mother, two police
officers brought a notice advising Morino that city officers were
inspecting the following day. The notice said if he didn't comply the
police would come back anyway with a search warrant.

The next day inspectors, with police officers in tow, checked the
electrical and plumbing systems and looked for mould. Defects they
found included a missing door on the electrical panel, an exposed
wire, a broken electrical outlet, and some black mould in the wood
near a leaking basement bathroom.

Morino pulled out a 2002 house inspection report he got from the
previous home owner, and the electrical defects are exactly the same
as listed by the city inspectors.

"If I had known this was going to happen, there's no way I would have
bought the house," he said. His options now are to declare
bankruptcy, or to sell the house for less than he paid, he said.

Lawyer John Conroy said he's heard several complaints from other
homeowners caught in the dragnet of this bylaw. However, few have the
funds to hire a lawyer to fight, he said.

Conroy suspects the bylaw would not hold up in a court challenge.

"I don't think it's constitutional and I don't think the way it's
being administered in a constitutional manner," said Conroy, who says
inspections include searches of people's cupboards and drawers.

He says such bylaws operate in a jurisdictional grey zone not yet
tested in court.

Criminal law oversees matters such as marijuana grows, but local
governments, using bylaws, have pushed the illegal substance issue
into their jurisdiction by saying it deals with property matters and
community safety.

"I think the whole thing is wrong. It's criminal law, but it
shouldn't be. [Marijuana] should be regulated. Regulate it, tax it .
. . it would be produced in agricultural or commerical zones and then
the appropriate bylaws would apply," said Conroy.

Since the bylaw was enacted, the city has inspected 180 homes, 150 of
which "were positive," said city spokesman Jay Teichroeb.

Those who do want to dispute the bylaw can attend Monday council
hearings. Morino has been invited to make his case on March 26.

Almost weekly, the city lists the names and addresses of several
homeowners that have found violating the bylaw.