NJ State Police announce marijuana bust…
Mar 13th, 2008 | By Michael L. Saile, Jr., Esq. | Category: Blogs, Criminal & Traffic“Getting the “Weed” out of the Garden State. Piscataway man arrested for growing 500+ marijuana plants in home.”
Last week, the New Jersey State Police Marijuana Eradication Unit arrested a Piscataway man for growing marijuana in his Cape Cod-style home. The Defendant in Piscataway, NJ was arrested after the execution of a search warrant and charged with maintaining a marijuana production facility.
Seized were 543 marijuana plants in various stages of growth. The plants have an estimated value of approximately $2,000 per plant. The total estimated value of the plants ranges from between $500,000 to $1,000,000.00.
The plants were purportedly grown in the residence using sophisticated lighting and ventilation techniques. The State Police report that the plants were found growing hydroponically and in soil. They were also being cloned through clippings. The residence is also the listed address for a construction business. Investigators have not determined whether there was a link between the construction business and the marijuana operation.
Now let’s be real, nobody, not even the NJ State Police will be able to get marijuana completely out of the State of New Jersey. More weed goes up and down the NJ Turnpike than most, if not every road in this country.
Just like the Prohibition period of alcohol, the use of marijuana will carry on no matter how much the government tries to prohibit it. Someday, marijuana will be legal. California and other states made the first step in legalizing marijuana for medicinal purposes. As the slippery slope progresses and marijuana becomes more mainstream it will probably be legalized just like alcohol was. It arguably has less detrimental effects on the body anyway.
What do you think?
The author of this Law Blog, Bucks County PA & Mercer County, NJ criminal attorney, Michael L. Saile, Jr., Esq. of Saile & Saile LLP, Attorneys-at-Law practices both New Jersey and Pennsylvania criminal, traffic violations, and DUI/DWI/DAI law. Check out our website for DUI penalties. We handle all NJ Municipal Court cases including DUI in the following NJ Municipal Courts: Hopewell Township, Ewing Township, Trenton, Lawrence Township, Hamilton, Pennington, and other Mercer County, Burlington County, and Camden County, NJ courts. We also handle lower bucks county DUI and traffic violation cases in the following towns: Bensalem, Southampton, Richboro, Newtown, Levittown, Langhorne, Doylestown, Warminster, Trevose, Feasterville, Warrington, Bristol, Fallsington, Yardley, New Hope, Holland, Washington Crossing, PA, and other Bucks County courts. We handle DUI cases in Philadelphia, Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery County, PA. We are located just outside of Philadelphia in lower Bucks County.
I agree that it will be legal someday, I firmly believe within my lifetime (I’m 21 years old). I live in bucks county and its hard to come by someone my age who doesn’t smoke marijuana. Although not all of these people are frequent smokers (though most are) pretty much everyone I know has smoked cannabis at one point or another.
It’s incredibly mainstream these days, and from what I’ve been reading, NJ is well on its way to legalizing medical marijuana.
Their is no way those plants were even close to costing $2,000 per plant. That adds up to almost 6 ounces on each plant, IMPOSSIBLE. Plants grows normally an ounce, maybe two, no way each plant has anywhere close to 6 ounces, the plants are worth probably $500 – $1,000 tops. I would expect even $1,000 to be exaggerated. They do this in every story to hype up these so called “drug dealers” as dangerous, powerful people with millions of dollars. This seems like a decent man with a business, and the government just took everything away from him, because of some harmless plants. Its insulting, they should focus on busting a meth lab, or stopping transport of heroin from Afghanistan that supports way more dangerous cartels and terrorist. Instead they rather spend a year investigation on a small marijuana garden, who did they help? No one. All it did was help another marijuana seller get more clientele. Its a joke.
When I was a teenager I was arrested at 16 and again at 17 for possession of marijuana. I was devasted and felt I was a criminal for the first time. I did not feel I was one because I smoked pot but because I was finger printed and photographed and stuck in a cell. I felt my life was over. It changed my life forever.
That is why I believe marijuana should be legalized. Our criminal justice system is making criminals out of kids branding them as such. This is counter productive to a healthy society. There are many other reasons to decriminilize pot.
As a pastor I do not condone the use of drugs, pot or alcohol. But kids have enough problems without being “branded” a criminal for such a minor infraction as possession of marijuana.
I agree 100% with the Rev. Cannabis laws are more damaging than the substance itself. Went through a similar experience in 1973, got arrested and kicked out of College and the rest, as they say is history. It boggles my mind that 40 years later it’s still illegal, ridiculous!
i live in bucks county too. this war on drugs is such a joke but this article is completely accurate. regarding to matts comment…. a marijuana plant generally grows to close to 114 grams which is a pound and for hydroponic marijuana a pound generally costs $2000-$2500
to jake….114 grams is 2 grams over a quarter pound. Let me guess, public school math!?! Btw, a pound of hydroponic cronic goes for $4000-4500 a pound. You should do research before correcting someone else.
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$2000/plant is nonsense. I’m pulling them out of my property when I find them, and friends dont pay more then $20/plant. (They grow and use their own, rather then risk others lacing with other drugs).