The South Snohomish County Narcotics Task Force and the DEA raided 25 homes and the Seattle Times assigned a staff reporter to write the DEA's press release...
Detectives have been investigating a suspected organized indoor marijuana-growing operation for several months, said Lynnwood police spokeswoman Shannon Sessions. Most of the raided homes were rented, in middle-class neighborhoods, where electricity was stolen to run the operation, according to police."Not all homes had marijuana growth inside, but the majority did," Sessions said. "The ones that didn't, had other things like equipment," including fans, lighting and cultivation materials. Thousands of plants were confiscated, potentially worth millions of dollars in street value, police said.... The suspects ranged in age from 25 to 75 years old. Not all of the suspects will be charged, as police are still interviewing them and sorting out "who is who," said Sessions. Children were removed from some of the homes and placed in custody of Child Protective Services, said Sessions, who didn't have their ages or the number.
Only police officers and DEA agents are quoted. There are—as always—no quotes from anyone on the other side of this issue. No quote pointing out that people grow pot in houses in—gasp!—"middle-class neighborhoods" because it's illegal to grow pot on farms, in our gardens, in pots on our balconies, etc. No quote pointing out the futility of these raids. But, hey, we can all sleep a little easier knowing that the children of these plant-growing monsters are now in the loving care of Washington State's Child Protective Services.
Take it away, Seattle Times commenters:
The 'war on drugs' is a monumental waste of taxpayers money.
Yes, now let's spend scarce government resources on prosecuting and incarcerating these heinous criminals. I have heard that these marijuana smokers do awful things like sit on their sofa and watch TV while eating Cheetoes. Unacceptable.
In these times of massive government deficits why are these clowns wasting precious resources on this futile and archaic war on weed? Pathetic and shameful, no wonder public anger towards government is at record levels.
It's a tragedy that our tax dollars are wasted on this "war" that is impossible to win. The social impact of marijuana is negligible, the health risks are lower than over the counter pain and cold medicines, and the most importantly, I am a free red blooded American and my rights shall not be infringed upon without just cause. There is no credible reason to keep marijuana illegal other then to fuel the prison-industrial complex which makes millions of dollars keeping the highest percentage of any countries citizens in the world, in lock down. If you are going to take a man's freedom, you had better have a really good reason for it and that simply isn't a good enough reason. Especially in a time when this nation needs to be cutting spending. How much money could this country save by legalizing. How much money could our government raise for healthcare programs by taxing this crop?
