cannabisnews.com: Detective Says Pot Exceeded Personal Need Detective Says Pot Exceeded Personal Need Posted by FoM on January 25, 2001 at 07:32:11 PT By Clark Mason, The Press Democrat Source: Press Democrat Wielding a large plastic food bag of primo Sonoma marijuana buds to illustrate his point, a narcotics detective testified Wednesday that a Santa Rosa medical marijuana user was growing much more than he needed for his personal use.Rebutting defense testimony, Steven Gossett, the lead detective for the Sonoma County marijuana eradication program, said Alan MacFarlane was growing nearly twice as much as he needed for one year, even assuming he was smoking and eating the amount he claimed. Gossett said the local plants yield more buds and a more potent variety than the Mississippi crop from a federal study that a defense expert relied on to estimate how much MacFarlane would harvest.MacFarlane, 47, is the first person in Sonoma County to mount a medical use defense to charges of marijuana cultivation. He was arrested twice in 1999 -- the first time for growing 73 plants, and then for 36 plants.Gossett estimated the first crop would have produced almost 15 pounds of manicured buds. The second crop would have yielded about 13.5 pounds, he said.His estimates were much lower than a fellow narcotics detective who testified last week, but Gossett said the amount MacFarlane was growing in his Santa Rosa back yard was still excessive for his needs.After MacFarlane filed an insurance claim for the loss of his plants, he told insurance investigators he consumed an average of 2.5 ounces per week.Based on that figure, the detective said MacFarlane would consume 8.1 pounds per year, much less than his plants would have produced.Under questioning by prosecutor Carla Claeys, Gossett calculated that MacFarlane's first crop would have yielded more than 8,000 marijuana cigarettes, meaning he would have needed to smoke 22 joints a day.But under questioning by defense attorney Sandy Feinland, the detective conceded that if the marijuana were eaten, as well as smoked, a person could consume 2 ounces per week.Although expert witnesses for the defense previously testified MacFarlane was not growing more than he required for his medical needs, Gossett said their yield estimate was based on much less productive plants in Mississippi."It's like apples to oranges?" asked the prosecutor."Absolutely, it's like trying to make a peach pie with apples," Gossett responded.You can reach Staff Writer Clark Mason at 568-5312 or e-mail: cmason pressdemocrat.comSource: Press Democrat, The (CA) Author: Clark Mason, The Press Democrat Published: January 25, 2001Copyright: 2001 The Press Democrat Address: Letters Editor, P. O. Box 569, Santa Rosa CA 95402 Fax: (707) 521-5305 Contact: letters pressdemo.com Website: http://www.pressdemo.com/ Forum: http://www.pressdemo.com/opinion/talk/ Feedback: http://www.pressdemocrat.com/opinion/letform.htmlRelated Articles:Sonoma County Pot Trial Winding Down http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread8446.shtmlPot Not Excessive Amount, Witness Says http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread8436.shtmlPot Expert Disputes Estimate of Yield http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread8421.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #5 posted by Dave in Florida on January 25, 2001 at 16:29:09 PT 6 oz per plant They don't have a clue.If you read some of the grow sites and ADPC on newsgroups you will find that most experinced growers for personal consumption yield about 40 grams per square foot. It really does not matter the number plants. In a closet that is say 2' x 4', 8 sq ft with adequate lighting (50 watts per sq ft) would yield about 320 grams or just over 11 ounces. Makes no difference if it were 6 plants or 8 plants, it would still come out about the same based on canopy area. If there were 8 plants each would provide about 40 grams or 1.41 oz.6 plants would be 53 grams per plant or almost 1.87 oz. If you grow from clones you could produce that 4 to 5 times a year. 1280 to 1600 grams per year or 2.82 to 3.52 pounds per year. In your closet. [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by freedom fighter on January 25, 2001 at 13:22:33 PT Enough is enough This trail is a kangroo court. A mockery of Justice and Freedom. It is time to get rid of people like Gossett. He needed to be told that he is NO garden expert. This Gossett cannot even prove that Mr. McFarlane was selling. This is sick! [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by Ethan Russo, MD on January 25, 2001 at 08:36:57 PT: And Another Thing The French have an expression, "being hoisted on one's own petard." That surely applies to the situation in this case. How can the prosecution in these cases continually claim huge yields of cannabis from grow operations, when as Chris Conrad so rightly pointed out, NIDA's own data supports much lower yields? It does not make sense, even to juries. [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by Ethan Russo, MD on January 25, 2001 at 08:14:24 PT: Having it Both Ways "Gossett said the local plants yield more buds and a more potent variety than the Mississippi crop from a federal study"The government always gets its way. On the one hand, the "legal" patients in the Compassionate Use IND are supplied 300 grams of Mississippi cannabis a month by the Feds, but if any medical marijuana user claims an intake of that much homegrown, they are busted for exceeding the limits; limits, that by the way, are not specified by 215.As in most things, private enterprise does a much better job of quality control in producing cannabis than the government can manage.This kind of prosecution is arbitrary, capricious and counter-productive. As more defendants are acquitted, the public will quickly tire of this harassment, and wasted tax money. California needs to concentrate on solving the energy crisis (resulting from another government boondoggle), and forget about useless endeavor such as persecuting sick people. [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by Robbie on January 25, 2001 at 08:01:47 PT Waiting for my next adjustment >>Wielding a large plastic food bag of primo Sonoma marijuana budsHe was what?!? Arrest him! Plus. If you'll not be smokin' those buds, please float 'em my way.Also, asking a War on (some) Drugs warrior about whether or not Mr. McFarlane's amount of personal growing was too much, is really "begging the question." It's in the officer's vested interest to justify a continuing policy that garners arrests and harrassment. What else would he be doing? Arresting people that truly deserve it?? [ Post Comment ] Post Comment Name: Optional Password: E-Mail: Subject: Comment: [Please refrain from using profanity in your message] Link URL: Link Title: