Firefighters find marijuana plants while putting out house fire
Nov 22, 2009 Online Issue
SOUTHWEST MIAMI-DADE, Fla. (WSVN) – A fire that broke out inside a home Wednesday morning has led authorities to a suspected marijuana 
grow house.
The fire broke out at 4:30 a.m, at a home on Southwest 20th Street and 58th Court. “We had trouble fighting the fire, because of thick black smoke– lot of pots on the floor containing illegal substances affected our ability to search this house,” said Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Lieutenant Elkin Sierra. “We had to use a thermal energy camera to find the scene of the fire and finally knocked this fire out. Then we found a lot of unusual wiring in the house, a lot of duct work, which leads us to believe it’s a possible grow house.”
Authorities found 34 marijuana plants worth an estimated $8,000 to $10,000 throughout the home. Detectives are investigating and collecting evidence. The cause of the fire also remains under investigation.
One neighbor is shocked by the criminal activity going on in his neighborhood. “Everybody here, we don’t tolerate that. That’s being very disrespectful to everybody to bring that here,” said Rene Armaf.
The homeowner said he was renting the home to a married couple for about three months. That homeowner is cooperating with police.
SOURCE: WSVN.COM
Tags: firefighters, Florida, marijuana
Will Florida be next to allow medical marijuana?
Nov 9, 2009 Online Issue
A new federal policy toward medical marijuana has sparked discussion among Florida residents about the future of Florida’s marijuana laws.
Under federal law, the use or sale of marijuana has long been illegal. But since 1996, advocacy groups have succeeded in passing laws in 13 states that made the use of marijuana for medical purposes legal within those states.
Because federal law supersedes state law, patients who used medical marijuana in compliance with the laws of their states were often still at risk for federal prosecution.
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