Texas cops mistake actual weed for marijuana, spend hours doing yard work

[Earth_First]

That's because a recently discovered cache of plants, initially pegged by officials speaking to local news as "one of the largest marijuana plant seizures in the police department's history," turned out to be a relatively common prairie flower of little significance.

Texas officers ultimately spent hours laboring to tag and remove up to 400 plants from a city park, discovering only after a battery of tests that they had been sweating over mere Horse Mint, a member of the mint family -- effectively turning their ambitious drug bust into mere yard work.

The plants, which bear very few aesthetic similarities to cannabis, were reported by an unnamed youth who came across them while riding a bike in the park around 8 p.m. on Thursday. Upon visual inspection, police apparently agreed that the inoffensive plants had to go.

http://rawstory.com/rs/2010/0522/largest-marijuana-plant-seizure-police-departments-history-turns-mere-yard-work/

:shrug:

[Texasgal]

1. ROFLMAO!!!

Ol' Barney Fife must be bored!!!

[Earth_First]

2. On a related note, the town is hosting the First Annual Julip Festival...

in order to pay for all the overtime!

[pepperbear]

3. I secretly hope the kid was yanking their chain. yeah, it cost money and wastes time, but

such a statement to have made.

[Webster Green]

4. The plants looked nothing like pot.

Those cops are really fucking stupid. :rofl:

[kestrel91316]

18. Nothing whatsoever, other than it's a PLANT.

[xultar]

5. Everyone to TX and plant some of that shit all over!

[BrightKnight]

14. A lot of people have dropped a lot of seeds in Austin

over they years. There is a rumor that it is not difficult to find wild weed if you are into that kind of thing. Smoking "wild" weed would probably give you headache and it would not begin to compare to the highly refined cultivated stuff. I personally have no interest in any of it.

[Webster Green]

22. It would depend a lot on the genetics in the seeds.

Seeds from good stuff would yield more good stuff if it got enough water and nutrients. It might turn out seeded if there are male plants around, but the quality could be fine.

[xultar]

26. If the cops are doing yard work then they aren't out beatin up folk.

that's my thinkin...

[Teka]

6. Texas Botany books need updating

[etherealtruth]

9. From what we've seen when Texas "updates" textbooks ....

... they'd do much better if they imported Botany texts.

On a serious note ....any botany field guide would have helped rule the plants out as MJ

[Xithras]

7. How in the heck do you confuse horsemint and marijuana?!?!

They look NOTHING alike!

[Leftist Agitator]

11. That's the cultivated variety.

The wild plant looks vaguely similar to marijuana:



But not really.

[Adsos Letter]

20. Wow! Purple Bud!!!

:rofl:

[hobbit709]

23. Still doesn't look the same

[PDJane]

8. Agnes is sitting here with her mouth open.......

She says they need some plant identification classes......

[grantcart]

10. so much for Texas text books

[Lint Head]

12. Mark one more big bust for the insane war on drugs. (weeds)

[Lyric]

13. Woohoo for Texas public education.

:banghead:

[HippieCowgirl]

15. And yet my neighbors are growing a powerful hallucinagen in their front yard...

I have noted at least five houses on my street growing datura as an ornamental. It does have beautiful large white flowers, an evening bloomer. Waaaay more dangerous than weed.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

21. Yep, trumpet vine.

Don't tell them about MORNING GLORIES, FOR GAWD'S SAKE!!!!

[IDemo]

16. "Horse Mint" - soon to come the next slang term for weed

Real weed, that is. :hippie:

[kestrel91316]

17. Horse mint. ROFLMAO!!! Stupid kid who called the cops was probably

a homeschooled bible beating fundie who wouldn't know pot if it came up and bit him in the ass, but he decided it was his job to play community monitor.

[laughingliberal]

19. I just had a brilliant idea for those who hate weeding their gardens! nt

[HarveyDarkey]

24. Old joke, but apropos

An old Italian lived alone in New Jersey . He wanted to plant his annual tomato garden, but it was very difficult work, as the ground was hard. His only son, Vincent, who used to help him, was in prison. The old man wrote a letter to his son and described his predicament:


Dear Vincent,
I am feeling pretty sad, because it looks like I won't be able to plant my tomato garden this year. I'm just getting too old to be digging up a garden plot. I know if you were here my troubles would be over. I know you would be happy to dig the plot for me, like in the old days.
Love, Papa


A few days later he received a letter from his son.

Dear Pop,
Don't dig up that garden. That's where the bodies are buried..
Love,
Vinnie


At 4 a.m. the next morning, FBI agents and local police arrived and dug up the entire area without finding any bodies. They apologized to the old man and left.
That same day the old man received another letter from his son.


Dear Pop,
Go ahead and plant the tomatoes now. That's the best I could do under the circumstances.
Love you,
Vinnie

[Hubert Flottz]

25. Those Viagra hallucinations are really starting to take a toll on the

GOPer mini-minds.