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In the midst of a contentious divorce and custody battle, Scot Granke moved out of his Bangor home in June, leaving behind a medical-marijuana grow operation in a locked barn, according to recent court testimony. Granke -- then a Paw Paw Middle School teacher -- tended to the operation sporadically after that, and by late August, many of the plants were yellowed and some were dying, according to a transcript released today of Granke's Dec. 18 preliminary exam in South Haven District Court.
But police raided the operation on Aug. 21 after Granke's estranged wife, Marlene, called authorities, saying she thought the size of the operation violated Granke's license as a medical-marijuana grower. Two members of Michigan State Police's Southwest Enforcement Team searched the barn on Aug. 21, finding 66 plants, between 20 jars of marijuana processed as hashish and hashish butter, and more than 10 pounds of marijuana leaves and stems in trash bags, Trooper Evan Hauger testified at the Dec. 8 hearing.
Hauger said the medical-marijuana law does not allow for processing of hash and the numbers of plants violated Granke's license. Based on Hauger's testimony, South Haven District Judge Arthur Clarke found probable cause that Granke should face trial on one count of manufacturing marijuana and one count of manufacturing hash, both felonies. That trial is scheduled for March 4 in Van Buren Circuit Court before Judge Kathleen Brickley. Granke, 51, also is facing four misdemeanor counts of possessing an unlicensed handgun.
Granke resigned last month from his Paw Paw teaching job, Paw Paw officials said Thursday. He was put on leave in August after his arrest. Granke did not testify at the Dec. 18 hearing, but his estranged wife did. Marlene Granke testified that she initially helped Granke with the medical-marijuana operation but became increasingly opposed to the business. After Granke moved out of the home and "abandoned" his family, she testified, she became increasingly worried about the grow operation, which was in a locked barn that she didn't have access to.
"It wasn't just because there was too many plants, it was the fact that all the people in Bangor knew that we were growing," she testified. "I had become scared. I was afraid for my family. And I was scared that somebody was going to break in and kill us." In his testimony, Hauger said Granke told police that he thought his grow operation adhered to the law. "Mr. Granke stated that he is not a drug dealer" Hauger testified. "He helps people with legitimate problems. He explained to us he doesn't see people with just chronic pain as we often see. He sees people with life threatening and seriously debilitating conditions. He prided himself in his abilities to create what he called sub-lingual mouth drops which I imagine are some of the liquid things as well as the hash and hash oil."
However, Hauger testified, Granke had let his own medical-marijuana card expire and could produce cards for only three of the five patients he claimed. Granke told authorities that he knew he was limited in the number of marijuana plant he could have -- 12 per patient -- but thought only plants with buds were included in that count. Hauger said that the law actually covers any "usable marijuana," whether or not the plant has buds.
Hauger said that also included the marijuana leaves and stems in the trash bags. He also said between the plants, the marijuana in the bags and the processed hash, Granke was clearly out of compliance with his medical-marijuana license. Granke's attorney, John Frost of South Haven, acknowledged there was enough probable cause in the case to send to to circuit court.
But he also suggested that much of the processed marijuana was infested with mites; the leaves and stems in the trash bags were waste from processing the hash and meant to be thrown out, and many of the plants were yellowed and dying. Hauger said he didn't know about the mite infestation and it was unclear whether the materials in the trash bags were waste -- adding that it only mattered it was "usable" marijuana.
On a question from Frost about the condition of the plants, Hauger said some "were obviously probably too far gone to be brought back. Many other still had enough green where I think if they were exposed to light and water would probably return to being healthy plants." Hauger said six of the 66 plants "had kind of shriveled up in their roots, kind of disintegrated so the lab told us we can't count these as plants."
News Moderator - The General @ 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: Mlive.com
Author: Julie Mack
Contact: Contact Us - MLive Media Group
Website: Former Paw Paw teacher Scot Granke facing March trial on medical-marijuana operation | MLive.com
But police raided the operation on Aug. 21 after Granke's estranged wife, Marlene, called authorities, saying she thought the size of the operation violated Granke's license as a medical-marijuana grower. Two members of Michigan State Police's Southwest Enforcement Team searched the barn on Aug. 21, finding 66 plants, between 20 jars of marijuana processed as hashish and hashish butter, and more than 10 pounds of marijuana leaves and stems in trash bags, Trooper Evan Hauger testified at the Dec. 8 hearing.
Hauger said the medical-marijuana law does not allow for processing of hash and the numbers of plants violated Granke's license. Based on Hauger's testimony, South Haven District Judge Arthur Clarke found probable cause that Granke should face trial on one count of manufacturing marijuana and one count of manufacturing hash, both felonies. That trial is scheduled for March 4 in Van Buren Circuit Court before Judge Kathleen Brickley. Granke, 51, also is facing four misdemeanor counts of possessing an unlicensed handgun.
Granke resigned last month from his Paw Paw teaching job, Paw Paw officials said Thursday. He was put on leave in August after his arrest. Granke did not testify at the Dec. 18 hearing, but his estranged wife did. Marlene Granke testified that she initially helped Granke with the medical-marijuana operation but became increasingly opposed to the business. After Granke moved out of the home and "abandoned" his family, she testified, she became increasingly worried about the grow operation, which was in a locked barn that she didn't have access to.
"It wasn't just because there was too many plants, it was the fact that all the people in Bangor knew that we were growing," she testified. "I had become scared. I was afraid for my family. And I was scared that somebody was going to break in and kill us." In his testimony, Hauger said Granke told police that he thought his grow operation adhered to the law. "Mr. Granke stated that he is not a drug dealer" Hauger testified. "He helps people with legitimate problems. He explained to us he doesn't see people with just chronic pain as we often see. He sees people with life threatening and seriously debilitating conditions. He prided himself in his abilities to create what he called sub-lingual mouth drops which I imagine are some of the liquid things as well as the hash and hash oil."
However, Hauger testified, Granke had let his own medical-marijuana card expire and could produce cards for only three of the five patients he claimed. Granke told authorities that he knew he was limited in the number of marijuana plant he could have -- 12 per patient -- but thought only plants with buds were included in that count. Hauger said that the law actually covers any "usable marijuana," whether or not the plant has buds.
Hauger said that also included the marijuana leaves and stems in the trash bags. He also said between the plants, the marijuana in the bags and the processed hash, Granke was clearly out of compliance with his medical-marijuana license. Granke's attorney, John Frost of South Haven, acknowledged there was enough probable cause in the case to send to to circuit court.
But he also suggested that much of the processed marijuana was infested with mites; the leaves and stems in the trash bags were waste from processing the hash and meant to be thrown out, and many of the plants were yellowed and dying. Hauger said he didn't know about the mite infestation and it was unclear whether the materials in the trash bags were waste -- adding that it only mattered it was "usable" marijuana.
On a question from Frost about the condition of the plants, Hauger said some "were obviously probably too far gone to be brought back. Many other still had enough green where I think if they were exposed to light and water would probably return to being healthy plants." Hauger said six of the 66 plants "had kind of shriveled up in their roots, kind of disintegrated so the lab told us we can't count these as plants."
News Moderator - The General @ 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: Mlive.com
Author: Julie Mack
Contact: Contact Us - MLive Media Group
Website: Former Paw Paw teacher Scot Granke facing March trial on medical-marijuana operation | MLive.com
