Alberta Mounties cringe as their told to give back pot and grow op equipment

Alex McCuaig Tue Aug 14 2012 3Recommend Judge rules officials must return pot to Alberta man along with his grow op MEDICINE HAT , ALBERTA — A judge has ruled that a southern Alberta man not only gets back his marijuana grow op equipment — he gets his pot returned as well. Corey Robin Maxwell’s home in Medicine Hat was the subject of a search warrant in February for an allegedly stolen XBox. Police also found a 60-plant grow op and reported that they found dangerous electrical conditions. Maxwell, who is 48, was charged with possession of stolen property as well as with cultivation, possession and trafficking of marijuana. It turns out Maxwell had been issued a Health Canada licence to grow pot plants and possess medicinal marijuana to treat pain from a spinal injury. All the charges were withdrawn in June — and the judge has now decided that police must return Maxwell’s pot as well as the equipment he already got back. That happened after the federal Crown decided earlier this month not to proceed with a forfeiture hearing. Maxwell has filed a formal complaint against the police for the way he was treated. The house was condemned in March due to mould, unsafe utility connections and the presence of chemicals. Maxwell and his family no longer live in the Medicine Hat area. The Canadian Press