At first glance, a dwelling full of pot and guns looks like a drug dealer’s lair, not the home of a man who planned to retire from a skilled trades job and operate a medical marijuana business.
But Mount Clemens attorney Mark Metry contends it was the latter in the case of his client Andrew Theodore Wasylyna, who is scheduled to appear in Oakland County Circuit Court before Judge Phyllis McMillen for a pretrial hearing on Thursday, Nov. 6.
The 57-year-old Addison Township man is accused of running an illegal marijuana grow operation at his home in the 600 block of Brewer Rd.
On Sept. 9, officers from the Oakland County Sheriff’s Narcotics Enforcement Team (NET) raided Wasylyna’s home and seized 88 marijuana plants (45 outside and 43 inside), 5 pounds of dried marijuana, 21 long guns, three handguns, scales, packaging materials and documents.
A search warrant was obtained after the sheriff’s Aviation Unit spotted the alleged marijuana grow operation during a routine flight over the area.
‘It certainly is not uncommon for people in the marijuana distribution business to grow their marijuana in rural areas so they are not detected by neighbors,? said Sheriff’s Captain Joe Quisenberry.
Wasylyna is facing one count of delivery/manufacture of 5 to 45 kilograms of marijuana (a seven-year felony), one count of delivery/manufacture of marijuana (a four-year-felony) and two counts of possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony (a two-year felony).
Metry claims there was no criminal intent on his client’s part, only a lack of knowledge with regard to the state’s medical marijuana law and its requirements for those who wish to grow and possess the controlled substance.
‘With the marijuana laws being the way they are, I think people sometimes misinterpret what they need to do to get into the business,? he said.
State law allows registered caregivers to cultivate up to 12 marijuana plants per qualifying patient and have a maximum of five patients. The law also allows caregivers to possess up to 2.5 ounces of usable marijuana per patient.
Wasylyna has been ‘gainfully employed for years? as a union carpenter and has ‘no criminal history,? according to Metry, who noted his client does not use marijuana for either medicinal or recreational purposes. He said drug testing confirmed that.
What officers found in Wasylyna’s home represented his future plans for operating a legitimate business, not the elements of a criminal enterprise, the attorney explained.
‘Ultimately, he was going to attempt to set up a medical marijuana growth farm kind-of-thing and get involved in that after he retired,? Metry said.
Wasylyna was experimenting to see ‘how easy or how hard it would be to grow and then, at some point, he was going to start going through the (state registration) process,? according to his attorney.
At the time of the police raid, Wasylyna had not filed with the state to be a primary caregiver for any registered medical marijuana patients, something that’s required in order to grow or possess marijuana under the 2008 voter-approved law.
‘He has none of the state cards,? Metry said.
‘He’s not exempt (from prosecution) under (the) medical marijuana (law) because he never even applied for a caregiver card,? Quisenberry said. ‘The law is not in his favor for that as a viable defense.?
‘In his mind, it hadn’t gotten that far yet,? Metry explained. ‘He didn’t do the research that he needed to do. He didn’t call me before he started.?
Even if Wasylyna had been a registered caregiver, the number of marijuana plants found at his home and the amount of usable marijuana both exceeded the maximum quantities allowed under the law.
Caregivers can serve no more than five patients, therefore the maximum number of marijuana plants each one can grow is 60 and they must be kept in an ‘enclosed, locked facility.? The maximum amount of usable marijuana a caregiver can possess is 12.5 ounces for five patients.
Quisenberry doubts the credibility of Metry’s story that Wasylyna was growing such a large quantity of marijuana with no immediate plans for its sale or consumption.
‘Marijuana does have a shelf life. It doesn’t last forever,? the captain said. ‘It’s a plant. You grow it. When you harvest it, if it’s not consumed within a very short period of time, it turns to dust. There’s no value (to) growing it just to let it turn to dust.?
That ‘shelf life? can be prolonged if it’s stored properly, but ‘there was no evidence that (Wasylyna) was storing it,? according to Quisenberry.
‘The evidence is that he was growing it and drying it,? he said.
To Quisenberry, it’s ‘not logical? that Wasylyna was investing money and time growing such a ‘significant volume? of marijuana as a dry-run for a future business.
‘You couldn’t make a good business argument that that’s a smart thing to do,? he said.
Metry maintains his client is no drug dealer and made ‘no sales at all.?
‘There’s no indications that there were any type of sales. People weren’t coming and going (from Wasylyna’s house),? he said. ‘There’s no record of him being involved in any type of other illegal activities.?
Metry said this was confirmed by officers who told him his client was ‘off the radar.?
‘Nobody had ever heard of him,? he said.
Quisenberry confirmed there’s ‘no evidence that (Wasylyna) sold (marijuana) to anyone.?
‘Of course, we have reason to believe he’s selling (it) because the quantity’s so high,? he added.
The captain explained that 2.5 ounces of marijuana is considered an amount for ‘personal usage.?
‘Anything over and above that is presumed to be prima facie evidence of intent to deliver,? he said. ‘The home was a grow operation with a large volume of marijuana ? larger than would be considered (for) personal usage ? therefore (it’s viewed as) prima facie evidence of intent to deliver.?
Metry is attempting to get the firearms charges against his client dropped. He noted the handguns were all registered and the long guns were for hunting.
Ultimately, he hopes to settle this case without a trial or jail time for his client.
‘I don’t know if we’ll be able to do that, but that’s what we’re hoping (for),? Metry said. ‘We’re just looking to resolve it.?
The attorney believes ‘a probationary sentence with certain strict regulations would be appropriate? in this case given there was no criminal intent on Wasylyna’s part.
‘He’s very remorseful? and ‘wishes? he hadn’t taken that ‘first step,? Metry noted.