Man Growing Marijuana in Back Yard: Police Blotter

A gas main break led to the arrest of a Mill Hollow Road man on an unusual drug offense Aug. 5.

Police were called to the street about 10 a.m. when a gas line ruptured.

But when officers accompanied Columbia Gas workers into the back yard of a nearby home to turn off the resident's gas, they found something more interesting — nine marijuana plants in pots, lined up in the yard.

"The plants were just sitting in the back of the house," Detective Lt. John Janowski said.

The resident told police he was growing the marijuana for medicinal use.

He was nonetheless charged with cultivating drugs, a fourth-degree misdemeanor.

"He'd need to move out of state for that to be legal," Janowski said.

Accident Under Investigation

A man driving north on I-71 during rush hour went through the median and across three lanes of southbound traffic before getting stuck in a wooded area Aug. 9.

Miraculously, no one else was injured, and no other vehicles struck his as he veered across the southbound lanes at 5:15 p.m.

Police said the man, of Cleveland, was going in and out of consciousness and was trapped in his car.

He was extricated and taken to Southwest General Health Center, where a blood sample was drawn to test for intoxication.

Police said Wednesday they didn't have the results of the test yet.