80 people busted for mushroom possession

[Torsten]

By PATRICIA DAVIS

Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

BETHANY, W. Va. -- Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corp. has a mushroom problem.

It has other problems, to be sure. The company has been reorganizing under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and cutting jobs in the

process.

But in addition to its ordinary concerns about trade issues and shareholder returns, Wheeling-Pittsburgh was recently alerted by the sheriff here that an unused plot of company land had become a popular source of hallucinogenic mushrooms. Dozens of men and women have been crawling on hands and knees, often cradling small brown bags, in search of the tan sprouts. About 80 have been caught so far.

Wheeling-Pittsburgh bought the land more than 30 years ago as a potential coal source but never developed it. So the hilly, unfenced

land remains pristine, with gentle slopes, a twisted creek -- and lots of little mushrooms that when eaten make people forget, among

other things, precisely how lousy they taste.

"Obviously, we had no idea," says James A. Kosowski, a spokesman for the steelmaker.

Wheeling-Pittsburgh, a unit of the New York-based WHX Corp., says it is researching strategies to eliminate the mushroom supply. In the meantime, the company has hired private security guards to patrol the 150-acre property where most of the arrests have occurred.

The guards, in their unmarked vehicles, park near a giant, hollow sycamore tree that has become a familiar landmark for those

harvesting the illegal drugs. There's no cellphone service here, so if a guard sees something suspicious, he might drive a mile down the road to Bethany College and alert the security officers there, who in turn contact the sheriff's department.

The town of Bethany (pop. 985) has a part-time police department with five members, some of whom also work for the sheriff's department.

The bumper crop of mushrooms represents a huge crime wave for a sheriff's department more accustomed to handling unleashed canines

and drunken drivers.

"It created a lot of work for us," says Brooke County Sheriff Bernard L. Kazienko, who says the average number of monthly arrests has

doubled.

Not long ago, detective Pete Giordano, one of the department's 16 officers, went undercover on the steel company's land. Wearing a

camouflage vest, he roamed along the creek, looking for mushrooms and mushroom pickers. Without knowing they were talking to the police, the pickers were often helpful, pointing out good patches and telling

the detective whether they planned to sell the fungi or consume them.

"Actually, they are not that easy to find," Mr. Giordano says of the mushrooms, the biggest of which are about the size of a 50-cent piece. "I am surprised people were doing as well as they did."

When Mr. Giordano asked someone why he would drive several hours and risk arrest, the suspect said he did so because the mushrooms were free.

Last month, a local grand jury issued two felony indictments for possession with intent to deliver psilocybin, the hallucinogenic

substance contained in mushrooms. A third indictment for intent to manufacture a controlled substance involved an Ohio man who allegedly removed some mushroom-filled sod in order to transplant it at home.

The majority of the mushroom cases have been misdemeanors, which can result in a $500 fine, court costs of $130.25, or incarceration for

90 days to six months.

Mr. Giordano says he heard the Bethany mushroom patch gained renown, in part, because it was mentioned on a Web site, along with

directions to the property. The Internet provides all kinds of mushroom information, including how to grow them on rice cakes and

the importance of not leaving litter while trespassing.

Residents of Bethany began to realize something strange was happening a few years ago when they saw an unusually large number of cars with out-of-state plates driving the narrow road near the steel company's

land. Bob and Charlotte Chambers, owners of a general store, said they noticed a lot of people carrying brown paper bags. And Lawrence

Pyle, a retired schoolteacher, says he spotted one stranger posing as a fisherman, carrying a rod with no line.

Law-enforcement officials here say their biggest concern is that someone might pick and eat a toxic mushroom by mistake. Last year,

one 17-year-old in Sumter, S.C., underwent a liver transplant after ingesting a mushroom she found in a cow pasture.

But while law enforcement understands how to handle such matters, most steel companies do not. Concerned about public health issues,

Wheeling-Pittsburgh has consulted the West Virginia University Extension Office to discuss how to get rid of the mushrooms.

"There's no magic bullet for mushroom control," says John Miller, of the extension office. He presented the company three options: spray a fungicide, bulldoze the property, or sell it. Fungicides might raise

additional health and liability concerns, and bulldozing 150 hilly acres isn't easy, but company officials say they are considering

every option.

For the time being, Wheeling-Pittsburgh is looking forward to a long,

hot summer, when few mushrooms grow.

Write to Patricia Davis at [email protected]

[shroomy]

for fucks sake what the fuck is wrong with this world. they see people showing up and think hey they might be onto somthing than they find out its mushrooms. Like most people they think oh shit that cant be good the sweet news lady says so and shit think of the children and besiseds why should they have fun when im just stuck in this alchahol filled rut. agggggggggggggggggggggggg im finding it harder every day to even concider myself part of this muck they call society.

PS: I love you guys

[spiders]

Wow! There are similar tales posted in the past - from the US and Canada - on the shroomery and Forest Floor - they often seem to revolve around district police with nothing better to do.

[Torsten]

I think this news item was very well timed with the discussion we were having in another thread bluemeanie

I highlighted the bit I find the most shocking, especially the bit about being prosecuted for manufacturing simply for picking up a sod. I think this is scary considering that selling any mycology supplies could be construed this way (esp plates).

Any americans who could enlighten us about the laws in Virginia?? I mean, there are vast differences in state laws in most federations (incl australia) and I am just wondering how Virginia rates amongst the amerikkkan states for personal freedoms.

[spiraleyes]

'ameriKKKan'

ha,never seen that before.

[woof woof woof]

simply shocking.....

"protecting public health" ,yeah right!

[eccles]

HOW THE HAEMORRAGING *FUCK* CAN PEOPLE PICKING A NATURALLY OCCURRING FUCKING FUNGUS BE CONSIDERED A *CRIME WAVE*

and no... I am not intoxicated... that article in itself is enough to produce the most unbelievably fucking high levels of anger and disbelief all by itself.

[This message has been edited by eccles (edited 12 July 2002).]

[spiders]

Torsten, do you think that the charges regarding cultivation will stick? Its a bit of a long shot, but i bet the guy incriminated himself.

[Torsten]

This article is all I know about this story, so I don't know how tight the indictments are. I would imagine that such a charge could work. People have been prosecuted for much less... such as simply talking about cultivating or manufacturing things and then going to jail for 5 years for conspiracy.

I presume the cultivation indictment was a result of the undercover work they did on the patch. It may just be something to justify the huge cost for such an undercover operation, so it may not be as tight as they would like everyone to believe.

The whole thing is really beyond belief. It makes you wonder what this term 'leader of the free world' is really all about.....

[eccles]

the 'conspiracy' charges you mentioned... is this in australia? what kind of evidence was used? is any physical evidence required? evidence of ability/equiptment? because the number of people out there who 'decide' they are going to make drug A or drug B but who would actually be technically incapable is very high... so as these people would surely not be locked up, what is required to make a case against someone?

[Torsten]

Originally posted by eccles:

the 'conspiracy' charges you mentioned... is this in australia?

yes

what kind of evidence was used?

phone taps only for one of the people involved. various other evidence for the rest of that group.

is any physical evidence required? evidence of ability/equiptment?

possibly to confirm the collective intent, but not to convict every single member of the group. ie, if one got done with physical evidence, then the rest can go down with it.

because the number of people out there who 'decide' they are going to make drug A or drug B but who would actually be technically incapable is very high... so as these people would surely not be locked up, what is required to make a case against someone?

I think you are making an erroneous assumption here. The prosecution would not have to prove if the defendant is capable or not as long as it can be reasonbly assumed. ie, if the person has a chem degree, then this would suffice. Also, say there are 3 people in the conspiracy group. One has a degree, one has the chems and the third gets a percentage cut for unspecified involvement. This would be enough to nail the third guy (and the other two obviously), even though the third guy has no qualification or skill related to the conspiracy.

Did you know that theoretically it is possible to get prosecuted for conspiring to sell icing sugar that is claimed to be an illegal drug? Australia has a law, where a substance is deemed to be the substance it is presented to be. ie, if you buy a gram of speed and you get busted and you confess that you just bought a gram of speed, then even if the analysis turns out that the powder was icing sugar, you can still get done for a gram of amphetamine. One of the many reason never to incriminate yourself

he, he, just imagine going to jail and your cell mates ask you what you're in for....."supply of a pound of icing sugar".

[spiders]

ive read about this in the paper - people being busted for possession of what they believed to be es, when in actual fact they were hay-fever tablets. They still got done for it because of 'intent' or something of that nature.

[Guest reville]

Originally posted by Torsten:

I think this is scary considering that selling any mycology supplies could be construed this way (esp plates).

yes - i think sterile plates for the isolation of edible mushrooms only is definitely the commercial order of the day, and prints for microscopic ID only