CANADIAN HEAT LENS CAMERAS ON HELICOPTERS

[coolx]

Do you really think the flir is going to see the outline of light??? [ find me one of those pictures. In fact find me any helicopter flir pictures used in any grow room bust, you wont. ]

The bulb will be cool in about 7-8 minutes, the hood is going to take 10-20 minutes to cool, and the rest of the warm room isnt going to cool for hours, so turning off the lights aint gonna do diddly.

When helicopter flir isnt tuned the same to pick up gradient heat loss from homes I dont know why people run around flipping thier lights everytime they hear whats probably a news or hospital helicopter anyways.

I didn't say the 'outline' of light, they don't need to see that, though of course they can, like they can see the outline of a person who gives off much less light - I said 'patterns' of light ... ie say a 4 x 2 grid of spots of heat ... they can easily see that.

And, of course, I can't show you any flir pics used in a grow room bust cos it's illegal w/o a search warrant. As someone else suggested - and I'm sure you've read this whole thread, so I don't know why you're making this point, unless it's just to muddy things up - they can use it as a fishing expedition to notify ground units, who would get evidence another way.

I don't know about your bulbs and hood - my hood runs at room temp (I think less than in fact) - in fact I have condensation dripping off the glass and metal it's that cold, and my bulbs not much more - air-cooled with freezing air. So maybe 1-2 minutes to cool down, max. And who cares how long the room takes to cool down. Like I said, it's patterns of heat spots. A hot room is a hot room, period. Nothing suspicious about that. It's when you make statements like that I question your logic.

I was just commenting that your original remark was not accurate - that it's pointless to turn off light when flir doesn't detect light. Sure it doesn't, it detects heat. It might be pointless for other reasons - and maybe not - but the fact that flir doesn't detect light is irrelevant.

In my area, helicopters that run in the middle of the night that circle every so often are not news or medivac helicopters. Medivacs, I would imagine, would usually try to fly direct in straight lines unless they're landing or taking off, and there ain't too much going on here in the middle of the night, and there's no lights, nothing to see by, and they weren't shining any lights down to the ground.

 

[Guest]

I always thought MJ gave diff. infared signals off due to being a tropical plant. I remember hearing that multiple places along the way. Was never sure if it was true though and never dug to find out. What do you guys think? Myth or what? I really wish my memory was better because I could have sworn my plant phys teacher said this as well.


edit: here we go:
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=1006021013185&show=7

thats all i can find for now, night

 

[Verite]

..
And, of course, I can't show you any flir pics used in a grow room bust cos it's illegal w/o a search warrant. As someone else suggested - and I'm sure you've read this whole thread, so I don't know why you're making this point, unless it's just to muddy things up - they can use it as a fishing expedition to notify ground units, who would get evidence another way.

I don't know about your bulbs and hood - my hood runs at room temp (I think less than in fact) - in fact I have condensation dripping off the glass and metal it's that cold, and my bulbs not much more - air-cooled with freezing air. So maybe 1-2 minutes to cool down, max. And who cares how long the room takes to cool down. Like I said, it's patterns of heat spots. A hot room is a hot room, period. Nothing suspicious about that. It's when you make statements like that I question your logic.
..

Its not illegal when you have a warrant. As a defendant you are also entitled to see/get copies of evidence. How come the internet and these forums doesnt have or have ever seen any copies of pictures or video footage of FLIR scanning a house leading to a bust? Before you comment on how they all conspire worldwide to supress all this evidence, stop.

You also hit it on the head, a hot room is a hot room and theres nothing suspicious about that. Because thats all their going to see of any grow no matter how many lights you have on or just recently turned off, unless you grow in a barn, or in your attic thats void of any insulation. Anyplace else and its just going to look like a hot room which could be a pizza in the oven or a furnace or a hot water heater, etc.

Heat from a grow light is going to heat above it and everything else is going to be heated evenly away from that in the room. Its not like the outside of a house is going to show a spot on the wall where the light is roughly centered. All your going to get is spots by the window where heat loss is the most. If you can say thats a growroom then you need to work with miss cleo.

You can question my logic all you like. It still wont provide you with some sort of evidence showing how wrong I am or how ill my logic is being applied. If people were being busted with flir there would be a hell of a lot more evidence out there than just paranoid internet folk running around saying how they think they know for positive its happening.

 

[trivergata]

I always thought MJ gave diff. infared signals off due to being a tropical plant. I remember hearing that multiple places along the way. Was never sure if it was true though and never dug to find out. What do you guys think? Myth or what? I really wish my memory was better because I could have sworn my plant phys teacher said this as well.


edit: here we go:
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=1006021013185&show=7

thats all i can find for now, night

I'm wondering about this too. It smells like BS, but I keep hearing it. Any one have an answer?

 

[Guest]

I'm almost positive my prof. told us about MJ having diff. heat sigs than other plants out in the open. Maybe I'll try to find some good sources later on

 

[Guest]

Below i found an article on the spectral signatures of cannabis...but i was watching msnbc last year and they had a special featuring a CAMP outfit in San Diego and they didn't use any cameras or anything...their spotter was color blind and this allowed him to pick out cannabis from the helicopter...but they were mainly going after 30k+ plant patches...mexican mob grows

Title: WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT THE SPECTRAL SIGNATURES OF ILLEGAL CANNABIS CULTIVATION?

Interpretive Summary: Successful detection of outdoor illegal Cannabis cultivation with remote sensing would be of considerable help to law enforcement agencies. It is assumed that remote sensing will rely on the spectral signatures of Cannabis plant canopies as the primary indicator. The spectral reflectance of Cannabis was examined using laboratory, field and airborne measurements. Results thus far include: 1) leaf and canopy spectral reflectance of Cannabis exhibit characteristics of other green plants, 2) nadir spectral signatures do not have stable, unique absorption features suitable for a reference signature, 3) the "emerald green" (blue-green) color of Cannabis results from specular reflectance of blue sky light and small particle scattering from microscopic structures on the surface of Cannabis leaves, 4) spectral contrast between Cannabis and other plant canopies appears most significant for green, red edge and short wave infrared wavelengths, 5) spectral contrasts between Cannabis and tree species appear greater than spectral differences with other herbaceous species, 6) isolation of Cannabis canopy spectral signatures during land cover classification may be difficult using visible-near infrared systems, and 7) researchers investigating detection technologies must be kept aware of the trends of growers to conceal sites. Analysis of the essential elements of information associated with illegal Cannabis cultivation offers other possibilities for detection with remote sensing. Ultimately, remote sensing will be most effective when used with a probability-of-occurrence/Cannabis cultivation site prediction model from the Counter Drug ¿ Geographical Regional Assessment Sensor System (CD-GRASS).

Technical Abstract: It has been proposed that illegal marijuana cultivation can be detected using remote sensing. The approach would be to key on the unique blue-green color of marijuana plants reported by law enforcement aerial spotters. The spectral reflectance of marijuana leaves and plants was investigated. Results thus far include: 1) leaf and canopy spectral reflectance of marijuana exhibit characteristics of other green plants, 2) nadir spectral reflectance does not have a unique stable, absorption features suitable for a reference signature to key on, 3) the "emerald green" (blue-green) color of marijuana results from specular reflectance of blue sky light and small particle scattering from microscopic structures on the surface of marijuana leaves, 4) spectral contrast between marijuana and other plant canopies appears most significant for green, red edge and short wave infrared wavelengths, 5) spectral contrasts between marijuana and tree species appear greater than spectral differences with other herbaceous species, 6) isolation of marijuana canopy spectral signatures during land cover classification may be difficult using visible-near infrared systems, and 7) researchers investigating detection technologies must be kept aware of the trends of growers to conceal sites. Analysis of illegal cultivation sites offers other possibilities for detection using remote sensing. Ultimately, remote sensing will be most effective when a probability-of-occurrence site prediction model is used to plan data collection missions.

http://www.ars.usda.gov/research/publications/publications.htm?SEQ_NO_115=150114

 

[Guest]

interesting

 

[trivergata]

Very interesting.......

Just one more proof that our favorite plant IS special among the other plants!

Triv

 

[coolx]

Its not illegal when you have a warrant. As a defendant you are also entitled to see/get copies of evidence. How come the internet and these forums doesnt have or have ever seen any copies of pictures or video footage of FLIR scanning a house leading to a bust? Before you comment on how they all conspire worldwide to supress all this evidence, stop.

What's the point of doing a flir search AFTER you have other evidence? A heat spot pattern is not illegal - you could be growing orchids. The only way it makes sense to use it is BEFORE you have other evidence - then go down to suspect houses and see if there's any evidence of mj. And as it's not illegal, you wouldn't have any photos as evidence as it's evidence of nothing. Sorry, no conspiracy theories, just common sense.

You also hit it on the head, a hot room is a hot room and theres nothing suspicious about that. Because thats all their going to see of any grow no matter how many lights you have on or just recently turned off, unless you grow in a barn, or in your attic thats void of any insulation. Anyplace else and its just going to look like a hot room which could be a pizza in the oven or a furnace or a hot water heater, etc.

Heat from a grow light is going to heat above it and everything else is going to be heated evenly away from that in the room. Its not like the outside of a house is going to show a spot on the wall where the light is roughly centered. All your going to get is spots by the window where heat loss is the most. If you can say thats a growroom then you need to work with miss cleo.

Well, what I read a while back was that they could tell by the pattern of heat on the walls - I don't know how precise that could get though. Maybe they could see 3 evenly space slight hotter spots? Anyway, I'm not too worried about it, but for an extra $50, I would bear it in mind and add an insulation layer to any grow room, just in case.

 

[Verite]

What's the point of doing a flir search AFTER you have other evidence? A heat spot pattern is not illegal - you could be growing orchids. The only way it makes sense to use it is BEFORE you have other evidence - then go down to suspect houses and see if there's any evidence of mj. And as it's not illegal, you wouldn't have any photos as evidence as it's evidence of nothing. Sorry, no conspiracy theories, just common sense.


Well, what I read a while back was that they could tell by the pattern of heat on the walls - I don't know how precise that could get though. Maybe they could see 3 evenly space slight hotter spots? Anyway, I'm not too worried about it, but for an extra $50, I would bear it in mind and add an insulation layer to any grow room, just in case.

Might be common sense to you but its no sense I would use. You do know its illegal to fish around flir searching for hotspots in the united states dont you? Stands to reason they arent going to waste all that money doing something illegal when every other cheap method of busts works just fine.

So in order to flir search in the first place they need a warrant. Every defendant is entitled to copies of evidence, the fact theres no flir pictures or video footage out there to this day that anyone can provide to show of a bust lets me know exactly how much they are using helicopter flir to bust indoor growers, none.

And no you wont see spots on outside walls from lights because there arent any houses in the united states built without insulation.

 

[Guest]

Came across this article from June 19, 2001


Snooping for Indoor Pot Farms?

In a pro-civil liberties decision, the Supreme Court recently set limits on police using infrared "thermal imagers" to peer into a person's home in search of pot gardens.

"How often, or in what system, the Thought Police plugged in on any individual wire was guesswork. It was even conceivable that they watched everybody all the time. But at any rate they could plug in your wire whenever they wanted to. You had to live -- did live, from habit that became instinct -- in the assumption that every sound you made was overheard, and, except in darkness, every movement scrutinized." -- George Orwell, Nineteen Eighty Four

In an important decision setting a boundary on when police may use certain high-tech surveillance equipment, the Supreme Court ruled on June 11 that police must obtain a search warrant before using an infrared heat-detecting device to peer into a person's home.

The case involved Danny Kyllo, whose home was scanned by police officers using a thermal imaging device. Thermal imagers detect infrared heat radiation, which is not detectable by the naked eye.

After receiving a tip that Mr. Kyllo might be growing marijuana in his home, and learning that his utility bills were relatively high, two police officers drove by Kyllo's home, scanning it with a Thermovision 210 device made by Agema Corporation (recently merged with FLIR Systems). The device revealed hot spots consistent with the use of high-intensity lights used to grow plants, including marijuana, indoors. Based on the information from the thermal scan, the informant's tip, and the utility company, a judge issued a search warrant for Kyllo's home. The search uncovered an indoor marijuana garden.

At issue in the case was whether the use of the thermal imager was a "search" within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment. If use of the device was not a search, then the police can use a thermal imager any time for any reason. But, if scanning a person's home with such a device is considered a "search" then it would be unconstitutional for the police to use a thermal imager without first obtaining a search warrant.

The government argued that police use of a thermal imager was not a search because such devices detect "only heat radiating from the external surfaces of the house," and that such heat "waste" is equivalent to garbage placed on the curb for pickup -- something that the Court previously held could be examined by the police without a search warrant.

Kyllo argued that a person's home is a private place that has traditionally received the highest protection against government searches. Use of the thermal imager to peer through the walls of his home was, he argued, equivalent to the police invading his home and looking around-something they could not do without a search warrant.

Five out of the nine Supreme Court justices sided with Mr. Kyllo, holding that the officers' use of the thermal imager without a search warrant violated Mr. Kyllo's Fourth Amendment protection to be secure inside his home.

Writing for the majority, Justice Scalia noted that in the postmodern age, it is possible -- and will become increasingly more so -- for the police to invade a person's home without physically entering it. "The question we confront today," explained Scalia, "is what limits there are upon [the] power of technology to shrink the realm of guaranteed privacy."

Scalia explained that the Court was making an effort at establishing a rule that would serve to protect Americans' homes from virtual police invasions made possible by a host of high-tech surveillance devices currently on the market, and those yet to come. In a footnote, Scalia briefly outlined some of the new technology that made such a broad rule necessary if the home is to remain a private sanctuary even while Big Brother arms himself with an ever-expanding array of advanced surveillance and policing tools:

The ability to "see" through walls and other opaque barriers is a clear, and scientifically feasible, goal of law enforcement research and development. The National Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center, a program within the United States Department of Justice, features on its Internet Website projects that include a "Radar-Based Through-the-Wall Surveillance System," Handheld Ultrasound Through the Wall Surveillance," and a "Radar Flashlight" that "will enable law enforcement officers to detect individuals through interior building walls."

Scalia rejected the government's argument that the thermal imaging was constitutional because it was limited to detecting hot and cold areas and thus did not detect private or intimidate activities going on in Mr. Kyllo's home. Scalia drew a firm line at the door to the home: "In the home, our cases show, all details are intimate details, because the entire area is held safe from prying government eyes." Additionally, Scalia pointed out that a thermal imager could indeed detect intimate details, such as "what hour each night the lady of the house takes her daily sauna and bath," and that surveillance devices currently under development will surely present even greater threats.

With these concerns in mind, Scalia announced that the rule of the case:

We think that obtaining by sense-enhancing technology any information regarding the interior of the home that could not otherwise have been obtained without physical intrusion into a constitutionally protected area constitutes a search-at least where (as here) the technology in question is not in general public use.

While Scalia and the four other justices that joined him should be applauded for setting a limit on the government's use of privacy-invading electronica, the rule they created is far from perfect.

At the same time the majority created a bright-line rule that police must get a search warrant before peeking inside of a person's home with the aid of "sense-enhancing technology," the majority created a poorly reasoned and difficult to administer "popularity limitation;" namely that the warrantless use of such a device is permitted if that device is also "in general public use."

Such a popularity limit means that Fourth Amendment protections will become subservient to the marketing prowess of companies that manufacture and sell surveillance technology. On one day, the police must obtain a warrant before using their X-ray glasses, and the next day, no warrant is required because the company inked a deal selling 10,000 X-ray glasses to the General Motors management. "No warrant needed -- over 10,000 units sold to consumers!"

As noted by Justice Stevens, who authored the dissenting opinion and was joined by Justices Rehnquist, O'Connor, and Kennedy, the Thermovision 210 imager used by the police to scan Mr. Kyllo's home is, itself, a relatively popular device:

The record describes a device that numbers close to a thousand manufactured units; that has a predecessor numbering in the neighborhood of 4,000 to 5,000 units; that competes with a similar product numbering from 5,000 to 6,000 units; and that is "readily available to the public" for commercial, personal, or law enforcement purposes, and is just an 800-number away from being rented from half a dozen national companies" by anyone who wants one.

Besides being an absurd rule, the popularity limit is impossible to apply. At what point, for example, will a new technology be considered "in general public use?" How are police officers expected to make that determination, in order to know whether a search warrant is required?

Despite this major flaw, the majority opinion lays down an important corner stone on the jurisprudential landscape of high-tech police-citizen surveillance:

[w]here, as here, the Government uses a device that is not in general public use, to explore the details of the home that would previously have been unknowable without physical intrusion, the surveillance is a "search" and is presumptively unreasonable without a warrant.

This does not mean that the police can never use an advanced thermal imaging device to peek inside someone's home. It simply, but importantly, means that if the device is not "in general public use" the police must get a judge to authorize their use of the device by signing a search warrant supported by probably cause. The practical result, in addition to keeping us all more protected from the secret gaze of police, is that law enforcement agents will have a more difficult time detecting indoor marijuana patches and arresting the naughty gardeners.

The decision in Kyllo is also noteworthy with respect to the breakdown of the normal conservative-liberal teaming of the justices. It was surprising to find Justice Stevens siding with the police and Justice Scalia siding with the marijuana grower. This seems to indicate that traditional alignments within the court are eroding and that the Court's decisions in the future, especially in the areas of privacy, technology, and individual rights, may not be as predictable as they have been in the past.

 

[Guest]

But i also found this article from 2007

Beach Police Make Largest Pot Bust In City's History

Virginia Beach police say they've made the largest marijuana bust in the history of the city recovering over 2,000 plants.

The investigation started back in September of 2006. That's when detectives received information that Randall Keith Link, 52, was growing marijuana in a barn located on his property in the 1300 block of N. Muddy Creek Road.

Detectives obtained legal authorization to utilize the department's FLIR, or the Forward Looking Infrared, with the assistance of the Special Operations Helicopter. Because of the positive results of the use of the FLIR, a search warrant was obtained for the residence and barn located on that property.

On Saturday, February 10, 2007 at 4:15 p.m., members of Special Investigations executed the search warrant. When police got into the barn, they found 2,005 marijuana plants. The barn was separated into three sections, each designated by the various stages of plant growth. In addition to the marijuana, a small amount of heroin was recovered from the residence.

Link was taken into custody along with his roommate Scott Douglas Gordon, 51, and remanded to Virginia Beach Sheriff's custody. Both were charged with Possession With the Intent to Distribute Marijuana, Manufacturing Marijuana, and Conspiracy to Commit a Felony.

As a result of this investigation, members of Special Investigations seized a large quantity of marijuana grow equipment to include high-powered specialty lights, reflector hoods, ballasts, and generators. Additionally, detectives seized multiple firearms, money, and a variety of motor vehicles and motorcycles.

 

[coolx]

Might be common sense to you but its no sense I would use. You do know its illegal to fish around flir searching for hotspots in the united states dont you? Stands to reason they arent going to waste all that money doing something illegal when every other cheap method of busts works just fine.

So in order to flir search in the first place they need a warrant. Every defendant is entitled to copies of evidence, the fact theres no flir pictures or video footage out there to this day that anyone can provide to show of a bust lets me know exactly how much they are using helicopter flir to bust indoor growers, none.

You make my point! Of course it's illegal - but the cops follow the law?!! Yesterday during a traffic stop, I let them search my car as I was clean, and one of them stole $200 from my jacket in the car while I talked to the other cop! There's not much point continuing this as you're missing the whole point. It's a totally illegal fishing exp. a quick and easy way to spot possible grows. They could then go round, pull some mj from the garbage and get a warrant - flir doesn't even come into it.

 

[CanadianGrower]

Holly

Holly

This is becoming a huge forum. Sweet. I agree with they above, cops don't fallow laws. And almost every police chopper in large cities have these mounted they use them for police chases on foot and auto. Me venting 24/7 most of the replies have left me not worrying.
How many vents you think are going in your neighbor hood right now?
Think of how many vents are on roofs, plumping vents, dryers, furnace vents, bathroom fans, range hood fans, Utility room vents and boiler room vents.
In most homes the temps are all over in the house depending on the room, every one has that hot cold room in your home. Not to mention space heaters, and ovens, toasters.


The main thing their looking for heat patterns rows of hot bulbs. So to all of you Canadians heats lens, IFR cameras are allowed. And if you have a large grow thats hot you might want to invest some cash in to lowering your heat in the room and thermal blocking.

 

[Verite]

This is becoming a huge forum. Sweet. I agree with they above, cops don't fallow laws. And almost every police chopper in large cities have these mounted they use them for police chases on foot and auto. Me venting 24/7 most of the replies have left me not worrying.
How many vents you think are going in your neighbor hood right now?
Think of how many vents are on roofs, plumping vents, dryers, furnace vents, bathroom fans, range hood fans, Utility room vents and boiler room vents.
In most homes the temps are all over in the house depending on the room, every one has that hot cold room in your home. Not to mention space heaters, and ovens, toasters.


The main thing their looking for heat patterns rows of hot bulbs. So to all of you Canadians heats lens, IFR cameras are allowed. And if you have a large grow thats hot you might want to invest some cash in to lowering your heat in the room and thermal blocking.

And thats exactly why they arent using it. Because theres 1,000 other things that could be giving off heat. Do you think they are going to get accurate hits from that kind of fishing?? I dont. Its one thing to flir a barn w/o insulation after it was already tipped off in the first place. But when your doing houses and 90% of the growrooms are in basements you arent going to see crap from a helicopter let alone enough to tell a growroom. It costs anywhere from $500 to $2000 an hour to keep a heli in the air. If you think the cops are going to waste that doing illegal fishing trips that dont get them closer to any growers then you should invest in tinfoiling your house.

 

[vta]

Looks like there are using it in the UK



POLICE: SORRY WE THOUGHT YOUR BOILER WAS A CANNABIS FACTORY

A MUM-TO-BE today told how police smashed their way into her Merseyside home -- expecting to find a cannabis farm.

Cops swooped at the house in Green Gates, Huyton, on Tuesday while seven-months-pregnant Nicola King and her boyfriend were asleep in bed.

It appears sophisticated computer equipment aboard the force helicopter detected an unusual heat source coming from the roof of the house.

But a quick search of the property revealed it was coming from an uninsulated boiler located in the loft.

Today Merseyside Police apologised to the couple for any distress caused by the early morning drama.

But they say the smashed down door could cost as much as UKP400 to repair.

Nicola, 24, said the 10-strong squad burst into the house at 7.30am as she and her delivery man partner James Dowding, 22, dozed upstairs.

She told the ECHO: "We heard a banging sound which seemed like someone was kicking a football against the wall.

"Then there was a big smash and there were loads of police dressed in riot gear with guns running about the house.

"My partner went downstairs and they pushed him face down onto the couch.

"They went straight to the loft but soon realised there was nothing there and they had made a mistake.

"They just tried to make a joke about it and when we asked about the damage they said 'you may get money back, but we can't guarantee it'.

"They could have handled this much better. They made a mistake and yet we have to pick up the pieces and pay for the damage."

Nicola said she has already forked out UKP200 for a new door.

But further joinery work is likely to push the overall cost of damage towards UKP400.

A Merseyside Police spokesman said: "We would like to apologise for any distress the occupants experienced.

"The address was visited as part of a series of planned raids on that day.

"We do carry out rigorous checks prior to execution of warrants but, regrettably on this occasion, the information available to us was misleading.

"Drug raids obviously involve an element of covert and tactical policing for them to be productive. We would like to reassure the community that a further warrant carried out that day, with similar information, led to the finding of a cannabis farm and the arrest of two people for the cultivation of cannabis.

"These raids were part of Merseyside Police's war on drugs specifically around the production of cannabis."

The spokesman said the couple could apply to the force to claim compensation for the damage caused to their door.


URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v08/n188/a08.html

 

[vta]

EYES IN THE SKY JOIN THE WAR ON DRUGS

POLICE are using heat-seeking cameras strapped to aircraft in a bid to spot drug factories.

The thermal imaging technology is used to hone in on unusual concentrations of heat, allowing the police to spot likely locations of suspicious hydroponic growing equipment - powerful bulbs which can run at between 400 and 5,000 watts.

Hampshire's Boxer aircraft is fitted with heat-sensitive equipment, which police confirmed is used in Hampshire as a weapon in cornering drugs gangs.

Milne Rowntree, a policeman with 26 years' experience, said it was a valuable tool in the police's arsenal.

'Most forces with aeroplanes or helicopters now use infra-red sensors to detect heat, and using the thermal imaging equipment you can see vehicles, people, or where earth has recently been disturbed,' he said.

'They're used against drugs because people will grow them in their roof space or on the tops of tower blocks, and use hot natural-type lights to hurry the growth on.

'You'd see it used alongside other intelligence like tip-offs. It's one of the most effective technological parts of the array of equipment used by police today.'

The news comes a day after police stormed a drugs factory in Portsmouth.

The drama unfurled shortly after dawn yesterday when 10 officers surrounded the terraced property in Byerley Road, Fratton.

At 8.05am officers broke down the door using a battering ram. Inside they found a cannabis farm of more than 200 plants.

Three rooms of the normal-looking two-up-two-down home were being used for the intensive production of marijuana. The plants ranged from one foot to five feet high.

Police would not confirm whether the spotter plane was used to spot this factory.

Officers had initially estimated the house contained 100 of the drug plants, but a more detailed inspection revealed twice as many.

Also seized was a large quantity of high-powered light bulbs as well as reflective panels, fans, dehumidifiers, electrical equipment and bamboo rods.

With the factory busted, the plants could be smelt across the street.

One 45-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of cultivating cannabis.



URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v08/n188/a07.html

 

[ogatec]

those flir cameras are VERY accurate, if the cops are looking @ your house wth 1 no amount of insualtion will stop them from "seeing" your grow even the special stuff you get @ the groshop, even if your lights have been off for hours! i saw a frontline a couple of years ago & it showed some footage of growhouses on FLIR, the house wasnt lit up, the foundation of the house was glowing white. i dont think any amount of insuation will keep the floor area under the lights cold.

that beeing said small time growers like 95% of the people on icmag have nothing to worry about from this stuff. i would suspect that you could get away with aleast a 2k grow anywhere w/o worrying about your heat sig., cause EVERY1 is grwoing these days, im sure there are atleast 1 or 2 grows on every street in america....

i think they just put out these scare stories for cheap propaganda...you COULD be caught by th whirlybirds in the sky, MJ is EVVVIIILLL

 

[Smurf]

Ruling Curbs Use of Heat-Seeking Cameras

Ruling Curbs Use of Heat-Seeking Cameras

I found this ruling by a Canadian Court from 5 yrs ago,, its old news but I thought it was relevant to the on going discussion....


Posted by Cannabis News Staff on January 28, 2003 at 07:46:21 PT
By Tracey Tyler, Legal Affairs Reporter
Source: Toronto Star

The Ontario Court of Appeal has effectively grounded police aircraft equipped with heat-seeking cameras, saying they can no longer fly over private residences taking pictures unless officers obtain a warrant.

A homeowner's right to privacy extends to the heat generated inside a home and reflected on the outside, a three-judge panel said yesterday.

And the use of Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR) cameras to detect heat emanating from a home amounts to a search, which requires judicial authorization, the court said.

"I am satisfied that the FLIR technology discloses more information about what goes on inside a house than is detectable by normal observation or surveillance," Madam Justice Rosalie Abella wrote for the court, adding that "some perfectly innocent" activities, such as taking a bath or using lights at unusual hours, can create the kind of heat emanations picked up by infrared aircraft cameras used in drug investigations.

The court acquitted Walter Tessling of Kingsville, Ont., near Windsor, of charges of possessing firearms and marijuana seized after an RCMP plane equipped with a FLIR camera flew over his home in May of 1999, taking pictures of the thermal energy radiating from the building.

In an interview yesterday, Frank Miller, Tessling's lawyer, said the case isn't about "guilty people hiding things," it's about protecting people "so they don't have this feeling Big Brother is watching" as they go about their lives.

Letting police use "technological tricks" to encroach on a homeowner's privacy can have a chilling effect on the use of anything from a pottery kiln to a hot tub, he said.

Knowing police are flying overhead taking pictures and could use your electrical consumption as an excuse for questioning your neighbours is enough to put a damper on anyone's activities, Miller added.

In its decision, the court is saying "Look, that kind of spy technology is going to have to be looked at very carefully," he said.

Planes equipped with FLIR cameras are used "an awful lot" for drug investigations in the United States but far less so in Canada, party because of the cost, Miller added. However, it's something police are likely to push for more of, he said.

In its decision yesterday, the appeal court excluded "a large quantity" of marijuana and weapons discovered in Tessling's home because they were seized as a result of an illegal search in which the FLIR camera played a central role. The operating theory behind the technology is that while heat usually emanates evenly from a building, the lights used in marijuana growing operations give off an unusual amount of heat and an area of intense heat might signal a marijuana-growing operation, Abella said.

"In my view, there is an important distinction between observations that are made by the naked eye or even by the use of enhanced aids, such as binoculars, which are in common use, and observations which are the product of technology," she said yesterday.

"A member of the public can walk by a house and observe the snow melting on the roof, or look at the house with binoculars, or see steam rising from the vents."

"Without FLIR technology, however, that person cannot know that it is hotter than other houses in the area or that one room in particular reveals a very high energy consumption," she said, writing for Associate Chief Justice Dennis O'Connor and Justice Robert Sharpe.

http://cannabisnews.com/news/15/thread15299.shtml

 

[Verite]

POLICE: SORRY WE THOUGHT YOUR BOILER WAS A CANNABIS FACTORY

Hilarious. This proves my point even further. Even with all the 'sophisticated' technology they got they still cant tell a fuckin boiler from a growroom.

Lets see how many false warrants they issue before they close that shit down too.