Medical marijuana grant to pay for 23 stun guns, trailers, overtime
Medical marijuana patient fees in Ingham County will help to pay for 23 stun guns, chemical identifier equipment, two trailers and overtime used to enforce medical marijuana laws.
The state has awarded the Ingham County Sheriff's Office a $112,681 grant though the Medical Marihuana Operation and Oversight program.
The grant money is part of about $3 million pulled from medical marijuana patient fees that the state distributes to counties throughout Michigan for “education, communication and enforcement” of state medical marijuana laws, according to Michael Loepp, a spokesman for the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs.
This is the first year Ingham County has applied for the grant, which has been available to county law enforcement units since 2015.
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Last year, only 18 of Michigan’s 83 counties applied for the grant. About $823,000 was spent of the grant money.
The sheriff's office will share the purchased equipment with the Michigan State Police, Tri-County Metro Narcotics Squad and the Lansing Police Department, Ingham County Sheriff Sgt. James Every said.
The money will be used to purchase handheld chemical identifiers, a tool used to identify chemicals at the scene of a narcotics investigation; two marijuana lab dismantling and processing trailers to transport equipment and evidence; overtime costs related to medical marijuana enforcement; and 23 stun guns.
“This will allow us to continue our program to issue every one of our (field services) officers a Taser,” Every said. “On a day-to-day basis, we know each one of our officers comes into contact with medical marijuana.”
Ingham County’s planned purchases aren’t outside of the norm, according to reports submitted to the state by county sheriff departments in 2016.
Cheboygan and Wayne counties also purchased Tasers in 2016. Sanilac County purchased five semi-automatic weapons. Oakland County purchased a van, truck, trailer and more than 25 raid vests.
Ingham County’s grant allotment was the seventh highest in Michigan. Wayne County was eligible for the largest grant at $483,132, according to state data.
The grant allotments are based on the number of patient registry cards issued or renewed in the county in the previous year.
In 2016 in Ingham County, the state issued 4,567 patient registry cards and renewed 417, which qualified the county for $113,888 this year, according to state data.
The Eaton County Sheriff's Office applied for $43,028, which the agency will use to purchase a patrol dog trained in drug detection, Capt. Jeff Campbell said. The money also will fund a patrol vehicle for the canine team and training for the dog and its handler.
Though Clinton County was eligible for nearly $20,000, its sheriff's office will not pursue the grant this year, Sheriff Lawrence Jerue said.
Law enforcement agencies who use the grant money must submit quarterly reports and a final report to the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs outlining how the money was spent, according to the state application for the grant.
Contact Reporter Beth LeBlanc at 517-377-1167 or eleblanc@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @LSJBethLeBlanc.