Sometimes they get the information from a neighbor or from a drug suspect who wants to turn over evidence to reduce his own charges. Other times, they're more clever. According to defense lawyers who have questioned task force members, the police have staked out American Agriculture, a store that sells high-tech growing equipment that police suspect is not intended for raising broccoli in your basement. The task force then gets the address of the buyer either by following him home or tracking his license plate number. Next, the cops check with PGE to see if the home has unusual electric bills.
Defense lawyers claim that their clients lose no matter what the police find.
If you have low power usage, it means you're stealing electricity, and that's evidence of a marijuana grow. Armed with little more than a suspicion, task force members then stop by the house. If the person isn't home, they sometimes look around for evidence. Courts have ruled that in some circumstances, the police can walk into a backyard as long as it's not fenced in and may also peer in windows. In this technique, officers simply knock on the door and ask if they can come in and look around.