About $23M in marijuana plants seized around Ohio this year

CLEVELAND (AP) — Records show police around Ohio cut down nearly $23 million in marijuana plants this summer, the lowest amount in six years.

It’s an illicit cash crop now, but voters next week will decide a proposal to legalize marijuana for personal and medical use and create authorized grow sites. The Plain Dealer in Cleveland says Attorney General Mike DeWine has suggested some enforcement effort still would be needed if legalization is approved.

Records obtained by the newspaper from his office show the number of seized plants dropped from 105,000 in 2010 to about 22,700 this year. Authorities say serious growers have moved plants indoors for better yields.

Marijuana plants have been found on public and private land. Sometimes landowners aren’t aware that remote property is being used for illegal crops.