Crimestoppers, that "gotta love 'em" civilian volunteer phoneline action agency with 52 "dial-a-betrayal" offices across Ontario and many more across the nation, has been hauled into court to explain how they verify anonymous phone tips before turning them over to the police.
    A superior court judge presiding over the trial of accused hydroponic pot farmers has ordered Crimestoppers Inc to share their snitchline goodies with defence lawyers, and made the most unusual move of having that information subject to "judicial editing." In short, this means the identity of the informer will be carefully blotted out, but the rest of the text will be a free for all in the courts, and the internal mechanics of their ratline will be glimpsed by its victims for the first time.
    Crimestoppers guarantees anonymity to all telerats and offers cash rewards for the tip of the week that results in arrest and conviction. However, due to the sneakiness of their style, they rarely call back to verify information before sending it on to the police, and almost never make good on their promises of fast cash to hotline hopefuls hungry for a few blood-stained bucks and ego triumph.
    As sophisticated cloaking devices all but completely conceal the whereabouts and activities of lightbulb gardeners, the police face an increasingly difficult task in detecting them. However, Crimestoppers is able to harness an army of angry ex-spouses, greedy landlords and various sundry cranks, coaxing their base vendettas into the light of day, and milking these petty snits and misplaced rages for the benefit of the law enforcement wagons roaming the streets.
    Police departments are glad to follow up on Crimestoppers tips, as they are then able to bypass boring surveillance and otherwise fruitless undercover work, and sidestep legal niceties such as due process of law and the right of the accused to face their accuser in court.
    Defence lawyers for the grow room attendants have asked for the court to subpoena Crimestopper telephone transcripts to be introduced as evidence. Judge McKinnon of the Ontario Superior Court approved this unusual request and said he was satisfied the information was relevant and that he was not dealing with a "defence fishing expedition."
    Crimestoppers provided two tips to police that were cited in documents and to obtain search warrants that busted the grow rooms. One tip described the growing operation. The follow-up tip, filed six weeks later, provided the street address.
    Whether any of this will stop the police from calling Crimestoppers to tip themselves off is anyone's guess.
Dr Alexander Sumach