On October 4 the Vancouver Sun newspaper revealed that growing marijuana in Vancouver is a fairly low-risk enterprise compared to many other cities.They analyzed the cases of 112 people charged with growing pot, dating from 1996. They found that about 13% of those charged with growing went to jail, while 17% got probation or conditional discharge, 34% got a fine, and 36% got off altogether.

The average fine was $2655, the highest was $6000. Only three jail sentences were over 90 days, the longest being two years. No-one got their lights back.