Grower’s Case Rivets Investors Seeking Pot of Gold

A federal drug enforcement agent turned private-equity manager at a firm backed by PayPal Inc. co-founder Peter Thiel is watching the trial of a garden-variety pot grower with high hopes for the nascent marijuana industry.

It may sound like an only-in-California story -- and it is, for now -- but a win by the defendant may move the entire nation toward legalization of a business some value at more than $50 billion a year.