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The years-long debate over medical marijuana clinics returns to a city panel on Friday, with competing proposals to either ban all of them or grandfather in about 100 existing facilities.
Patients in wheelchairs and using walkers, crutches and canes joined dispensary workers and union leaders in a demonstration outside Los Angeles City Hall on Thursday. They urged the City Council to leave some dispensaries open so the ill can get medical marijuana.
"I am 28 years old and am 6-feet-1 and weigh 84 pounds," said Michael Olivares, who suffers from muscular dystrophy. "I almost died when I was 21 because of the drugs they had me on.
"The one plant that helps and keeps me alive is medical marijuana."
The City Council's Public Safety Committee will consider the proposals at a 9:30 a.m. meeting Friday at Van Nuys City Hall.
Councilmen Jose Huizar and Mitch Englander have proposed banning all medical marijuana dispensaries in the city until there is a clear court ruling on what cities can do to regulate the clinics.
Officials aren't sure how many clinics are operating in the city, but estimates range from 700 to 1,000.
The lack of clear, enforceable regulations has contributed to neighborhood concerns over issues such as crime and proximity to schools and residential areas.
Councilmen Paul Koretz and Herb Wesson have proposed an alternative that would allow 100 clinics to remain open - those that had registered with the city several years ago and agreed to a series of operating conditions such as hours and security.
Huizar has said those who need medical marijuana would still be allowed to obtain it, by growing it themselves or obtaining it from a caregiver.
"Until we have a dispensary model, we are going to be in conflict with state laws," Huizar said during the last debate on the issue. "The best thing we can do is repeal our existing ordinance until the courts decide this issue."
There are more than 70 lawsuits pending against the city filed by clinics seeking to remain open.
Huizar said another issue is that a clinic will open and disappear a month or two later, leaving a vacant storefront as a target for vandalism.
However, others, such as Councilman Bill Rosendahl, have said the ban on clinics would mean that many people who can't grow marijuana on their own would be denied access to a drug they need.
Mike Shimpock of the United Food and Commercial Workers, which represents workers at 23 clinics around the city, urged the council to adopt the less onerous provision.
"There is nothing gentle about what the City Council is considering," Shimpock said, referring to a plan dubbed a "gentle ban." "It is a cruel measure that will take away the medicine that so many people need.
"What we are calling for is to keep the responsible shops open," Shimpock said. "People need access to their medication."
The proposal to ban dispensaries in the city comes amid an ongoing federal crackdown on marijuana dispensaries that operate on a for-profit basis, violating California law.
This week, federal authorities filed a pair of asset forfeiture lawsuits against two Santa Fe Springs properties that house three dispensaries, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office in Los Angeles.
Officials also sent out warning letters to property owners and operators of 34 other dispensaries doing business or recently closed in Santa Fe Springs, Whittier, South El Monte, La Mirada, Diamond Bar, Artesia, Paramount, South Gate, Commerce, Agoura Hills and Malibu, U.S. Attorney Andre Birotte said in a statement.
The warning letters give property owners and operators 14 days to come into compliance or risk potential civil or criminal actions.
Federal officials said the targeted establishments are not just violating federal law, which generally does not recognize the use of marijuana for any reason, but also have been flouting California law.
"Under federal law, the distribution of marijuana ... is prohibited except under very limited circumstances not applicable here. The government is informed and believes that at all times relevant to this complaint, the operation of the marijuana stores on the defendant property was not (and is not) permitted under California law," according to the lawsuits filed in Los Angeles federal court Tuesday.
Prosecutors contend that California's compassionate use laws do not permit dispensaries to operate on a for-profit basis.
A total of 12 marijuana-related asset forfeiture complaints have been filed by the U.S. Attorney's Office in the seven-county Central District of California. Combined with the warning letters, federal prosecutors have targeted a total of 220 dispensaries and growing operations in the district, according to Birotte.
The hazy regulations and enforcement of medical marijuana dispensaries has been an issue in the city of L.A.
Earlier this year, police in the north San Fernando Valley shut down all pot shops in Northridge, Granada Hills and Chatsworth - on the grounds that the dispensaries were operating on a retail sales basis of cash and carry.
Yet last year, Los Angeles voters passed Measure M to tax medical marijuana receipts.
The city of Los Angeles has been divided over how to best regulate the dispensaries ever since Proposition 215 allowing for the sale of medical marijuana was approved in 1996.
News Hawk- TruthSeekr420 420 MAGAZINE
Source: dailynews.com
Author: Rick Orlov
Contact: Contact Us - LA Daily News
Website: City committee to debate future of medical marijuana dispensaries in L.A. - LA Daily News
Patients in wheelchairs and using walkers, crutches and canes joined dispensary workers and union leaders in a demonstration outside Los Angeles City Hall on Thursday. They urged the City Council to leave some dispensaries open so the ill can get medical marijuana.
"I am 28 years old and am 6-feet-1 and weigh 84 pounds," said Michael Olivares, who suffers from muscular dystrophy. "I almost died when I was 21 because of the drugs they had me on.
"The one plant that helps and keeps me alive is medical marijuana."
The City Council's Public Safety Committee will consider the proposals at a 9:30 a.m. meeting Friday at Van Nuys City Hall.
Councilmen Jose Huizar and Mitch Englander have proposed banning all medical marijuana dispensaries in the city until there is a clear court ruling on what cities can do to regulate the clinics.
Officials aren't sure how many clinics are operating in the city, but estimates range from 700 to 1,000.
The lack of clear, enforceable regulations has contributed to neighborhood concerns over issues such as crime and proximity to schools and residential areas.
Councilmen Paul Koretz and Herb Wesson have proposed an alternative that would allow 100 clinics to remain open - those that had registered with the city several years ago and agreed to a series of operating conditions such as hours and security.
Huizar has said those who need medical marijuana would still be allowed to obtain it, by growing it themselves or obtaining it from a caregiver.
"Until we have a dispensary model, we are going to be in conflict with state laws," Huizar said during the last debate on the issue. "The best thing we can do is repeal our existing ordinance until the courts decide this issue."
There are more than 70 lawsuits pending against the city filed by clinics seeking to remain open.
Huizar said another issue is that a clinic will open and disappear a month or two later, leaving a vacant storefront as a target for vandalism.
However, others, such as Councilman Bill Rosendahl, have said the ban on clinics would mean that many people who can't grow marijuana on their own would be denied access to a drug they need.
Mike Shimpock of the United Food and Commercial Workers, which represents workers at 23 clinics around the city, urged the council to adopt the less onerous provision.
"There is nothing gentle about what the City Council is considering," Shimpock said, referring to a plan dubbed a "gentle ban." "It is a cruel measure that will take away the medicine that so many people need.
"What we are calling for is to keep the responsible shops open," Shimpock said. "People need access to their medication."
The proposal to ban dispensaries in the city comes amid an ongoing federal crackdown on marijuana dispensaries that operate on a for-profit basis, violating California law.
This week, federal authorities filed a pair of asset forfeiture lawsuits against two Santa Fe Springs properties that house three dispensaries, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office in Los Angeles.
Officials also sent out warning letters to property owners and operators of 34 other dispensaries doing business or recently closed in Santa Fe Springs, Whittier, South El Monte, La Mirada, Diamond Bar, Artesia, Paramount, South Gate, Commerce, Agoura Hills and Malibu, U.S. Attorney Andre Birotte said in a statement.
The warning letters give property owners and operators 14 days to come into compliance or risk potential civil or criminal actions.
Federal officials said the targeted establishments are not just violating federal law, which generally does not recognize the use of marijuana for any reason, but also have been flouting California law.
"Under federal law, the distribution of marijuana ... is prohibited except under very limited circumstances not applicable here. The government is informed and believes that at all times relevant to this complaint, the operation of the marijuana stores on the defendant property was not (and is not) permitted under California law," according to the lawsuits filed in Los Angeles federal court Tuesday.
Prosecutors contend that California's compassionate use laws do not permit dispensaries to operate on a for-profit basis.
A total of 12 marijuana-related asset forfeiture complaints have been filed by the U.S. Attorney's Office in the seven-county Central District of California. Combined with the warning letters, federal prosecutors have targeted a total of 220 dispensaries and growing operations in the district, according to Birotte.
The hazy regulations and enforcement of medical marijuana dispensaries has been an issue in the city of L.A.
Earlier this year, police in the north San Fernando Valley shut down all pot shops in Northridge, Granada Hills and Chatsworth - on the grounds that the dispensaries were operating on a retail sales basis of cash and carry.
Yet last year, Los Angeles voters passed Measure M to tax medical marijuana receipts.
The city of Los Angeles has been divided over how to best regulate the dispensaries ever since Proposition 215 allowing for the sale of medical marijuana was approved in 1996.
News Hawk- TruthSeekr420 420 MAGAZINE
Source: dailynews.com
Author: Rick Orlov
Contact: Contact Us - LA Daily News
Website: City committee to debate future of medical marijuana dispensaries in L.A. - LA Daily News
