Jacob Bell
New Member
With narrow exceptions, medical marijuana distribution may soon be banned in unincorporated San Bernardino County.
The county Planning Commission will vote Thursday on whether to turn a moratorium on permits for new dispensaries into a ban on marijuana dispensaries, which would only allow medical marijuana to be distributed at hospitals and other strictly defined providers that opponents of the move say wouldn't allow for any significant distribution.
If the commission approves the ordinance, it will go to the Board of Supervisors for a final decision - other than the legal challenge dispensary owners are threatening.
Riverside, Los Angeles and Orange counties have recently moved to ban marijuana dispensaries, which are illegal under federal law but allowed under California law. Lawsuits soon followed, but have not been decided.
Combined with what amounts to a ban on dispensaries in all 24 of San bernardino County's incorporated cities and towns - 19 have passed a ban, four have a moratorium and one, Chino Hills, effectively prohibits it through an ordinance against breaking federal law - unincorporated lands risked becoming a dumping ground, said county spokesman David Wert.
"Most of our cities and the other surrounding counties have banned dispensaries, and if the county doesn't follow suit, that could create havoc," Wert said.
But Allen Bartleman, a civil-rights attorney who has defended clients in marijuana-related cases, said havoc was exactly what the county was inviting.
"What they're going to do is increase the proliferation of illegal marijuana," Bartleman said. "When people have to go get their marijuana on the black market, they're not going to go to a nice dispensary where they have doctors. They're going to go to dope dealers."
County staff collected materials from the Sheriff's Department and the Environmental Health Services Division, as well as other cities recommending a ban based in part on reports of increased crime in jurisdictions that allowed distribution facilities.
That's an argument for regulation, not prohibition, said Jan Werner, vice president of The Clearview Lake Corp., which runs marijuana collectives in Bloomington and Corona.
"Come up with some rules so we can do this the way it's meant to be done," Werner said. "The majority of the collectives, like ours, operate within the guidelines."
News Hawk- GuitarMan313 420 MAGAZINE
Source: contracostatimes.com
Author: Ryan Hagen
Contact: Contact Us
Copyright: MediaNews Group, Inc
Website: San Bernardino County considering ban on marijuana dispensaries
The county Planning Commission will vote Thursday on whether to turn a moratorium on permits for new dispensaries into a ban on marijuana dispensaries, which would only allow medical marijuana to be distributed at hospitals and other strictly defined providers that opponents of the move say wouldn't allow for any significant distribution.
If the commission approves the ordinance, it will go to the Board of Supervisors for a final decision - other than the legal challenge dispensary owners are threatening.
Riverside, Los Angeles and Orange counties have recently moved to ban marijuana dispensaries, which are illegal under federal law but allowed under California law. Lawsuits soon followed, but have not been decided.
Combined with what amounts to a ban on dispensaries in all 24 of San bernardino County's incorporated cities and towns - 19 have passed a ban, four have a moratorium and one, Chino Hills, effectively prohibits it through an ordinance against breaking federal law - unincorporated lands risked becoming a dumping ground, said county spokesman David Wert.
"Most of our cities and the other surrounding counties have banned dispensaries, and if the county doesn't follow suit, that could create havoc," Wert said.
But Allen Bartleman, a civil-rights attorney who has defended clients in marijuana-related cases, said havoc was exactly what the county was inviting.
"What they're going to do is increase the proliferation of illegal marijuana," Bartleman said. "When people have to go get their marijuana on the black market, they're not going to go to a nice dispensary where they have doctors. They're going to go to dope dealers."
County staff collected materials from the Sheriff's Department and the Environmental Health Services Division, as well as other cities recommending a ban based in part on reports of increased crime in jurisdictions that allowed distribution facilities.
That's an argument for regulation, not prohibition, said Jan Werner, vice president of The Clearview Lake Corp., which runs marijuana collectives in Bloomington and Corona.
"Come up with some rules so we can do this the way it's meant to be done," Werner said. "The majority of the collectives, like ours, operate within the guidelines."
News Hawk- GuitarMan313 420 MAGAZINE
Source: contracostatimes.com
Author: Ryan Hagen
Contact: Contact Us
Copyright: MediaNews Group, Inc
Website: San Bernardino County considering ban on marijuana dispensaries
