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 veggie
Registered: 07/25/04
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 Recent raids on medical pot dispensaries highlight [CA] 
#6568794 - 02/14/07 08:12 PM (5 years, 3 months ago) |
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February 15, 2007 - LA City Beat
Card-Carrying Smokers
Recent raids on medical pot dispensaries highlight
 During the last few weeks of January, masked federal drug agents rampaged through the Los Angeles area’s medical marijuana community, busting 11 licensed marijuana dispensaries, detaining 20 people, and seizing 5,700 pounds of marijuana. At issue is more than just the fact that pot is illegal under federal law; only 11 of the over 100 dispensaries in the county were targeted, leading to speculation that much more clarity is needed on the regulations and ID card systems which govern them.
California voters overwhelmingly passed 1996’s Proposition 215, the Compassionate Use Act, but the act says little about the way dispensaries are to be regulated. State Senate bill SB 420 sought to remedy some of these problems in 2004 by requiring counties to issue voluntary identification cards to protect cannabis patients and physicians from unnecessary arrest. But both dispensary regulations, which must be set county by county, and ID card systems have been slow to catch on. During the January raids, L.A. Police Chief William Bratton called for a moratorium on new clinics until they could be assured that basic rules were in place, like being placed at least 1,000 feet from a school.
The cost for those ID cards also skyrocketed. Starting March 1, the cost of a state ID card will leap from $13 to $142, a huge increase. Once the county fees kick in, the cards will likely add up to $250, making them the most expensive in the nation. Some states like Alaska offer cards as low as $25.
The price hike was necessary because the Medical Marijuana ID Program (MMP) has been running at a 90 percent deficit thanks to low registration numbers, according to Chris Fusco, Los Angeles field coordinator for Americans for Safe Access. In fact, the state Department of Health Services reports that only 8,703 patients are currently registered statewide, out of the estimated 150,000 to 350,000 pot patients residing in California. Cannabis supporters fear that the new price increase will bar even more patients from the ID program.
“While [California] does offer a discounted rate, there are a lot of people who have low income who aren’t on Medi-Cal,” says Bruce Mirkin, spokesperson for the Marijuana Policy Project. “For people who are too ill to work, who are on a fixed income, 140 bucks is a lot of money.”
The state health department created the MMP in 2004, but today only 24 out of California’s 58 counties have begun issuing ID cards. Los Angeles, which holds an estimated one-third-to-half of the state’s medical marijuana patients, currently does not issue the cards, though they were approved by county supervisors in May 2006.
San Diego refused to issue cards and sued the state of California on the grounds that it conflicts with federal law. Superior Court Judge William R. Nevitt ruled that the state ID program does not conflict with federal law in December 2006, but San Diego is appealing.
Like Proposition 215 itself, SB 420 also left some regulation gaps. For example, the law lets each county decide whether the county health department or a designated private company will issue medical marijuana cards. In Alameda County, Jeff Jones, a private cannabis cooperative director, issues MMP cards because Alameda’s public health department lacks the resources to do so. However, patients may not realize that his cards are MMP cards, since other private co-ops also issue non-state ID cards.
“There’s a pretty low level of awareness,” says William Dolphin, spokesperson for Americans for Safe Access. “People understand that there’s a card to get, but people aren’t clear on the difference between a county card and the card going to be issued to you by the co-op. There’s still an education process and the state can do a lot more.”
SB 420 ultimately leaves card registration up to individual marijuana patients, many of whom remain anxious over the possibility of federal prosecution.
“Some people are just reluctant to be on any government list associating them with marijuana, and raids have increased those concerns,” says Mirkin. “But as long as we have a federal government that is treating the most by-the-book provider as if they’re a drug dealer, nobody is safe.”
Indeed, the most recent marijuana clinic raids in West Hollywood, Hollywood, Venice, Sherman Oaks, and Woodland Hills were particularly shocking because the federal Drug Enforcement Administration didn’t just raid clinics causing community complaints, ranging from parking lot smoking to illegal parking. They also raided community-conscious outlets like the Farmacy, which even Fountain Day School general manager Andrew Rakos calls “a very good neighbor.” The Farmacy made sure to have a security guard in the parking lot and notify customers not to smoke outside.
By way of comment on the raids, Sarah Pullen, spokesperson for the DEA’s Los Angeles office, says, “Marijuana is illegal and we’re not going to let anyone violate the federal laws.”
So, despite a vote of the people, being a card-carrying pot smoker still has its risks. “Many people still feel discrimination and are in danger of losing their jobs or children with child protective services,” Dolphin continues. “But we do recommend that people do avail themselves [of the cards] because they are guaranteed against an arrest or seizure of your marijuana if you’re within [SB 420’s proposed 8-ounce limit].”
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