Jim Finnel
Fallen Cannabis Warrior & Ex News Moderator
CA - Citing a need for more time to figure out how to tackle illegal medical marijuana dispensaries sprouting in the city, officials will consider extending a moratorium on such shops.
"It's our position that they're not allowed to operate in the city," said City Attorney Alan Burns.
If approved by the City Council Tuesday, the extended moratorium would give officials time to determine how to regulate an increasing number of shops and bar others from opening up, officials say. The moratorium would stay in effect for 10 months and 15 days longer after the first deadline.
Police reported that a number of dispensaries are operating without city permits or approvals. The businesses have attracted other crime due to large amounts of cash and marijuana – illegal to possess – at the sites and made themselves vulnerable to robbery, according to police.
Neighboring cities have also worked to deal with a growing number of collectives and dispensaries sprouting up in commercial and industrial areas. Some say the increase is attributed to the federal government's recent stance that people complying with state medical marijuana laws would no longer be subjected to federal drug raids and prosecution.
Local cities have policed dispensaries because of conflicting federal and state policies and laws toward medical marijuana. In February, Costa Mesa police began cracking down on dispensaries operating illegally in the city under the guises of wellness centers or businesses offering holistic medicine. The city's police and code enforcement have given out cease-and-desist letters to shops, along with arresting some for marijuana sales and possession.
In 1996, state voters passed Prop. 215, which decriminalized the cultivation and use of marijuana by seriously-ill patients who had a doctor's approval. Lawmakers in 2003 approved expanding access to patients, including a voluntary identification card system for patients and primary caregivers.
NewsHawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: ocregister.com
Author: ELLYN PAK
Copyright: 2010 Orange County Register Communications.
Contact: Contacting the Orange County Register and OCRegister.com | contacting, county, ocregister - Home - The Orange County Register
Website: Fountain Valley could extend medical pot moratorium | city, marijuana, dispensaries - News - The Orange County Register
• Thanks to MedicalNeed for submitting this article
"It's our position that they're not allowed to operate in the city," said City Attorney Alan Burns.
If approved by the City Council Tuesday, the extended moratorium would give officials time to determine how to regulate an increasing number of shops and bar others from opening up, officials say. The moratorium would stay in effect for 10 months and 15 days longer after the first deadline.
Police reported that a number of dispensaries are operating without city permits or approvals. The businesses have attracted other crime due to large amounts of cash and marijuana – illegal to possess – at the sites and made themselves vulnerable to robbery, according to police.
Neighboring cities have also worked to deal with a growing number of collectives and dispensaries sprouting up in commercial and industrial areas. Some say the increase is attributed to the federal government's recent stance that people complying with state medical marijuana laws would no longer be subjected to federal drug raids and prosecution.
Local cities have policed dispensaries because of conflicting federal and state policies and laws toward medical marijuana. In February, Costa Mesa police began cracking down on dispensaries operating illegally in the city under the guises of wellness centers or businesses offering holistic medicine. The city's police and code enforcement have given out cease-and-desist letters to shops, along with arresting some for marijuana sales and possession.
In 1996, state voters passed Prop. 215, which decriminalized the cultivation and use of marijuana by seriously-ill patients who had a doctor's approval. Lawmakers in 2003 approved expanding access to patients, including a voluntary identification card system for patients and primary caregivers.
NewsHawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: ocregister.com
Author: ELLYN PAK
Copyright: 2010 Orange County Register Communications.
Contact: Contacting the Orange County Register and OCRegister.com | contacting, county, ocregister - Home - The Orange County Register
Website: Fountain Valley could extend medical pot moratorium | city, marijuana, dispensaries - News - The Orange County Register
• Thanks to MedicalNeed for submitting this article
