Jim Finnel
Fallen Cannabis Warrior & Ex News Moderator
The city of Fort Collins has rejected a local couple's request for more than $200,000 in compensation for their destroyed marijuana plants, possibly leading to a precedent-setting court fight.
Under the state's medical marijuana law, Amendment 20, the government is supposed to maintain someone's marijuana plants if they are seized as part of a criminal investigation. If the investigation reveals the plants were properly kept as the law permits, the agency is supposed to return them.
But when James and Lisa Masters got their 39 plants back last December, they were all dead. Fort Collins police seized the plants as part of a criminal investigation into the Masters' pot-growing operation. The couple operates a medical marijuana dispensary in Fort Collins and claimed they were legitimate caregivers for people who need pot to control their pain and other ailments.
Judge James Hiatt threw out the case against the couple in 2006 after ruling police illegally searched their home. Earlier this summer, the couple promised to sue the city, but gave Fort Collins 90 days to decide whether to simply pay up.
The city decided not to.
"... While the city of Fort Collins sincerely regrets your clients believe they were damaged during the scope of duties by city personnel, we are respectfully denying the claim ...," city Risk Manager Lance Murray recently wrote to the couple's attorney, Rob Corry Jr.
The Masterses argue that their marijuana should have been treated like a pet seized during an investigation. Just like police wouldn't starve a dog, they argue, the city shouldn't have neglected their plants.
The couple could not produce valid medical marijuana caregiver certificates at the time of their arrest, and Hiatt never ruled on whether they were breaking the law by growing so many plants. Amendment 20 permits people who register with the state health department to grow small amounts for their own use.
Corry said he believes this case may the first in Colorado to determine whether the government needs to compensate someone for destroying their marijuana - a drug that remains illegal under federal law. Corry said he believes Amendment 20, in conjunction with the state's long-established property laws, requires the city to compensate the Masterses.
"The law is very clear, and it also makes sense. It is so simple, and it goes for any piece of property," Corry said. "... under similar cases, the government has to compensate you for the property they destroyed illegally."
Fort Collins police have declined to discuss the circumstances of the case, citing the pending litigation. Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden in his new Bull's-Eye briefing newsletter referred to Amendment 20 as an "ill-conceived state law" and has previously said his department will destroy marijuana seized from grow houses, regardless of whether its owner claims medical use or not.
In an essay about humorous ways to raise money for his office, Alderden wrote: "None of the law enforcement agencies on the Front Range have a greenhouse, but we have the grow lights we've seized from illegal grow operations so we could convert the vacated cell block to an indoor grow operation. We could charge other agencies to grow their dope, and if the case doesn't require us to return the weed to the charged person, we could get a medical marijuana license from the state and sell it for a profit. A win-win."
News Hawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: The Coloradoan
Copyright: 2008 The Coloradoan
Contact: coloradoan.com | Fort Collins Contact Us | The Coloradoan,
Website: City refuses to pay for dead pot plants | coloradoan.com | The Coloradoan,
Under the state's medical marijuana law, Amendment 20, the government is supposed to maintain someone's marijuana plants if they are seized as part of a criminal investigation. If the investigation reveals the plants were properly kept as the law permits, the agency is supposed to return them.
But when James and Lisa Masters got their 39 plants back last December, they were all dead. Fort Collins police seized the plants as part of a criminal investigation into the Masters' pot-growing operation. The couple operates a medical marijuana dispensary in Fort Collins and claimed they were legitimate caregivers for people who need pot to control their pain and other ailments.
Judge James Hiatt threw out the case against the couple in 2006 after ruling police illegally searched their home. Earlier this summer, the couple promised to sue the city, but gave Fort Collins 90 days to decide whether to simply pay up.
The city decided not to.
"... While the city of Fort Collins sincerely regrets your clients believe they were damaged during the scope of duties by city personnel, we are respectfully denying the claim ...," city Risk Manager Lance Murray recently wrote to the couple's attorney, Rob Corry Jr.
The Masterses argue that their marijuana should have been treated like a pet seized during an investigation. Just like police wouldn't starve a dog, they argue, the city shouldn't have neglected their plants.
The couple could not produce valid medical marijuana caregiver certificates at the time of their arrest, and Hiatt never ruled on whether they were breaking the law by growing so many plants. Amendment 20 permits people who register with the state health department to grow small amounts for their own use.
Corry said he believes this case may the first in Colorado to determine whether the government needs to compensate someone for destroying their marijuana - a drug that remains illegal under federal law. Corry said he believes Amendment 20, in conjunction with the state's long-established property laws, requires the city to compensate the Masterses.
"The law is very clear, and it also makes sense. It is so simple, and it goes for any piece of property," Corry said. "... under similar cases, the government has to compensate you for the property they destroyed illegally."
Fort Collins police have declined to discuss the circumstances of the case, citing the pending litigation. Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden in his new Bull's-Eye briefing newsletter referred to Amendment 20 as an "ill-conceived state law" and has previously said his department will destroy marijuana seized from grow houses, regardless of whether its owner claims medical use or not.
In an essay about humorous ways to raise money for his office, Alderden wrote: "None of the law enforcement agencies on the Front Range have a greenhouse, but we have the grow lights we've seized from illegal grow operations so we could convert the vacated cell block to an indoor grow operation. We could charge other agencies to grow their dope, and if the case doesn't require us to return the weed to the charged person, we could get a medical marijuana license from the state and sell it for a profit. A win-win."
News Hawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: The Coloradoan
Copyright: 2008 The Coloradoan
Contact: coloradoan.com | Fort Collins Contact Us | The Coloradoan,
Website: City refuses to pay for dead pot plants | coloradoan.com | The Coloradoan,
