Jim Finnel
Fallen Cannabis Warrior & Ex News Moderator
Medical marijuana activists are cranking up the pressure in their fight to be able to supply the drug in Fresno.
A former paralegal from Visalia is trying to open a dispensary in the Tower District. Another group is working to create a cooperative where members could supply each other with cannabis.
Standing in their way is a restrictive city ordinance -- and several skeptical City Council members.
"If it's that important, maybe they should move to San Francisco," said newly seated Council Member Lee Brand.
Currently, there are no medical marijuana dispensaries or official cooperatives anywhere in Fresno County.
Last year, supporters celebrated when Fresno County became the 41st in the state to participate in California's Medical Marijuana Program registry. That allowed people to get an identification card in Fresno County so they can prove to police that they have a doctor's prescription.
"There's clearly a need," said Dr. Terry Brown, who has a Tower District office. More than 2,500 patients rely on him for medical marijuana prescriptions, he said.
But the closest dispensaries or cooperatives are in Tulare County.
The city's current ordinance regarding medical marijuana businesses states they must comply with both state and federal laws. At this point, federal law views the drug -- even when used for medical purposes -- as illegal.
In 1996, however, California enacted the Compassionate Use Act, which allows patients and caregivers to possess or grow marijuana if a doctor has recommended it for medical use.
Fresno originally enacted an ordinance in 2004 that banned medical marijuana dispensaries that served three or more patients. The following year, Shaver Lake attorney William McPike and Americans for Safe Access, an Oakland-based group that advocates for medical marijuana, filed a lawsuit over the ordinance.
The council then enacted the current ordinance, which advocates consider a de facto ban.
Until the state and federal laws are consistent, no medical marijuana operation can meet the requirements of the city's ordinance, said City Attorney Jim Sanchez.
"That keeps us out of this argument," he said.
At this point, not even those seeking to distribute medical marijuana in Fresno can agree on a strategy.
Rick Morse is the paralegal who sought to open a dispensary at 210 E. Olive Ave. in the Tower District. He said he became a user and medical-marijuana advocate after he suffered nerve-damage complications from surgery. He briefly opened his business -- known as the Medmar Clinic -- last month, but it closed after two days when police told him he hadn't met all city requirements.
On Tuesday, Morse pleaded his case to the Fresno City Council, saying he has a city-approved business license and that was all he needed to open the shop.
"There wasn't anything sneaky about us doing this," he said in an interview outside the council chambers.
But countering Morse were members of the local chapter of Americans for Safe Access. They propose a collective that has registered members, as opposed to a storefront operation like Morse.
Group members said Morse has hurt their cause by moving ahead with his proposal while they still are working to get the city ordinance changed.
"It just upset us that he jumped the gun," said Fresno resident Diana Kirby, a disabled woman who supports opening a medical marijuana cooperative.
It's unclear where either party goes from here.
Neither group was on the official council agenda. Instead, they spoke during the open communication period of the meeting. The council took no action and made no comments after they spoke.
City officials say Morse's problems aren't even about medical marijuana at this point. Before the issue of complying with city ordinances is addressed, officials say Morse still must take steps that apply to anybody opening a business, including preparing a site plan.
As for those supporting a cooperative, they vowed Tuesday to come to every council meeting until there is a change in the ordinance.
"The city can't enforce federal law," said Dana Bobbitt, an activist and disabled former iron worker. "The authorities have no authority to enforce federal law."
But council members don't seem eager to change the ordinance.
"We have so many problems in the city," Brand said. "I'd put medical marijuana at the bottom of the list. We have an existing ordinance that clearly prohibits it, and there are clearly more pressing matters."
Fellow Council Member Mike Dages said activists need to take up the issue with Congress. "It's out of our hands," he said. "They're yelling at the wrong people."
Dages said his father was a pharmacist who would "roll over in his grave if I voted for something that is illegal."
And Sanchez, the Fresno city attorney, indicated that Fresno would prefer to stay out of the medical marijuana debate.
"We reviewed laws over the last year and a half," he said. "We will not allow our local jurisdiction to be enmeshed in a state-federal disagreement."
News Hawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: Fresno Bee
Author: John Ellis
Copyright: 2009 John Ellis
Contact: fresnobee.com - Help
Website: Medical marijuana activists seek Fresno access - Local - fresnobee.com
A former paralegal from Visalia is trying to open a dispensary in the Tower District. Another group is working to create a cooperative where members could supply each other with cannabis.
Standing in their way is a restrictive city ordinance -- and several skeptical City Council members.
"If it's that important, maybe they should move to San Francisco," said newly seated Council Member Lee Brand.
Currently, there are no medical marijuana dispensaries or official cooperatives anywhere in Fresno County.
Last year, supporters celebrated when Fresno County became the 41st in the state to participate in California's Medical Marijuana Program registry. That allowed people to get an identification card in Fresno County so they can prove to police that they have a doctor's prescription.
"There's clearly a need," said Dr. Terry Brown, who has a Tower District office. More than 2,500 patients rely on him for medical marijuana prescriptions, he said.
But the closest dispensaries or cooperatives are in Tulare County.
The city's current ordinance regarding medical marijuana businesses states they must comply with both state and federal laws. At this point, federal law views the drug -- even when used for medical purposes -- as illegal.
In 1996, however, California enacted the Compassionate Use Act, which allows patients and caregivers to possess or grow marijuana if a doctor has recommended it for medical use.
Fresno originally enacted an ordinance in 2004 that banned medical marijuana dispensaries that served three or more patients. The following year, Shaver Lake attorney William McPike and Americans for Safe Access, an Oakland-based group that advocates for medical marijuana, filed a lawsuit over the ordinance.
The council then enacted the current ordinance, which advocates consider a de facto ban.
Until the state and federal laws are consistent, no medical marijuana operation can meet the requirements of the city's ordinance, said City Attorney Jim Sanchez.
"That keeps us out of this argument," he said.
At this point, not even those seeking to distribute medical marijuana in Fresno can agree on a strategy.
Rick Morse is the paralegal who sought to open a dispensary at 210 E. Olive Ave. in the Tower District. He said he became a user and medical-marijuana advocate after he suffered nerve-damage complications from surgery. He briefly opened his business -- known as the Medmar Clinic -- last month, but it closed after two days when police told him he hadn't met all city requirements.
On Tuesday, Morse pleaded his case to the Fresno City Council, saying he has a city-approved business license and that was all he needed to open the shop.
"There wasn't anything sneaky about us doing this," he said in an interview outside the council chambers.
But countering Morse were members of the local chapter of Americans for Safe Access. They propose a collective that has registered members, as opposed to a storefront operation like Morse.
Group members said Morse has hurt their cause by moving ahead with his proposal while they still are working to get the city ordinance changed.
"It just upset us that he jumped the gun," said Fresno resident Diana Kirby, a disabled woman who supports opening a medical marijuana cooperative.
It's unclear where either party goes from here.
Neither group was on the official council agenda. Instead, they spoke during the open communication period of the meeting. The council took no action and made no comments after they spoke.
City officials say Morse's problems aren't even about medical marijuana at this point. Before the issue of complying with city ordinances is addressed, officials say Morse still must take steps that apply to anybody opening a business, including preparing a site plan.
As for those supporting a cooperative, they vowed Tuesday to come to every council meeting until there is a change in the ordinance.
"The city can't enforce federal law," said Dana Bobbitt, an activist and disabled former iron worker. "The authorities have no authority to enforce federal law."
But council members don't seem eager to change the ordinance.
"We have so many problems in the city," Brand said. "I'd put medical marijuana at the bottom of the list. We have an existing ordinance that clearly prohibits it, and there are clearly more pressing matters."
Fellow Council Member Mike Dages said activists need to take up the issue with Congress. "It's out of our hands," he said. "They're yelling at the wrong people."
Dages said his father was a pharmacist who would "roll over in his grave if I voted for something that is illegal."
And Sanchez, the Fresno city attorney, indicated that Fresno would prefer to stay out of the medical marijuana debate.
"We reviewed laws over the last year and a half," he said. "We will not allow our local jurisdiction to be enmeshed in a state-federal disagreement."
News Hawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: Fresno Bee
Author: John Ellis
Copyright: 2009 John Ellis
Contact: fresnobee.com - Help
Website: Medical marijuana activists seek Fresno access - Local - fresnobee.com
This place has been reopened! 
That rude guy gave a public apology during a city counsel meeting but it never made the paper. He said sorry to the medical marijuana patient community on record. I thought that was kind of him to apologize.
