Jacob Bell
New Member
As two San Francisco legislators denounced the Obama administration's attack on medical marijuana suppliers in California, the president of a Tenderloin district dispensary said Tuesday he will probably close shop in three weeks because of a threatening letter from the U.S. attorney.
Charlie Pappas said the Divinity Tree Patients' Wellness Cooperative at 958 Geary St. is a nonprofit that supplies medical marijuana to almost 3,000 users and has followed state and local laws since it opened seven years ago.
But now, Pappas said, the dispensary's directors are "fearful that the DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration) will raid us" after federal prosecutors threatened the landlord with possible criminal charges and forfeiture of his property.
Federal-state conflict
It was the first reported Bay Area fallout from an Oct. 7 announcement by California's four regional U.S. attorneys of a campaign to shut down commercial marijuana dispensaries in the state that was the first to legalize medical use of the drug.
The prosecutors, including U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag of San Francisco, accused suppliers of using California's 1996 medical marijuana law as a cover for making huge profits. Haag said she would initially single out dispensaries near schools and playgrounds, while the other U.S. attorneys said they would notify dozens of outlets that they were violating federal narcotics laws.
Such notices have reportedly been sent to three of San Francisco's 26 licensed medical marijuana suppliers. Two Bay Area dispensaries have reported receiving potentially ruinous tax bills from the Internal Revenue Service, which has refused to let them deduct payroll costs and other routine business expenses.
At a news conference attended by Pappas and other medical marijuana advocates, two San Francisco Democratic lawmakers assailed the federal crackdown.
"This punitive 1930s-era reefer-madness reaction shows a lack of leadership," said Assemblyman Tom Ammiano. "It's an embarrassment to the administration."
'Call off the dogs'
State Sen. Mark Leno said the government is wasting scarce resources on "an ambush that will harm countless patients."
"Call the dogs off, and let's sit down" and discuss reasonable regulations for dispensaries, Leno said.
Justice Department spokeswoman Laura Sweeney did not respond to the criticism directly, but said the department is "not focused on individual patients with serious illnesses like cancer, or their immediate caregivers." In California, she said, "the industry ... has swelled to include numerous drug-trafficking enterprises." Those are the focus of federal enforcement, she said.
Dispensaries' status
The 1996 California ballot measure, Proposition 215, allowed individuals to use marijuana and receive it from their caregivers, with a doctor's approval, but did not expressly authorize or regulate dispensaries, as other states have done in more recent laws.
A 2003 legislative measure and guidelines issued in 2009 by then-Attorney General Jerry Brown authorized distribution by nonprofit patient collectives, but their contours have not been spelled out in state law. Ammiano and Leno said legislation defining legal distribution outlets could ease the federal-state confrontation, if federal officials are willing to cooperate.
"In the end, the feds can probably do whatever they want," Leno said. For now, he said, "We're here to say, 'Stop.' "
News Hawk- Jacob Ebel 420 MAGAZINE
Source: sfgate.com
Author: Bob Egelko
Contact: Contact Us
Copyright: Hearst Communications Inc.
Website: Tenderloin medical pot dispensary expects to close
Charlie Pappas said the Divinity Tree Patients' Wellness Cooperative at 958 Geary St. is a nonprofit that supplies medical marijuana to almost 3,000 users and has followed state and local laws since it opened seven years ago.
But now, Pappas said, the dispensary's directors are "fearful that the DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration) will raid us" after federal prosecutors threatened the landlord with possible criminal charges and forfeiture of his property.
Federal-state conflict
It was the first reported Bay Area fallout from an Oct. 7 announcement by California's four regional U.S. attorneys of a campaign to shut down commercial marijuana dispensaries in the state that was the first to legalize medical use of the drug.
The prosecutors, including U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag of San Francisco, accused suppliers of using California's 1996 medical marijuana law as a cover for making huge profits. Haag said she would initially single out dispensaries near schools and playgrounds, while the other U.S. attorneys said they would notify dozens of outlets that they were violating federal narcotics laws.
Such notices have reportedly been sent to three of San Francisco's 26 licensed medical marijuana suppliers. Two Bay Area dispensaries have reported receiving potentially ruinous tax bills from the Internal Revenue Service, which has refused to let them deduct payroll costs and other routine business expenses.
At a news conference attended by Pappas and other medical marijuana advocates, two San Francisco Democratic lawmakers assailed the federal crackdown.
"This punitive 1930s-era reefer-madness reaction shows a lack of leadership," said Assemblyman Tom Ammiano. "It's an embarrassment to the administration."
'Call off the dogs'
State Sen. Mark Leno said the government is wasting scarce resources on "an ambush that will harm countless patients."
"Call the dogs off, and let's sit down" and discuss reasonable regulations for dispensaries, Leno said.
Justice Department spokeswoman Laura Sweeney did not respond to the criticism directly, but said the department is "not focused on individual patients with serious illnesses like cancer, or their immediate caregivers." In California, she said, "the industry ... has swelled to include numerous drug-trafficking enterprises." Those are the focus of federal enforcement, she said.
Dispensaries' status
The 1996 California ballot measure, Proposition 215, allowed individuals to use marijuana and receive it from their caregivers, with a doctor's approval, but did not expressly authorize or regulate dispensaries, as other states have done in more recent laws.
A 2003 legislative measure and guidelines issued in 2009 by then-Attorney General Jerry Brown authorized distribution by nonprofit patient collectives, but their contours have not been spelled out in state law. Ammiano and Leno said legislation defining legal distribution outlets could ease the federal-state confrontation, if federal officials are willing to cooperate.
"In the end, the feds can probably do whatever they want," Leno said. For now, he said, "We're here to say, 'Stop.' "
News Hawk- Jacob Ebel 420 MAGAZINE
Source: sfgate.com
Author: Bob Egelko
Contact: Contact Us
Copyright: Hearst Communications Inc.
Website: Tenderloin medical pot dispensary expects to close
