In Los Angeles- Medical Pot Proposal Erases Compassion

from todays Los Angeles Times paper:

"Medical pot proposal erases compassion"

by Sandy Banks

"L.A. needs to regulate pot dispensaries, but this plan goes too far."

"...when her turn came, she gripped her cane, made her way to the microphone and joined a chorus of would-be lawbreakers, there to fight a proposed ordinance that would ban the sale of medical marijuana in Los Angeles.

Bowen showed up at the council hearing because renegade marijuana shops have become the scourge of neighborhoods...she "holds a prescription for medical marijuana" and sometimes relies on the drug for "extra help" with the pain from an autoimmune disorder...she was shocked to learn that the ordinance being considered would stop over-the-counter sales at dispensaries and allow only "collectives," where patients would have to plant, grow and harvest the marijuana they need.

"I can't grow my own," said Bowen, a 56-year-old former talent agent. "I have a brown thumb."

"...Now, dispensaries take in as much marijuana as they can sell, most from pot farms in Northern California. The new law would allow each collective to grow no more than 100 plants at a time, or keep more than five pounds of dried marijuana on hand..."

"...no more signing up on the spot. Patients would register in advance by name, address and phone number. No cash would change hands. The collective's records would specify "the exact nature of each member's participation" and could be reviewed by police at any time, "without need for a search warrant, subpoena or court order."

"...Are these patients or parolees we're talking about?..."

"...The proposed ordinance "may appear tough," conceded Deputy City Atty. Heather Aubry. "But everything that we've said is based on the law and the [court] cases. That's what we have to focus on, not whether or not we think it's fair, not whether we like it, not whether it's the most convenient method. . .

"We don't feel that we are going against the intent of voters," she said."

reference
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-banks26-2009sep26,0,4104513.column

that be some bullshit hope it fails miserbly la should want this even more money they will lose and being they are always in debt they should just bump bud tax a lil and leave them alone like in oakland

dhhbomb said:

that be some bullshit hope it fails miserbly la should want this even more money they will lose and being they are always in debt they should just bump bud tax a lil and leave them alone like in oakland

Click to expand...

hey,

yeah, this new regulation proposal should not pass.

as far as taxing the good herb more than other prescription drugs i feel this shouldn't happen either. patients shouldn't carry the burden of a mismanaged city with extra taxes not imposed on other medicine. don't want to encourage that kind of thinking.

peace

Update:

"Judge grants injunction against city's medical marijuana dispensary ban"

ahhh, hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!

this morning's paper in los angeles

"...A Superior Court judge concluded today that Los Angeles' moratorium on new medical marijuana dispensaries is invalid and granted a preliminary injunction against enforcement of the ban sought by a dispensary that had sued the city.

Judge James C. Chalfant determined that the city failed to follow state law when it extended its initial moratorium. " The city cannot rely on an expired ordinance," he said..."

"...Green Oasis and a number of other medical marijuana collectives sued the city last month, challenging its efforts to control the dispensaries. The lawsuit argued that the City Council violated state law when it extended the ban until mid-March and that it is unconstitutionally vague.

Although the injunction applies only to Green Oasis, the judge's ruling calls into question the city's power to enforce the moratorium against hundreds of dispensaries that have opened in the last two years. The ruling could inspire other dispensaries to join the lawsuit or file similar actions..."

"...the city argued that the moratorium is not subject to the conditions and limitations of state law because it is not an ordinance dealing with zoning, but with public safety. Zoning ordinances cannot be extended beyond 24 months. The city adopted the first of two moratoriums on Aug. 1, 2007.

The judge rejected that argument..."


ahhh, hahahahahahahahahahahaha!


"...Robert A. Kahn, an attorney for Green Oasis, argued that the dispensary did nothing wrong, noting that, under state law, the moratorium expired 45 days after it was first enacted. "The did not believe they were violating the law," he said..."

"...Dan Lutz, a co-owner of Green Oasis and president of the collective association, filed the lawsuit after the council voted to shut down his dispensary, which opened in May.

Lutz, like hundreds of other dispensary owners in Los Angeles, had filed a request with the council for an exemption from the moratorium so he could operate, but opened without permission. The council failed to act on these requests until June, an oversight that prevented city officials from taking legal steps to close the dispensaries.

-- John Hoeffel at L.A. Superior Court..."


reference:
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2009/10/judge-rules-against-citys-medical-marijuana-dispensary-ban.html

more on the medical cannabis fight in los angeles:

"Medical marijuana poll: Most L.A. voters support dispensaries"
October 22, 2009 | 10:00 am

"...The Marijuana Policy Project, based in Washington, D.C., commissioned the poll by an independent firm, Mason-Dixon Polling & Research, after Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley threatened all dispensaries in the county with prosecution..."

"...74% support the state's medical marijuana law, while 54% want to see marijuana legalized, regulated and taxed..."

"...I think the take-home message here is voters in L.A. County overwhelmingly support the state's medical marijuana law. They think dispensaries, properly regulated, can be a part of that, and Mr. Cooley's really out of step," said Bruce Mirken, the California-based spokesman for the organization..."

"...Both Democrats (83%-7%) and Republicans (62%-30%) support regulation over prosecution..."

"...The poll of 625 voters found that 77% of voters want to regulate dispensaries, while 14% want them closed..."

"...Sandi Gibbons, a spokeswoman for the district attorney, said that Cooley merely intends to enforce state law. "Selling marijuana over the counter for profit is a violation of the law," she said. "Mr. Cooley has said that, if it is found that the marijuana is being supplied in accord with the Compassionate Use Act, then those operations are not targets..."

and the interesting demographics, albeit predictable:

"...The poll found support for treating marijuana similarly to alcohol among county voters across most demographics, except voters who are 65 or older and Republicans. Both groups oppose it by about a 10-point margin. Young people, voters between 18 and 34, strongly support legalization, 72%-18%..."

reference:
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2009/10/poll-most-la-voters-oppose-closure-of-dispensaries.html

what los angeles is up against with new city attorney:

"I thought Reefer Madness was over?!? Guess we still have idiots believing otherwise…"

"LA City Attorney, Carmen “Nuch” Trutanich, has been all over the media trying to convince Los Angeles that a pesticide used to kill Mexican fire ants is evidence that medical cannabis provided by dispensaries is poisonous and supporting Mexican drug cartels..."


"According to Trutanich, three samples of medical marijuana from “controlled buys” by undercover LAPD were tested by an FDA laboratory. On these samples, Mr Trutanich said the lab found high concentrations of an insecticide used to kill fire ants in Mexico. Trutanich claims this Mexican fire ant insecticide is evidence that LA medical cannabis is being supplied by the Mexican drug cartels..."

the facts contradict the new city attorney

"...There are no Mexican fire ants.



There is the notorious red imported fire ant – solenopsis invicta – but that’s from Brazil, not Mexico. Those fire ants were accidently imported into the US in the 1930’s then spread across the southern United States. Fire ants were never found in Mexico, until they crossed the Texas border into northern Mexico a few years back. But even if expatriate Texan fire ants have decamped to Mexico, what does that prove about the origin of marijuana in Los Angeles dispensaries? If a cannabis dispensary uses chopsticks to pull marijuana buds from jars does that mean that the marijuana is being supplied by Chinese spies?..."

"...The insecticide that Nuch (new city attorney) found in his big bag of herb was bifenthrin. Bifenthrin belongs to a very common class of insecticides called pyrethroids. The most common pyrethroid is pyrethrum, which is made from chrysanthemums. Pyrethrum is considered safe enough for use on organic fruits, herbs and vegetables throughout the world, including cannabis. See, most pyrethroids aren’t all that toxic, except to fish and some insects..."


"...Mr Trutanich claims that bifenthrim is not used in California and by implication that its use is restricted to less enlightened places, such as Mexico. But Mr. Trutanich is dead wrong. According to pesticideinfo.org, California farmers used 107,000 pounds of bifenthrim on their crops in 2007. They used it on corn, almonds, strawberries, even wine grapes. Fifty tons of it..."


"...What messages should we take away from Trutanich’s Cassandra call? That the City Attorney and the County DA will say anything in their attempt to close LA’s medical cannabis collectives..."



knowledge is good push back!

power to the people, n all that



reference:
http://thedaktory.org.nz/news/i-thought-reefer-madness-was-over-guess-we-still-have-idiots-believing-otherwise/

Sounds similar to any place that politicians want to do things. The lies start as soon as they open their mouths. How do these schmucks get into office?

klmmicro said:

Sounds similar to any place that politicians want to do things. The lies start as soon as they open their mouths. How do these schmucks get into office?

Click to expand...

yeah, they are good liars. hopefully someone at FOX will refute what he said while he was at their broadcast station.

the los angeles times had a front page story about him (new city attorney) this morning how he's threatening, harassing, & get this, not even knowing the laws he's sworn to uphold.

ref:
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-aeg22-2009oct22,0,7497337.story

Los Angeles City Attorney Carmen Trutanich Talks About HIs Opposition To The MMJ Co-ops

[youtube]5MS_ie8KqkA&hl[/youtube]

Update:

"One City's Insane Fight Against Obama's Sane New Pot Policy"
By John H. Richardson

"...nothing's stopping Los Angeles from finding every last ridiculous loophole..."

"As the right-wingers warned from the beginning, medical marijuana is turning out to be the genie you can't stuff back in the bottle. Even if the L.A. city council's rushed vote comes down in favor of the Trutanich ordinance, it seems likely that the regulations will be overturned in the courts — which is exactly what happened with Trutanich's last attempt to shut down the clubs. The state attorney general has already gone on record saying — and reiterated to Esquire.com when we asked him for comment — that the law allows sales. In the end, this case of bureaucratic bullying — and others across the country as states come to terms with a (relatively) sane White House pot policy — will be just another pointless and expensive skirmish on the inevitable road to marijuana legalization."

Read more: http://www.esquire.com/the-side/richardson-report/obama-medical-marijuana-laws-102709#ixzz0VUjplfTI

As San Diego proved though, there is nothing preventive these idiots from spending millions on pointless exercises. It is not their money, what the heck do they care for? Glad to see that some common sense is hitting the streets...looks like it may be making it all the way to the White House. After the Obama campaign ignored the questions posed through their internet presence and in their "town hall meetings", it is refreshing to see relentlessness of the people making headway. The local politicians are denser on orders of magnitude though.

this sucks but lets be real here.. the compassion was erased long ago by collective owners.. i really think that if the majority of shops just made a living and not huge profits then we wouldnt be in this situation.. lets say la passed a new ordinance where all they did was make sure a shop wasnt making huge profits and thats it. all the shops would close because nobody is doing this according to the rules.

You would have groups that would open collectives according to the new rules is all. The problem as I see it, politicians stirred the angst of the public up based on lies. Then when they felt they had enough support, they launched their attacks. Were there shops making profit? Probably. I have never seen any numbers published to show this. There are no cost to income analysis given to support the claim that these places are "dealers". What we do see published a lot is how anyone can just walk in and buy pot (not true from my experience). Then the inevitable claim that the collectives product made it into...brace yourself..."the hands of our children".

These politics are out of touch...my kids can get pot faster than I can with no dispensaries/collectives/medical involved! The antis lost the war and cannot stand it. This is their tantrum.

come on man we all know they are making money
lets figure a small collective/coop sells 2 pounds a week( thats a low figure for most shops) 3 grand for a pound of herb @ 60 a eighth thats 15,360 bucks for a profit of 9,360 a week times that by 4 and thats a monthly profit of 37,440. now its time to pay rent so lets figure 5 grand for rent ( not nearly that much) now we are down to 27,440.. now its time to pay the electricity
lets be generous and figure 3 grand for lights. now we are down to 24,440. now its time to pay the staff, lets say that there are 8 employees all making 12 bucks a hour so roughly 480 per week per employee so a total of 15,360 a month to staff. theres still 9,080 bucks left.. these people are hurting the movement not helping.. theres a reason why we dont see numbers published by coops and its because simple math shows they are raping patients and making big money.. now all that being said i think they should make money but the laws are not set up like that now and we are all trying to follow the law right? if you want to help patients by offering affordable meds and only make a living not get rich well the laws are already set up for this but if you wanna make big money like most of these shops then you shouldn't have opened the doors until laws were set in place for you to make huge profits

as I read both of ur comments I think ur both correct.

the only thing I would add is that before the elections pinhead trutanich who is going after the clubs would not release how much he made nor who he represented. he represented corporations who were polluting Los Angeles harbour. what does this have anything to do with the present situation one might ask? well, bottom line he represents corporate criminals n the rumour is he's being paid off to go after the clubs.

there's a reason trutanich's own relatives told people not to vote for him. his motivation has never been in the best interest of the law but his own greed. he needs to b recalled for wasting resources. what a jackass he is.

More on this topic:

"US vows crackdown on medical marijuana

By correspondent Kim Landers for The World Today
http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/
Posted Fri Oct 30, 2009 4:00pm AEDT
Updated Fri Oct 30, 2009 8:30pm AEDT
Marijuana 'collectives' could be the answer to ensuring legitimate LA distribution for medicinal purposes. (Victoria Police: supplied)

• Audio: LA officials to clean up the joint (The World Today)

Officials in the United States are vowing to crack down on medical marijuana facilities even as the Obama administration signals a new hands-off policy on the drug.
Los Angeles officials have been agonising for two years over a move to introduce what they call sensible guidelines to help regulate the booming industry.
In the US, 14 states have laws allowing the use of medical marijuana, but no state has gone further than California and no city has gone further than LA, where there are more marijuana dispensaries than public schools.
Brian Berens is the owner of Green Oasis, a medical marijuana dispensary in LA.
"Daily I would say we get about 30 to 50 people in a day. We service the local community and most of the people live within two miles of the dispensary," he said.
"Our collective is a little bit different than most; we're a large operation, we have a second floor - we have a vapour lounge which is much like an Amsterdam cafe."
He says his medical marijuana cooperative complies with state laws, but the city of Los Angeles is vowing to eradicate what it calls the illegal sales of marijuana in many of the city's dispensaries.

Legitimate sales


David Berger, an assistant city attorney for the city of Los Angeles, says not even 10 per cent of the dispensaries are selling marijuana for legitimate reasons.
"How many places are there selling marijuana? About a thousand - how many of them are genuinely supplying medical marijuana to people legitimately in need? Perhaps a hundred," he said.
"What these other places are doing is basically saying, 'if you're a recreational user, if you just want to get high, find a doctor who for $150 will write you a recommendation, come in here on a nod and a wink and we will give you marijuana'."
The city of Los Angeles says California state law only allows the exchange of marijuana between growers and patients who are members of a cooperative and that it has to be on a non-profit, non-cash basis.
But Mr Berger says that for the past two years, medical marijuana dispensaries have mushroomed in the city.
"How did it happen? It's because the law that allowed this to come into effect was very poorly written and expressed in very broad terms," he said.
"And you know the emotion of allowing seriously ill people to obtain some relief was used to basically allow a poorly written law into effect."

'For medicinal use only'


LA is now trying to mount a crackdown. The council will debate an ordinance next month that introduces strict new rules about medical marijuana dispensaries.
Mr Berger says marijuana collectives, not shops, is the way forward.
"It has to be a collective, not a shop, a collective, and a collective is basically a group of people who come together for a common purpose," he said.
"In this case, it's to cultivate marijuana for medicinal use only and only amongst themselves. They cannot sell it.
"All they can do is share it amongst themselves and share the costs of cultivating the marijuana."
He also says the dispensaries will not be able to have more than two kilograms of marijuana on the premises at any one time.
No on-site consumption will be allowed and the collectives will not be able to be within 300 metres of schools, parks or other collectives.

Threat of legal action


But Mr Berens says the owners of medical marijuana facilities will fight the ordinance in court if it is passed.
"I don't know if they will be able to ratify ordinances in November - this might be just a lot of lip service for the public," he said.
"Even if they do, we have already notified Los Angeles of certain points in the proposed ordinances that our attorney will sue them if they approve them."
While the city of Los Angeles tries to crack down on medical marijuana dispensaries, the Obama administration has told federal authorities not to arrest or prosecute medical marijuana users and suppliers who are not violating local or state laws.
In a statement, US Attorney General Eric Holder says: "It will not be a priority to use federal resources to prosecute patients with serious illnesses or their caregivers who are complying with state laws on medical marijuana."
"But we will not tolerate drug traffickers who hide behind claims of compliance with state law to mask activities that are clearly illegal," the statement adds.
The city of Los Angeles says its planned crackdown would comply with these guidelines.
It says the Obama administration is making it clear that its hands-off policy towards medical marijuana only applies to places that are complying with state and local law.
But Mr Berger thinks the Obama administration's policy is the seed from which the movement to legalise all marijuana will grow."

"STEVE LOPEZ
A bit player in L.A.'s medical marijuana theater"
reference:
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-lopez4-2009nov04,0,544903.column

"...Nobody knows how many dispensaries there are in L.A., but estimates run as high as 1,000. Fourteen states allow medical marijuana, but no other place in the nation has lost control the way we have here in the City of Angels, where hundreds of outlets were allowed to open during a ban while City Council members fiddled..."

"...I'm actually not a user. Yeah, my back aches, but so far I haven't turned to herbal remedies. I know, though, that there are lots of people with far more serious medical problems, and if marijuana gives them the best relief, good for them..."

"...he unlocked another door and took me into a small room with jars of buds on display, just like in a candy shop. Charlie recommended a strain called Indica, which he called a good muscle relaxant for back pain. I opted for something called Chunky Munky and found myself craving the ice cream without even lighting up. He weighed a gram and put it into a prescription bottle, like it was Vicodin, and I handed him a $20 "donation..."

"...It'd make more sense, I told Charlie, to completely legalize, regulate and tax marijuana rather than have this crazy charade we've got now in Los Angeles. Meanwhile, billions have been spent on a drug war that has transferred wealth to drug cartels and domestic gangs, filling up the morgues in the process..."

"...Speaking of recommendations, I was told that L.A. Organic Pharmacy on Melrose is a popular herb dispensary, so I decided to check it out. While waiting for service, I was tempted by Purple Diesel, White Widow and Afgani Kush, but I finally settled on a gram of Skywalker, which was recommended for back pain.

But wait a minute. Was it the marijuana dust in the air, or were all the employees speaking Russian?

Sasha Churprovsky took me into a back room and said in a heavy accent that he was in heating and air conditioning until a few years ago, when someone suggested a career change. Now he's worried about the threat of a crackdown by L.A. City Atty. Carmen Trutanich, who reminds Churprovsky of another iron-fisted ruler.

"He's like Joseph Stalin!"..."

"... asked where all that product comes from.

Someone grows it for medicinal use, Churprovsky said, and ends up with some extra. So it gets donated to his collective, and for hundreds of members, the pain just melts away.

Beautiful. With a system like that, who needs healthcare ..."

"The fifth draft of Los Angeles' proposed medical marijuana ordinance -- the first draft was submitted in April of 2008 -- will be discussed at a joint city council meeting this morning at 8:30 a.m...some changes have been made."

"Most notably, the City Attorney's office "deleted the unnecessary requirement that collective members provide their names to the City as part of the registration process," says a letter to the City Council. "Their names will continue to be maintained in the collective's own books and records."

"Additionally, language has been clarified in reference to edibles. In the previous draft, it appeared edibles marijuana products were verboten. That's not the case, ...the sale of edibles--just like the sale of any medical marijuana--will be illegal."


"The law would ban most dispensaries that are already open. Only businesses that were legally in operation prior to a November 2007 date will be given 180 days to apply for new permits. Hundreds of others that opened after will be forced to shut down."

ref:
http://laist.com/2009/11/16/new_draft_of_medical_marijuana_ordi.php

"L.A. City Council panels reject ban on medical marijuana sales"

"Rejecting the advice of the city attorney, two Los Angeles City Council committees voted today to scrap a proposed provision that would have banned the sale of medical marijuana."

ref:
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2009/11/la-city-council-panels-reject-ban-on-medical-marijuana-sales.html

here's a favorite quote from the day's activities:

"...Councilman Ed Reyes, who has overseen most of the council's consideration of the issue, expressed exasperation with the city attorney's office. "I think they are very, very narrow in that they're taking their prosecutorial perspective," he said."