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Hermosa places moratorium on
medical marijuana
Local cities are moving to impose
temporary bans as they explore guidelines on such establishments.
April 27, 2006, Deepa Bharath
DAILY BREEZE
Faced with a large gap between what federal and state law allow
regarding medical marijuana dispensaries and the prospect of an
influx of potential customers looking to score a legal high, local
cities are moving to impose temporary bans as they explore
guidelines on such establishments.
Hermosa Beach this week became the first city in the South Bay to
impose a moratorium against medical marijuana dispensaries. The
council unanimously voted Tuesday in favor of a 45-day moratorium.
Pot dispensaries for medical use are allowed under California's
Proposition 215, but federal law deems distribution of marijuana for
any purpose illegal. Ten other states signed off on similar laws
allowing medical marijuana use.
Hermosa Beach City Attorney Michael Jenkins told council members
that other communities where such dispensaries have cropped up are
facing problems.
"These clinics obviously attract people into town who want to use
marijuana, but who are not necessarily ill," he said.
None currently operate in Hermosa Beach. The only functioning
dispensary in the South Bay and Harbor Area is in San Pedro.
City Manager Steve Burrell said the moratorium will give planners
time to come up with a regulatory ordinance for conditional use
permits that will spell out specific guidelines on how, where and
when such clinics may operate in the city.
The moratorium may be extended twice, Jenkins said. The maximum
duration of the extensions are 10 months and 15 days for the first
and a year for the second.
"That'll give staff adequate time to come up with an ordinance," he
said.
The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors last month approved an
ordinance that will permit the dispensaries in commercial and
industrial zones of Lennox, Del Aire and other unincorporated areas.
But the approval came with the conditions that they must be at least
1,000 feet away from schools, parks, churches and day-care centers.
They must also hire security guards and will have to publicly post
their owners' contact phone numbers, among other requirements.
In addition to marijuana that could be smoked, the dispensaries will
also sell candy and other edible items containing the drug to
authorized patients.
Supervisor Don Knabe, who proposed several amendments to this
ordinance, is most concerned about the safety of the communities
where these dispensaries are established, said spokesman David
Sommers.
"Supervisor Knabe doesn't have a position about city-imposed
moratoriums," he said. "But cities need to do what's in their best
interest and he supports that."
Knabe's proposed amendments include proper labeling for the food
items, prohibiting sale or consumption of alcohol at the
dispensaries and banning the clinics from displaying or selling
pot-smoking paraphernalia.
Neighboring beach cities said they too are looking at options to
regulate such establishments that might want to set up shop here.
Redondo Beach City Attorney Mike Webb said he is researching the
issue and considering the possibility of a moratorium.
"If you allow them you're breaking federal law and if you don't
you're not following state law," he said. "A moratorium is a more
cautious approach to the issue."
In Manhattan Beach, it's not a burning issue, said City Attorney
Robert Wadden.
"We've discussed it at the staff level, but haven't presented it to
City Council yet," he said. "We don't have pending applications for
dispensaries and, given the high real estate cost, we don't think
our city would be a desirable location for these dispensaries."
The Lawndale City Council last week directed its Planning Commission
to create guidelines for the dispensaries.
Meanwhile, the conflict between state and federal laws governing
dispensaries is continuing to play out in court.
The U.S. Supreme Court has consistently backed federal enforcement
officials. In June 2005, the high court ruled in a 6-3 decision that
agents were within their rights in 2001 to arrest two California
residents -- one with brain cancer and the other with severe back
pain -- for using marijuana to help ease their symptoms.
Federal officials have raided and shut down several dispensaries in
the past year, said Sarah Fenno, a spokeswoman for the federal Drug
Enforcement Administration in Los Angeles.
"We have the right to arrest anyone who is distributing marijuana in
the United States because it is illegal by federal law," she said.
"There are exceptions for medical use."
Fenno declined to comment about how many dispensaries the DEA has
raided or any ongoing investigation.
Dennis Perron, the marijuana advocate who authored Proposition 215,
said such moratoriums raise the price of marijuana in dispensaries
because of high demand among patients.
"The price of 1 pound of weed is anywhere between $4,000 and
$8,000," he said. "It's ridiculous and it's because of cities
placing these bans and making life more painful for those who are
already in pain." |