California, Palm Springs

[palmspringsbum]

Added medical pot sites blocked

PALM SPRINGS: For 45 days, the City Council limits dispensaries to the two already in place.



10:00 PM PST on Thursday, March 30, 2006
By DAVID HERMANN
The Press-Enterprise



PALM SPRINGS - No new medical marijuana dispensaries will open in Palm Springs -- at least not until May 13.

The City Council unanimously approved an urgency ordinance this week prohibiting pot sellers from setting up shop for 45 days while a task force made up of medical marijuana advocates, police, residents and city officials studies how to regulate them.

To the relief of the roughly two dozen medical marijuana users who came to Wednesday's council meeting, Palm Springs' temporary ban allows a dispensary that already is open and another in the process of opening to operate at their current locations pending the results of the task force's work.

Palm Springs had no regulations regarding the sale of medical marijuana, a situation that city officials said could have led to the unchecked proliferation of dispensaries throughout the city.

The city's existing dispensary, the Collective Apothecary of Palm Springs, opened at its North Palm Canyon Drive location without any permits or official approvals.

City officials have said that and other problems, including increased loitering and illegal drug sales near the Apothecary, as reasons that such businesses need regulation.

In addition to studying how the city can regulate dispensaries, the task force will help determine the appropriate location for all of the businesses as well as the hours they should operate, said City Attorney Doug Holland on Thursday.

Holland said under current city codes, medical marijuana dispensaries are not allowed anywhere in Palm Springs. Yet the city has decided to let the existing shops remain in place.

"The idea of a typical moratorium is to preserve the status quo," Holland said. "There are residents in the city that rightly need the medicinal benefits of marijuana, and we don't want to make it difficult for them to get their medicine."

[palmspringsbum]

Palm Springs extends pot moratorium


Stefanie Frith
The Desert Sun
May 4, 2006

A moratorium on medical marijuana facilities will be extended for another 10 months and 15 days, allowing the city more time to craft a zoning ordinance, the City Council voted Wednesday.

The City Council voted 5-0 to extend the moratorium, which also prevents medical marijuana shops from opening.

In March, the Council voted to create a 45-day moratorium after sudden interest from pot shops created concern that the city does not have anything written in its codes about the issue.

"I think they are going to drag it out as long as they can," said Gary Silva of Sky Valley, a medical marijuana user whose home was raided in March. "They have no intentions of making it work."

The extension will allow a city-created committee more time to create an ordinance about pot shops, said City Manager David Ready before the meeting. Although under the law the city is allowed to extend moratoriums from 45 days to 10 months and 15 days, he does not expect it to take that long.

[budman]

Medical marijuana advocacy groups call for protest today

Marie McCain
The Desert Sun
June 26, 2006

<hr>

Supporters of patients who use marijuana for medicinal purposes plan a protest today outside the office of U.S. Rep. Mary Bono, officials said.

The Marijuana Anti-Prohibition Project and the American Harm Reduction Association, according to a news release issued by the groups, stated the protest will begin at 10 a.m.

The groups are “concerned that Rep. Bono will be voting against an amendment, that if passed, would help end the dichotomy between state and federal law” governing medical marijuana usage.

Since 1996, California law has allowed use of medical marijuana by approved patients. However, a ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court last year made such a practice illegal under federal law.

Locally, at least one medical marijuana dispensary has been investigated by federal authorities in relation to federal drug trafficking charges, but no arrests have been made.

A representative from the Palm Springs Republican’s office was not immediately available for comment early today.

The protest is expected to last about 30 minutes in front of Bono’s office, 707 E. Tahquitz Canyon Way.

Following the gathering, advocates plan to present the representative with a written letter asking her to meet with them and vote in favor of the proposal.

[budman]

Bono in D.C., but welcomes local constituent comments and concerns

Marie McCain
The Desert Sun
June 26, 2006

<hr>

U.S. Rep. Mary Bono is in Washington, D.C. today, a spokeswoman said.

Nevertheless, she welcomes today’s planned visits by advocates from area groups to her Palm Springs office, said Bono spokeswoman Kimberly Collins.

“She supports their right to gather,” Collins said, adding that any comments or concerns the groups have will be accepted.
The groups plan to visit the Palm Springs Republican’s office along Tahquitz Canyon Way.

At 10 a.m., advocates for patients who use marijuana for health reasons plan to protest outside Bono’s Palm Springs offices because she plans to vote against a measure advocates say would alleviate the discrepancies between federal and state law regarding medical marijuana.

Since 1996, California law has allowed use of medical marijuana by approved patients. However, a ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court last year made such a practice illegal under federal law.

“Given the Supreme Court ruling, she respects the supremacy of federal law and the Supreme Court’s recent interpretation of the federal government’s role in enforcing national drug policy,” Collins said today.

Another group, Veterans for Peace, also plans to head to Bono’s Palm Springs office today.

This group planned to place a memorial flower at the Morris Kight Tree in Palm Springs at 10 a.m. in honor of United Nations International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, which is today.

Last week, the bodies of two American soldiers, kidnapped by Iraqi insurgents, were discovered by their fellow soldiers.

Authorities said the soldiers, Pfc. Kristian Menchaca, 23, of Texas, and Pfc. Thomas L. Tucker, of Oregon, had been tortured before they were killed.

Their bodies have since been returned to this country.

The group planned the memorial as an act of “solidarity with victims of torture,” according to a news release.

[budman]

Medical marijuana supporters protest in Palm Springs

KESQ TV

Medical marijuana supporters are speaking out in Palm Springs today. Twelve members of the Marijuana Anti-Prohibition Project, also known as MAPP, held a demonstration in front of Congresswoman Mary Bono's office. The Inland Empire-based group is asking the congresswoman to vote "yes" on an amendment that would forbid the DEA from arresting medical marijuana users.

"In the past, last year when she voted against this measure last year, we sent her a letter asking her why she voted that way and she never responded," said MAPP Director Lanny Swerdlow. "18 letters were sent to her and she never responded."

The group also wants funds for research supporting marijuana treatment. Congresswoman Bono is currently in Washington, DC. No one from her office was available for comment.

[budman]

Attorney general candidate to speak to medical marijuana group


K Kaufmann
The Desert Sun
August 16, 2006

<hr>
Lynette Shaw, Libertarian Party candidate for California attorney general, will be the featured speaker at a meeting of the Marijuana Anti-Prohibition Project 3 p.m. Sept. 3 at the Cathedral City Library, 33-520 Date Palm Drive.

Shaw is the owner and manager of the Marin Alliance for Medical Marijuana, a northern California dispensary that has been in operation for nine years. She co-authored the Marin Medical Marijuana Ordinance in 1991 and was active in the campaign to pass Proposition 215, the 1996 ballot measure that legalized medical marijuana use in California.

The MAPP meeting is free and open to the public.

Information: 799-2055.

[Midnight toker]

Medical marijuana task force places draft ordinance on hold

The Desert Sun
September 21, 2006


The Palm Springs Medical Marijuana Task Force, scheduled to finalize a draft dispensary ordinance today, has moved its deadline to Oct. 6.

The task force wants to hold off sending a measure to the City Council until it knows what Riverside County plans to do with its medical marijuana ordinance.

The county Board of Supervisors is slated to vote later this month on a revised medical marijuana law that would allow some on-site use of medical marijuana for patients and employees at dispensaries.

The Marijuana Antiprohibition Project has issued a written rebuttal to Riverside County District Attorney Grover Trask's white paper, issued Wednesday, that said California's law allowing medical uses of pot violates federal law and is illegal.

The project's eight-page "green paper" says, in part, "To date, no court has declared California’s medical marijuana laws preempted by federal law ...."

<hr class=postrule>
Return to thedesertsun.com and see Friday's edition of The Desert Sun for more information.

[Midnight toker]

Marijuana's aid gets celebrated

Mandy Zatynski
The Desert Sun
October 2, 2006

<table class=posttable align=right width=200><tr><td class=postcell><img class=postimg width=200 src=bin/swerdlow_lanny.jpg></td></tr><tr><td class=postcap>Lanny Swerdlow, director of the Palm Springs based Marijuana Anti-Prohibition Project, speaks Sunday at the Cathedral City Public Library</td></tr></table>At the age of 17, Mary Jane Curtis was diagnosed with glaucoma and told that she would be blind in five years.

Now 51, the Joshua Tree resident credits her ability to see to her use of medical marijuana.

"Why can't those of us who are responsible adults have our medicine without too much trouble?" Curtis, welling with tears, asked Cathedral City Mayor Pro Tem Greg Pettis Sunday afternoon.

Pettis was speaking at the Marijuana Anti-Prohibition Project's monthly meeting in the Cathedral City Library.

He urged the audience of about 50 people to be vocal about their right to medical marijuana, especially in the wake of the Riverside County Board of Supervisors' decision last week to pursue a ban on dispensaries for the drug.

Although a county ordinance wouldn't affect cities directly, Pettis said it was important for medical marijuana advocates like Curtis to speak out to prevent further restrictions.

"Those stories are the ones elected officials need to hear," he said, emphasizing the public comment periods that are available at the start of every Cathedral City Council meeting.

"You don't want to browbeat but you need to share your stories," he said.

The Riverside County Board of Supervisors voted last week to ban dispensaries in unincorporated areas, like Bermuda Dunes and Thousand Palms. They also joined a mounting legal challenge to the state's medical marijuana laws.

"At the city level, you do have the opportunity to effect some changes. And not speaking as someone who wants to be sued, but lawsuits are a good way to get the attention of the municipalities," he said.

Elyse Del Francia-Goodwin of Rancho Mirage, who attended the meeting, said Petts was "right on target."

"It's the only way it's going to get done," she said. She stopped at the meeting on behalf of her husband, Howard, 80, who has Parkinson's disease and began using medical marijuana to treat it three months ago.

"It stops his shaking completely," she said. "No other medicine has done that."

But Alan Layton of La Quinta said he would have liked to see Pettis showing more initiative.

"He needs to take responsibility as a city councilman and do the will of the people," Layton said.

He said local officials should initiate forums and discussions on the issue, even forming liaisons with medical marijuana patients and advocates, instead of waiting for constituents to petition them.

"They need to get off of their butts and start forming advisory councils," he said.

[budman]

Apparent raid at Palm Springs marijuana dispensary

K Kaufmann and Marie McCain
The Desert Sun
October 4, 2006

<table class=posttable align=right width=240><tr><td class=postcell><img class=postimg width=240 src=bin/palm-springs-caregivers_raid-1.jpg></td></tr><tr><td class=postcap>Palm Springs Caregivers on North Palm Canyon Drive was raided by Drug Enforcement Agency agents and Palm Springs Police Department Wednesday. Here a Palm Springs Police Officer tapes up the perimeter of the location. </td></tr><tr><td class=postcell><img class=postimg width=240 src=bin/palm-springs-caregivers_raid-2.jpg></td></tr><tr><td class=postcap>Palm Springs Caregivers on North Palm Canyon Drive was raided by Drug Enforcement Agency agents and Palm Springs Police Department Wednesday. </td></tr></table>Law enforcement officials, including Palm Springs Police and agents with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration are searching the Palm Canyon Palm Springs Caregiver's medical marijuana dispensary at 333 N. Palm Canyon Drive this afternoon.

Why federal and local police are searching the dispensary was not immediately available as officials with Palm Springs police and the DEA could not be reached immediately for comment.

Eyewitnesses report police vehicles and people in DEA gear milling around the area. A search warrant was reportedly served on the facility while two people were inside. It is unknown whether those two people were patients or dispensary workers or where they were taken.

The North Palm Springs location is one of three medical marijuana dispensaries in the Coachella Valley. Proposition 215, passed by California voters in the late 1990s, legalized compassionate care use of the drug.

Recently Riverside County District Attorney Grover Trask issued a white paper opinion saying that his office deems federal law banning marijuana to override California law permitting its sale for compassionate care. Riverside County, Trask has announced, will join the counties of San Diego and San Bernardino in a lawsuit seeking a ruling on what the counties see as conflicting laws. That suit is scheduled to be heard in mid-November.

[budman]

<img src=/bin/spacer.gif width=400 height=0>

Feds raid medical marijuana dispensary
<blockquote>
As the home to three dispensaries, the valley is one of the main sites of a battle between state and federal authorities
</blockquote>


K Kaufmann and Marie McCain
The Desert Sun
October 5, 2006


<table class=posttable width=240 align=right><tr><td class=postcell><table><tr><td class=postcell><img class=postimg width=240 src=bin/palm-springs-caregivers_raid-3.jpg></td></tr><tr><td class=postcap>Tanya Garcia, a manager at Palm Springs Caregivers, speaks to an officer after the location was raided by Drug Enforcement Agency agents and Palm Springs Police Department Wednesday. </td></tr></table></td></tr><tr><td class=postcell><table><tr><td><img class=postimg width=240 src=bin/palm-springs-caregivers_raid-4.jpg></td></tr><tr><td class=postcap>Drug Enforcement Agency and Palm Springs Police raided a Palm Springs medicinal marijuana supplier on Wednesday during an ongoing investigation.</td></tr></table></td></tr><tr><td class=postcell><table><tr><td><img class=postimg width=240 src=bin/palm-springs-caregivers_raid-5.jpg></td></tr><tr><td class=postcap>Palm Springs Caregivers on North Palm Canyon Drive was raided by Drug Enforcement Agency agents and Palm Springs Police Department Wednesday.</td></tr></table></td></tr><tr><td class=postcell><table><tr><td><img class=postimg width=240 src=bin/palm-springs-caregivers_raid-6.jpg></td></tr><tr><td class=postcap>Palm Springs Caregivers on North Palm Canyon Drive was raided by Drug Enforcement Agency agents and Palm Springs Police Department Wednesday.</td></tr></table></td></table>
A medical marijuana-laced "tip" left for an employee at Palm Springs' Spa Resort Casino in September ended with a search-and-seizure raid on a Coachella Valley medical marijuana dispensary on Wednesday.

Agents from the Palm Springs Narcotics Task Force, an arm of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, served a search warrant on the Palm Springs Caregivers dispensary at 2001 N. Palm Canyon Drive.

The agents found and seized "a substantial quantity of marijuana and marijuana products," said Sarah Pullen, public information officer for the DEA. "They also seized an amount of U.S. currency."

The raid closed the dispensary and left clients temporarily without a safe source for the drug.

"The dispensary, you can count on it being there. You can't count on people on the street," said Johnny Ortiz of Desert Hot Springs, a client at Palm Springs Caregivers who had previously bought the drug from illegal street dealers.

Toting his doctor's recommendation, Ortiz said he may go to one of the Coachella Valley's other dispensaries - another in Palm Springs and one in Palm Desert - or back to the street.

Under California's medical marijuana laws, first passed in 1996, qualified patients with a doctor's recommendation may legally use the drug. The state law conflicts with a federal ban on any use, cultivation or distribution of marijuana.

Wednesday's search was triggered by an incident in September, when Joshua Aleck of Valencia - who, according to a release from the Palm Springs Police Department, "has a working relationship" with the dispensary - was at the Spa Resort and allegedly left edible items containing marijuana as a "tip" for a hotel employee.

Aleck was at the dispensary at the time of the search and may be an employee, Pullen said. He also might be the brother of the dispensary's owner, she said.

As of Wednesday afternoon, no arrests had been made, but the investigation was continuing, said Sgt. Mitch Spike of the Palm Springs Police Department, which also took part in the search.

Efforts to contact representatives of Palm Springs Caregivers on Wednesday were unsuccessful.


<span class=postbold><big>What's the status?</big></span>

The raid further clouded the air for medical marijuana users and dispensaries in the Coachella Valley.

Riverside County District Attorney Grover Trask last month issued an opinion stating that dispensaries are illegal under both federal and state law.

The county Board of Supervisors followed suit last week when it rejected an ordinance - the result of months of work between county staffers and medical marijuana advocates - to permit dispensaries in unincorporated areas such as Bermuda Dunes and Sky Valley.

The board passed a dispensary ban Tuesday.

Trask was aware of the Palm Springs investigation, said Ingrid Wyatt, a spokeswoman for Trask's office.

"We were involved in the search warrant in an advisory capacity," Wyatt said. "We're there to review the language of the search warrant and make sure everything that is going to be searched is a legal search."

Wyatt said she could not comment on whether Trask would file charges in the case until the DEA completes its investigation.

But she said the county would not target individual patients.

"We're not going to go after the suffering cancer patient; we aren't that insensitive," Wyatt said. "We're concerned about these dispensaries that disguise themselves as they're selling marijuana illegally."

Jitters about the raid and county policy temporarily closed down Palm Springs' other dispensary, the Collective Apothecary of Palm Springs and CannaHelp in Palm Desert.

CannaHelp reopened Wednesday afternoon, and owner Stacy Hochanadel said the dispensary was seeing many Palm Springs patients.

"A lot of patients were upset," Hochanadel said. "They're a little scared and hoping that we're going to be here tomorrow."

Calls to CAPS were not returned.

The impact this would have on dispensary ordinances currently under consideration in Palm Springs and Palm Desert is another concern.

The Palm Springs Medical Marijuana Task Force is scheduled to meet Friday to work on a draft law that it put on hold after publication of Trask's opinion.

Task force member Joy Meredith, who is president of Palm Springs' Main Street downtown business association, said neither the raid nor county actions should affect the city.

"It depends on how much courage the decision-makers have," she said.

[budman]

Local marijuana dispensary back open after FBI raid

By Arnell DiMaandal
NewsChannel 3
October 6, 2006

<table class=posttable align=right width=300><tr><td class=postcell><img src=bin/palm-springs-caregivers_after-raid.jpg></td></tr></table>A local medical marijuana dispensary is open again. Federal agents and local police raided the place on Wednesday.

Palm Canyon Caregivers was back in business today. They tell us a federal investigation is still ongoing. But this has nothing to with the business they're running.

"We've just been trying to do whatever we can. So we can open today at 11, which we did and we've been non-stop since then."

It's business as usual at Palm Canyon Caregivers and those who run this medical marijuana dispensary want to keep it that way. Unlike Wednesday, when federal agents and Palm Springs Police raided the place unexpectedly.

"We asked a lot of questions. We didn't get a lot of answers."

The DEA says employee Josh Aleck left marijuana edibles as a tip for one of the workers at Spa Resort and Casino.

"They didn't tell you what they were looking for? No. They said they're here to seize everything. That's it."

Authorities say what Aleck did was illegal distribution of narcotics. Caregivers manager says, Aleck doesn't work here.

"He was a relative of the owner and he is not employed here and we cannot discuss an ongoing investigation."

Wednesdays surprise raid over at Caregivers was such a concern for a lot of people that even the nearby dispensary, Capps, closed down

The people there wouldn't come on camera. But they tell us, they did it as a precaution.

Californians voted for medical marijuana in 1996 but the federal government still considers all cannabis illegal. Those who operate dispensaries say, they're going by the book, making sure everything's on the up and up.

"We operate legally and under the guidelines."

Palm Springs' medical marijuana task force met with local dispensaries and, its supporters to discuss Wednesday's incident.

Meanwhile, neither caregivers nor the DEA would comment on the on-going investigation of Josh Aleck.

[budman]

Marijuana will still be dispensed


K Kaufmann
The Desert Sun
October 7, 2006

It may be a while before Palm Springs passes a law allowing medical marijuana dispensaries, but the city's two dispensaries will continue to operate under a moratorium passed last March.

That was the outcome as more than 30 medical marijuana patients and advocates packed a conference room at Palm Springs City Hall Friday for a meeting of the city's Medical Marijuana Task Force.

The task force's work on a dispensary law is stalled following Riverside County District Attorney Grover Trask's recent white paper opinion stating that California's medical marijuana laws do not allow storefront dispensaries.

City Attorney Doug Holland called the current situation a "patchwork."

"As long as the moratorium stays in place, we will not use land use zone (laws) to do anything against the dispensaries," Holland said. "(But) a regulation cannot come forward."

That means the dispensaries aren't officially legal under city law, but will still be allowed to operate.

The moratorium, good till March 2007, bans new dispensaries from opening but grandfathers in the city's two dispensaries, Palm Springs Caregivers in North Palm Springs and the Collective Apothecary of Palm Springs at 333 Palm Canyon Drive.

Mayor Pro Tem Ginny Foat spoke of a possible compromise law that would ban dispensaries but allow individuals and small groups of patients to grow the drug as collectives or cooperatives. Patients and advocates said that would effectively cut off their access to the drug.

"It would be disastrous," said Elyse Goodwin of Rancho Mirage, who is a legal caregiver for her husband, who uses medical marijuana for Parkinson's disease. "We would have to resort to going on the street. My husband's 80 years old, and I can't imagine going out to hunt for marijuana."

Goodwin and others also challenged the validity of Trask's white paper opinion, pointing to public statements from state Attorney General Bill Lockyer that the law does allow for dispensaries.

But Holland said Lockyer has only issued memos on the issue, not an official legal opinion that would outweigh Trask's white paper.

City officials are also awaiting the outcome of a legal challenge to the state's medical marijuana law being mounted by San Diego, San Bernardino and Merced counties. The Riverside County Board of Supervisors this week voted to join the suit.

The case is set for a Nov. 16 hearing in San Diego Superior Court.

[budman]

City weighs pot-growing co-ops

<big><span class=postbold>MEDICAL MARIJUANA: The proposed ordinance offers an alternative to storefront dispensaries.</span></big>


10:00 PM PDT on Friday, October 6, 2006

By STEVE MOORE
The Press-Enterprise


PALM SPRINGS - Roger Fisher says strictly run medical-marijuana dispensaries help patients and "get rid of the criminal element."

Elyse Goodwin says the drug is the "only thing that works" for her husband's Parkinson's disease.

Jeff Matisoff implores, "Don't make us criminals again."

On Friday, about three dozen medical-marijuana advocates lobbied their cause at a meeting of the city's medical-marijuana task force.

<big><span class=postbold>Growing Cooperatives</span></big>

They are unhappy about a draft ordinance recommended by City Attorney Douglas C. Holland calling for growing-cooperatives for medical marijuana instead of storefront dispensaries.

Currently, Palm Springs has two medical-marijuana dispensaries. One was raided this week but reopened.

Holland sees fewer legal issues with co-ops.

A section of the proposed ordinance, which still needs City Council approval, reads, "It is anticipated that dispensaries in Riverside County will be the subject of close scrutiny by law-enforcement agencies at the local, state, and federal level ..."

Some in the audience complained that severely ill patients can't grow their own medical marijuana and others could be forced to rely on street dealers.

Councilwoman Ginny Foat, a task force member, supported the idea of medical-marijuana co-ops in the draft ordinance. She recommended heeding the city attorney's legal advice.

The ordinance could be amended later as court rulings clarify the dispensary issue, Holland said.

"Something is better than nothing," Foat said.

The councilwoman plans on having a state legislator ask California Attorney General Bill Lockyer for a legal opinion on medical marijuana.

<big><span class=postbold>District Attorney's Report</span></big>

Riverside County District Attorney Grover Trask issued a report recently urging a ban on the dispensaries and condemning marijuana use as a federal crime. But the district attorney said he won't prosecute sick people using marijuana in accordance with state law.

The city attorney called Trask's white paper "death on storefront dispensaries."

The Riverside County Board of Supervisors voted to prohibit dispensaries and growing-cooperatives in unincorporated areas.

Supervisor Roy Wilson voted against the majority.

He said the county should regulate dispensaries and provide safe access for patients.

Medical marijuana has been legal in California since voters passed the Compassionate Use Act in 1996.

The law allows patients with a doctor's recommendation to transport and use marijuana to treat symptoms of illnesses such as cancer and glaucoma or chronic pain.

In Palm Springs, under a co-op medical-marijuana ordinance, a permit would be required.

It would include a 10-year criminal background check for the applicant and those involved in managing and supervising the facility.

The co-ops must have a current list of all employees and all qualified patients and caregivers with access on behalf of those patients. A copy of each patient's doctor's written recommendation must also be on file.

Cooperatives must retain financial records showing they are a bona fide nonprofit entity in compliance with the Compassionate Use Act.

No cannabis shall be smoked, ingested or consumed on the premises, and only marijuana grown on the premises may be distributed.

A monthly inventory of marijuana is required, recording the total quantities distributed.

Lanny Swerdlow of the Marijuana Anti-Prohibition Project, told the audience, "You've got to get involved with your time and money because if we're going to make any progress, that's what it's going to take."

The medical-marijuana task force's next meeting is at 4 p.m. Oct. 26 at Palm Springs City Hall.

Reach Steve Moore at 760-837-4417 or stevemoore@PE.com

[palmspringsbum]

Federal agents raid Palm Springs medical marijuana dispensary




K Kaufmann
The Desert Sun
November 2, 2006

A search warrant was served around 10:45 a.m. at Palm Springs Caregivers at 2100 N. Palm Canyon Drive, and federal drug agents along with Palm Springs police are searching the business, which is a medical marijuana dispensary.

The search was triggered by suspicions that the dispensary has been operating as a storefront business selling marijuana for profit, said Special Agent Sarah Pullen, a spokeswoman for the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Under California's 10-year-old medical marijuana laws, qualified patients with a doctor's recommendation can grow and use the drug, but it cannot be sold for profit. Federal law bans any use, cultivation or sale.

Jeff Brown of Palm Springs was one of the patients arriving at the dispensary, only to find it blocked off with yellow police tape. He said he uses the dispensary because he thinks it has the better deals and selection than the two other dispensaries in the area, CannaHelp in Palm Desert and the Collective Apothecary of Palm Springs, called CAPS.

"I like to do everything legally," said Brown, who has a state-issued medical marijuana identification card. "I was buying off the street before."

DEA agents and Palm Springs police closed down and searched the dispensary a month ago after Joshua Aleck, a relative of the dispensary’s owner, allegedly left edible items laced with marijuana as a tip for an employee at The Spa Resort Casino in September.

Pullen said today's raid was triggered by information developed from the earlier raid.

[palmspringsbum]

Feds raid pot dispensary second time in a month

SALES IN QUESTION: An affidavit says the organization was selling marijuana for profit.

10:00 PM PST on Thursday, November 2, 2006

By DAVID OLSON
The Press-Enterprise

Authorities on Thursday raided a Palm Springs medical-marijuana dispensary for the second time in a month.

An affidavit supporting the search warrant that authorized the raid accused Palm Springs Caregivers of illegally selling marijuana for profit, said Special Agent Sarah Pullen, of the federal Drug Enforcement Administration, which carried out the raid with officers from the Palm Springs Narcotics Task Force. The dispensary continued its illegal sales after a raid on Oct. 4, she said.

State law allows it to provide marijuana only to those who need it for medical reasons.

No one was arrested Thursday.

Employees at the dispensary could not be reached for comment Thursday night. After the Oct. 4 raid, the dispensary's office manager, Tanya Garcia, denied the allegations of illegal sales.

Authorities hauled away hundreds of bags and pill containers that contained marijuana, along with baked goods and liquids that contained the drug, Pullen said. She said the DEA did not have the authority to shut down the dispensary in the 2100 block of North Palm Canyon Drive, but its entire inventory of marijuana was seized Thursday.

The investigation into Palm Springs Caregivers began in September, after a man who police say "has a working relationship" with the dispensary left a bag of "marijuana edibles" as a tip for an employee of the Spa Resort Casino in Palm Springs.

California voters legalized marijuana for medical use in 1996. It is one of 11 states where medical-marijuana initiatives have passed.

But the U.S. Supreme Court ruled last year that medical-marijuana users can be prosecuted under federal law.

Riverside County supervisors entered the debate over medical marijuana in September, when they voted to join a lawsuit with San Bernardino, San Diego and Merced counties challenging a 2003 state law that requires counties to issue identification cards to medical-marijuana patients who have a doctor's recommendation.

Reach David Olson at 760-837-4411 or dolson@PE.com

[palmspringsbum]

Swerdlow, an advocate of growing and selling medical marijuana in
household cooperatives, drew rebukes from audience members at last month's Palm Springs Medical Marijuana Task Force meeting when he proclaimed he wasn't sorry the dispensary had been raided.

"I want to see patients get their medicine safely and affordably," he said. "Dispensaries are not affordable. They are expensive."

Leave it to Lanny to speak the truth. Give 'em Hell Lanny.

Nov 3, 2006 11:30 am US/Pacific

Officials Raid Palm Springs Pot Dispensary, Again

(CBS) PALM SPRINGS, Calif. Drug enforcement officials executed another search warrant at Palm Springs' only medical marijuana dispensary, seizing "a large quantity" of the drug in plant and edible form.

Agents with the Palm Springs Narcotics Task Force and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Adminstration served a warrant Thursday at Palm Springs Caregivers at 2100 N. Palm Canyon Drive.

"This search warrant was the result of an investigation into the illegal sale and distribution of marijuana by PSCG," said Sgt. Mitch Spike of the Palm Springs Police Department.

"PSCG is alleged to be operating as a storefront marijuana business, selling marijuana for profit in violation of California law," Spike said.

Palm Springs Carefivers was first raided Oct. 4 shortly after Riverside County District Attorney Grover Trask declared all storefront pot sales were illegal under federal law, despite any state laws that permit the drug's sale for medicinal use.

Agents seized "a substantial amount of marijuana and products containing marijuana, (including) liquid and edible items labeled with names such as "Cronic Crunch," "Cronic Cocktails," "Pot Rockets," and "Dj's Kushbar," as well as advertisements for various marijuana products and "best sellers," Spike said.

An investigation into the dispensary was launched in September after Joshua Aleck, a relative of the dispensary's owners, allegedly left a bag of weed as a tip for a Spa Hotel Casino employee.

Palm Springs' city attorney, Doug Holland, determined after reviewing Trask's policy paper, that the city could be in legal jeopardy, if it drafted an ordinance allowing storefront sales of cannabis, even to patrons who can prove a medicinal need.

Several members of the Palm Springs Medical Marijuana Task Force had complained during a September meeting that the dispensary was strewn with electrical wires and posed a safety hazard.

Lanny Swerdlow, chairman of the Marijuana Anti-Prohibition Project, previously spoke out against what he has termed "overreaching and punitive" regulation of medical marijuana usage in Riverside County.

Swerdlow, an advocate of growing and selling medical marijuana in household cooperatives, drew rebukes from audience members at last month's Palm Springs Medical Marijuana Task Force meeting when he proclaimed he wasn't sorry the dispensary had been raided.

"I want to see patients get their medicine safely and affordably," he said. "Dispensaries are not affordable. They are expensive."

[palmspringsbum]

Medical marijuana dispensary closed


By Stella Inger
NewsChannel 3
November 3, 2006

A medical marijuana dispensary raided by federal agents remains closed tonight. Palms Springs Caregivers was shut down yesterday because officials believe it's operating as a storefront marijuana business selling marijuana for profit.

We don't know when caregivers will re-open. The last time it was raided, it took two days, but yesterday's raid has a lot of people wondering what's really going on.

Federal agents and local police served a search warrant here early Thursday. Officials say the warrant was a result of an investigation into the illegal sale and distribution of marijuana.

Some of the products they seized were edible products, with names like "Cosmic Crunch" and "Pot Rocket," types of names which not normally associated with medicinal products. It leads the DEA to believe they're operating this in violation of federal law.

"This is a Palm Springs, man."

He didn't want to be identified, but says ever since this place opened for business, his car has been broken into twice. He says he doesn't know if it's a coincidence or it's because Caregivers is attracting a less than desirable clientele.

"I'm very concerned about the people going in and out of there. I don't believe that it is for medical purposes at all. I think they found a loop hole in the system to legally push drugs."

We tried to talk to some people who came to Caregivers, but they didn't want to talk.

This is the second time Caregivers has been shut down. Last month they were closed because someone related to the owner allegedly left a bag of items laced with marijuana as a tip for an employee at the Spa Resort Casino, but Caregivers say they're not doing anything wrong.

We talked Tanya Garcia, office manager, yesterday.

"We are definitely being harassed by the DEA. We are trying to serve patients who are very ill and that's what we do here," she said.

Following yesterday's raid, officials allowed Caregivers to re-open. They chose to stay closed because they say most of their marijuana was seized during the search. No one was arrested, but this is an on-going DEA investigation.

[palmspringsbum]

Pot dispensary defies city order to close

Council voted to take action against CannaHelp last week in closed session


<table class=posttable align=right width=300><tr><td class=postcell><img class=postimg width=300 src=bin/hochanadel_stacy.jpg></td></tr><tr><td class=postcap>CannaHelp owner Stacy Hochanadel answers questions from the media after officers from Riverside County Sheriff's Department Special Investigation Bureau Major Narcotics Division served a search warrant on his medical marijuana dispensary in Palm Desert on Friday, December 1, 2006. </td></tr><tr><td class=postcell>
<img src=/bin/icon_leaf.gif> <a href=http://directories.thedesertsun.com/fe/pdf.asp?news/2006/1220cannahelp target=_blank>See the cease-and-desist order (PDF 162KB)</a>

<img src=/bin/icon_video.gif> <a href=http://www.thedesertsun.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061220/VIDEO/312200003 target=_blank>Cannahelp owner, patient keep dispensary open</a>

<img src=/bin/icon_video.gif> <a href=http://www.thedesertsun.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061220/VIDEO/312200001 target=_blank>Owner of CannaHelp speaks about raid</a>

</td></tr></table><span class=postbigbold>CannaHelp gets raided</span>



K Kaufmann
The Desert Sun
December 20, 2006

<hr class=postrule>
PALM DESERT - A Palm Desert medical marijuana dispensary is staying open despite a cease-and-desist letter the city issued on Tuesday ordering it to close.

The letter was issued to CannaHelp at 73-350 El Paseo after an undercover police officer "who did not have correct credentials to buy medical marijuana" bought some there, according to city officials and as reported Tuesday on thedesertsun.com.

Owner Stacy Hochanadel sent his employees home Tuesday, but he stayed behind with a few volunteers. Hochanadel said his attorney has advised him that it's a civil matter and that he cannot be arrested if he stays open.

"I don't think it's right what they're doing," he said.

The city's order followed a City Council vote in closed session Thursday, said City Attorney David Erwin. This is the latest action taken in the ongoing controversy over medical marijuana dispensaries in the Coachella Valley.

Thursday's vote was not reported during the council's open session, on Erwin's advice.

"I felt this was an action we needed to take, and we needed to take the action before we reported it publicly," Erwin said Tuesday.

Councilman Robert A. Spiegel said the reason for the closed-session vote was an investigation "not by our police department but by another police department" in California.

"When they were investigated, they sold marijuana to an undercover police person who did not have correct credentials to buy marijuana," he said.


The city is not releasing the staff report presented to the council in the closed session because of the potential for litigation on the closure order, City Clerk Rachelle Klassen said.
Hochanadel signed an agreement with the city earlier this year that the dispensary would sell medical marijuana only to patients with a medical marijuana identification card issued by Riverside County.

California law allows medical use of marijuana for patients with a doctor's letter of recommendation, and they are not required to have identification cards.

Federal law bans all use, cultivation or distribution of marijuana.

CannaHelp has had a business license issued by the city since it opened in October 2005. The dispensary was closed briefly earlier this month when the Special Investigation Unit of the Riverside County Sheriff's Department served a search and seizure warrant on the business.

Palm Desert Police Capt. Steve Thetford said his officers have not made "any significant arrests out of CannaHelp" in recent months, the ongoing county investigation notwithstanding.

Spiegel, who said he voted to close the dispensary, would like to see medical marijuana regulated by the federal government.

"It should be dispensed through a pharmacy," he said Tuesday. "That's what I would prefer to see happen, and hopefully someday that's the way it will be."

Hochanadel said he would have liked the city to talk with him before issuing the letter.

"I was hoping my city would stand behind me and support me. At this point they're trying to pull the carpet out from under my feet," he said.

[palmspringsbum]

Palm Desert marijuana dispensary continues operations

<img src=/bin/icon_video.gif> <a href=http://www.kesq.com/Global/story.asp?S=5842638&nav=9qrxGPin>Palm Desert medical dispensary continues operations.</a>

KESQ Channel 3 Palm Springs
December 21, 2006

A local medical marijuana dispensary may be in even more trouble now. CannaHelp in Palm Desert continues to do business, even after the city revoked their business license.

"They may well be in violation."

Palm Desert City Attorney David Irwin won't discuss what possible action may be taken against CannaHelp, after the medicinal marijuana dispensary defied the city's cease and desist order to operate.

CannaHelp allegedly sold marijuana to an undercover cop who didn't have necessary credentials. Irwin says that's a city violation.

"They would service people who had certain identification and they didn't do that."

We visited CannaHelp to talk to owner, Stacy Hochanadel, to get his side of the story. He wasn't available for comment.

Feds and local police recently raided CannaHelp, suspecting it sold marijuana for profit. We spoke with Hochanadel after the raid. He said he was, indeed, drawing a salary from CannaHelp sales.

"If you look at the Compassionate Use Act, it specifically says, you shall not sell marijuana for a profit. So I think your interview was very interesting," said Erwin.

Caregivers in Palm Springs shut down after it was raided last month. Marijuana patients say they're the ones really affected.

"People voted a law in and it's kind of a bummer."

With Caregivers now out of business and CannaHelp in hot water, Capps is the only dispensary in the Valley that has not been in trouble. We tried to talk to them about the subject, but they refused.

Meanwhile, Palm Desert's city attorney and his staff are busy figuring out their next move.

"Several alternatives. I don't know which one we will take and I'm not even free to share the alternatives with you."

[palmspringsbum]

CannaHelp still open in defiance of city order


K Kaufmann
The Desert Sun
December 20, 2006

<hr class=postrule>
A medical marijuana dispensary in Palm Desert remained open for business today, in defiance of a cease-and-desist letter it received from the city Tuesday.

It was business as usual at CannaHelp at 73-350 El Paseo, with a mix of employees and volunteers keeping the doors open, said owner Stacy Hochanadel.

"Our patients are calling and asking us what they can do to let people know they need their medicine from a reliable safe source," Hochanadel said. "They all want to show up to the next City Council meeting."

Hochanadel justified his decision to keep the dispensary open because, he said, the City Council should have held a public hearing before voting to revoke his business license last Thursday.

The vote was taken in a closed session, based on a report stating that Hochanadel sold medical marijuana to an undercover police agent who did not have appropriate paperwork.

Hochanadel has had a business license from the city since he opened the dispensary in October 2005. He signed a letter with the city earlier this year, agreeing to sell medical marijuana only to patients with a state-issued medical marijuana ID card.

City Attorney David Erwin said Tuesday he had yet to determine what action he would recommend the city take if Hochanadel continues to keep the dispensary open despite the letter.

[palmspringsbum]

City back-pedals on order telling medical pot dispensary to close


K Kaufmann
The Desert Sun
December 21, 2006

<hr class=postrule>
City officials in Palm Desert are allowing a medical marijuana dispensary on El Paseo to stay open after issuing a letter Tuesday ordering it to close immediately.

City Attorney David Erwin said the city has taken no further action to close CannaHelp, located 73-350 El Paseo. As of Wednesday afternoon, the city also had not made a decision about what it might do, he said.

The ongoing uncertainty left some dispensary customers upset and on edge.

"I'm floored that (the city) is taking this position (regarding the Tuesday letter)," said Elyse Del Francia-Goodwin of Rancho Mirage, a regular customer who buys medical marijuana for her husband, who suffers from Parkinson's disease.

"These guys were very educated in what strain is best for body aches, for headaches. I wouldn't have known," customer Del Francia-Goodwin said.

CannaHelp owner Stacy Hochanadel justified his decision to keep the dispensary open because, he said, City Council should have held a public hearing before voting last Thursday to revoke his business license.

The vote was taken in a closed session, city officials said Tuesday, based on a report stating that Hochanadel sold medical marijuana to an undercover police agent who did not have appropriate paperwork.

Palm Desert officials have declined so far to release the report, saying it could put the city at significant risk for litigation. The Desert Sun filed a public records request with the city Wednesday seeking release of the report.

Hochanadel has had a business license from the city since he opened the dispensary in October 2005. He signed a letter with the city earlier this year, agreeing to sell medical marijuana only to patients with a state-issued medical marijuana ID card.

Under the state's medical marijuana laws, counties are required to issue cards to patients with a doctor's recommendation, but having a card is optional for patients.

Federal law bans any use, cultivation or sale of marijuana, and it is the conflict between state and federal law that has fueled the local debate over dispensaries.

At the crux of the current standoff is whether CannaHelp complied with the agreement, and how closely city officials monitored it.

[palmspringsbum]

CAPS closure may leave only one dispensary in Coachella Valley


K Kaufmann
The Desert Sun
January 14, 2007


Medical marijuana users in the Coachella Valley may be facing problems getting the drug as the possible closing of a dispensary in Palm Springs is overwhelming the only other outlet in the area.

The Collective Apothecary of Palm Springs--CAPS--may have closed its doors for good on Thursday, according to area medical marijuana advocates.

The dispensary was not open for business today, with a sign on the door saying only it would be closed for the day.

The possible closure has sent a small flood of patients to CannaHelp in Palm Desert, which is struggling to keep up with patient demand, said Ryan Michaels, a medical marijuana advocate who is working at the dispensary.

The dispensary, located at 73-350 El Paseo, will be closed Monday, for one day only, Michaels said, so area advocates and patients can meet to discuss what they see as a looming crisis.

"We're trying to figure out what to do," Michaels said in a phone interview. "This is not okay. There has to be some form of safe access."

The dispensary has been registering about 20 new patients a day since Thursday, bringing its total patient load to more than 1,700, Michaels said.

CannaHelp has been facing legal and financial pressures of its own since last month when agents from the Riverside County Sheriff's Department served a search-and-seizure warrant on the business.

Felony charges arising from the raid were filed earlier this month against owner Stacy Hochanadel and two managers, John Bednar and James Campbell. The three turned themselves in at the Riverside County Jail in Indio last week and were released on bail on Thursday.

[palmspringsbum]

Possible medical marijuana shortage here in the Valley

<table class=posttable width=180 align=right><tr><td class=postcell><img class=postimg src=bin/kesq_video.jpg></td></tr><tr><td class=postcell><img src=/bin/icon_video.gif> <a href=http://www.kesq.com/global/video/popup/pop_player.asp?ClipID1=1180233&h1=Possible%20medical%20marijuana%20shortage%20here%20in%20the%20Valley&vt1=v&at1=News&d1=180200&LaunchPageAdTag=News&activePane=info&playerVersion=1&hostPageUrl=http%3A//www.kesq.com/Global/story.asp%3FS%3D5953857%26nav%3D9qrx&rnd=93232610 target=_blank>Video</a></td></tr></table>By Arnell DiMaandal
NewsChannel 3
January 18, 2007

Medical marijuana patients may soon be facing a crisis here in the Valley. That's because there might not be enough medical pot to go around.

CannaHelp volunteers say they're doing their best to service patients, even as another dispensary in Palm Springs went out of business.

"We saw an overflow of patients when Caps in Palm Springs closed Thursday of last week."

CannaHelp is now the Valley's only medical marijuana store, after Palm Springs Caregivers also went out of business in December.

CannaHelp closed Monday and Tuesday because of staffing problems and a shortage in inventory.

"The way a collective operates is by attaining or acquiring additional, or excess cannabis that the patient has cultivated and re-allocating that to other members."

Because of the crack-down on medical marijuana stores statewide, CannaHelp supporters say, patients who grow pot are now either reluctant or afraid to share their marijuana.

That's the reason there soon might not be enough medical pot to go around.

"This means they're gonna probably have to turn to criminals and the black market in order to obtain their medicine."

CannaHelp's volunteers say they're disappointed about lack of support from the community, particularly from patients themselves.

"I don't think we would see prices rise. We would see a limitation of the number of patients that were allowed to be members of a collective. It would be very restrictive to the ones who require it the most."

[palmspringsbum]

It's official: CAPS is closed for good


K Kaufmann
The Desert Sun
January 19, 2007

<hr class=postrule>
The closed sign has been on the door at the Collective Apothecary of Palm Springs since last Thursday, but now it's official.

The medical marijuana dispensary at 333 N. Palm Canyon Drive has closed permanently, said Ben Odell of Platinum Realty Management, manager for the property.

"The owner called me and said they were closing. Jan. 11," Odell said, citing federal and Riverside County efforts to close down area dispensaries as the likely cause.

The CAPS closure led to a wave of patients heading to CannaHelp in Palm Desert, the Coachella Valley's sole remaining dispensary, creating a shortage of the drug for area patients. CannaHelp is temporarily not selling any medical marijuana while it attempts to resolve legal problems of its own.

The dispensary is having an open house today, with a rally between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m.

[palmspringsbum]

January 31, 2008


Desert Stonewall Democrats to discuss medical marijuana

The Desert Sun
Katie Ruark

The Desert Stonewall Democrats will feature guest speaker Larry Swerdlow at their Feb. 9 meeting.

Swerdlow is director of the Marijuana Anti-Prohibition Project and will discuss the use of medical marijuana in the valley and its importance for HIV/AIDS patients and the LBGT community.

Also speaking are JoAnn and Rich McCabe, who are possibly facing jail time for their use of medical marijuana.

At the meeting, the club will also discuss the California Democratic Primary election results and a report from Sav R Vote.

Meetings are held the second Saturday of each month at 10 a.m. in the Desert Pride Center, 611 South Palm Canyon Drive, Suite 201.

[palmspringsbum]

High Desert Couple Finds Help from Copycatz

Posted: Feb 8, 2008 05:02 PM PST

By Rodney Wardle
News Channel 3

A High Desert couple jailed for growing and selling medical marijuana is asking for your help.

Richard and Joann McCabe need to raise the money for their defense fund and a Palm Springs nightclub wants to help.

Copycatz owner Elyse Del Francio is holding a special fundraiser to help them raise the money for their attorney's fees.

Del Francio's late husband used medical marijuana to control his Parkinson's disease.

She says she doesn't want to see the McCabe's, who've already spent three hours in jail and could end up back behind bars.

"I would think the government has much better important fish to fry than two elderly people that are looking for some relief in their life," says Del Francio.

Friends advised them to hire a lawyer who understands the law on medical marijuana.

They found one in San Francisco.

That attorney has set up a trust fund for the McCabe's, but they only have a tenth of the $15,000 fee needed for this special attorney.

"We were kinda devastated when we found out that they had a special prosecutor so we got a special attorney," says Richard McCabe.

The venue holds 148 people. At $20 a person, the event is expected to boost the McCabe's defense fund but more help is needed.

That's why they'll hold several auctions here as well.

The couple needs to raise most of the money before their next court date Feb. 28th.

They hope the singing and dancing will help.

Anything to not end up back in the big house.

"The lady I was thrown in there with just got done stabbing someone, so I don't want to go back," says Joanne.

[palmspringsbum]

Palm Springs' attorney proposes medical marijuana co-ops


10:00 PM PDT on Sunday, March 16, 2008

By JESSICA LOGAN
The Press-Enterprise

The Palm Springs city attorney said he will soon propose that the city allow medical marijuana cooperatives.

City Attorney Douglas Holland said he has studied the issue for more than 18 months and plans to bring his proposal to the City Council in coming weeks. He said cooperatives would satisfy the need of the people and the laws of the state.

"Those collectives would have to be very narrowly tailored and organized," Holland said.

If the city council approves the cooperatives, Palm Springs will become one of the only cities in Riverside County to pass an ordinance allowing medical marijuana cooperatives.

In recent years, patients with recommendations from their doctors for medical marijuana have been caught in the crosshairs between state laws that allow them to have the drug and federal laws against it.

If approved by the City Council, the cooperatives would allow people with the appropriate paperwork or their caregivers to grow a small amount of marijuana for personal use, Holland said.

The city attorney's report on the cooperatives is expected to go before the council by early April, Holland said.

Councilman Lee Weigel, who served as police chief from 1997 to 2002, said he would have to know where the cooperative would be placed, what rules would govern it and whether it would attract crime before he could vote on it.

Weigel said dispensaries in other cities have been robbed and wants to ensure similar problems would not arise with a cooperative.

"There are a lot of issues that we would have to discuss before it could be taken to a vote," Weigel said.

Several attempts to reach other members of the City Council, including the mayor, were not successful.

The growth and distribution of medical marijuana by dispensaries has been outlawed in unincorporated areas of Riverside County and in many of its cities.

Valerie Corral and her husband have run a medical marijuana cooperative in Santa Cruz for 15 years. Volunteers help grow marijuana on the cooperative's property, harvest it and turn it into usable products such as baked goods and pills, Corral said.

Patients must have a state medical marijuana card issued by the counties and are not charged for their marijuana, which is distributed once a week, Corral said.

Some people grow their own marijuana on the property and return what they can't use to the cooperative, Corral said.

"When people work together, it is medicine itself," Corral said.

Reach Jessica Logan at 951-368-9466 or at jlogan@PE.com

[palmspringsbum]

January 9, 2009

Marijuana collectives get the OK

Stefanie Frith and K Kaufmann
Palm Springs Sun

The city of Palm Springs is poised to become the first and only place in Riverside County to allow medical marijuana collectives and cooperatives.

The Palm Springs City Council voted 3-2 Wednesday to create a draft ordinance allowing medical marijuana collectives and operatives.

Councilwoman Ginny Foat and Councilman Lee Weigel voted no, saying they disagree with some of some ordinance details.

The law would:<ul class=postlist>
<li>allow only two collectives in the city's industrial areas;</li>
<li>prohibit the establishments within 1,000 feet of each other and within 500 feet of schools, churches, public playgrounds or parks, youth centers and residential areas;</li>
<li>allow collectives and cooperatives to grow medical marijuana on the premises.</li></ul>
The council will consider the new ordinance, and if approved, will take effect 30 after the vote.

The city has six dispensaries operating illegally and another was waiting for the council's vote.

Mayor Steve Pougnet said these dispensaries “took advantage of the system” and should not be grandfathered in.

City Attorney Doug Holland said the city can take action against the currently operating dispensaries.

City Manager David Ready suggested a lottery to choose which two collectives will be allowed to operate in the city.

“I am in favor of having a small number (of collectives),” Councilman Rick Hutcheson said. “It gives a great deal of security to patients because there is strength in numbers.”

Weigel said the number of collectives should be limited to less than three. Instead, he said there are seven in the city and another three waiting in the wings.

“(I am afraid) the collectives will grow like weeds (without a limit),” Weigel said. “I don't think we've got 10 coffee shops in the city.”

Palm Springs Police Chief David Dominguez said there have been two documented crimes related to the collectives in the city. He suggested that employees of collectives receive background checks by the police department and video surveillance be installed in and outside of the collective.

The law allows nonprofit collectives and cooperative “by right” in areas of the city zoned for industrial use, meaning the dispensaries only need a regular business license.

[palmspringsbum]

January 9, 2009

Palm Springs city attorney going to court to shut down pot dispensaries

The Desert Sun

With the Wednesday night vote to limit the number of medical marijuana dispensaries in the city to two, the Palm Springs City Council signaled it is done turning a blind eye to the businesses, some of which have been operating illegally for more than two years.

Wednesday’s vote only directed staff to draft the new, more restrictive ordinance, which City Attorney Doug Holland said should go back to the council in early February. But Holland said Friday he will also be going to court early next month for injunctions to shut down all dispensaries now in business in the city — estimated at seven.

“We are in the process of preparing the documents,” Holland said. “We’ve already sent out letters notifying them they are illegal operations. We are seeking orders from the court telling every one of the operations they are to cease operating.”

The suits will be filed in Riverside County Civil Court, he said.

[palmspringsbum]

January 10, 2009

Palm Springs plans to shutter existing medical marijuana collectives

<span class=postbigbold>7 dispensaries operating in Palm Springs illegally</span>

K Kaufmann
The Desert Sun

With its vote to limit the number of medical marijuana dispensaries in the city to two, the Palm Springs City Council on Wednesday signaled it is done turning a blind eye to the businesses, some of which have been operating illegally for more than two years.

The 3-2 vote only directed staff to draft the new, more restrictive ordinance, which City Attorney Doug Holland said would likely go back to the council in early February. But Holland said Friday he also will be going to court early next month for injunctions to shut down all dispensaries in business in the city — now estimated at seven.

“We are in the process of preparing the documents,” Holland said. “We've already sent out letters notifying them they are illegal operations. We are seeking orders from the court telling every one of the operations they are to cease operating.”

The suits will be filed in Riverside County Civil Court, he said.

The decision to go to court, like the two-collective limit and other restrictions in the proposed law, caught dispensary owners off guard.

Under the law, dispensaries would have to be organized as nonprofit collectives or cooperatives, as recommended in the guidelines state Attorney General Jerry Brown issued in August.

“If everybody would close down, a lot of patients would be left to go nowhere,” said Lilly Lazarin, owner of the West Valley Patients Association, located on Newhall Street in North Palm Springs.

Before going to court, she said, city officials “need to decide what they're going to do, who's going to be allowed.”

Still, Lazarin and other patient advocates gave the council credit for being the only city in Riverside County to consider allowing any dispensaries in the city.

“Palm Springs wants to go slow,” said Lanny Swerdlow, president of the Marijuana Anti-Prohibition Project, a patient advocacy group. “I can't blame them; they don't want to get their fingers burned.”

But Stacy Hochanadel, owner of CannaHelp on Industrial Place, said the two-collective limit could create unintended risks.

“That's just going to put a lot of demand on collectives for a lot of marijuana,” Hochanadel said. “That means a lot more cost of initial startup for those two collectives if we're going to do compliance with what the attorney general and the city want.”

J. David Nick, attorney for the The Holistic Cooperative on Palm Canyon Way, said any effort to limit the number of collectives in the city could be illegal.

“They cannot deny people the right to have collectives by limiting the number,” Nick said. “They have to be consistent with the Medical Marijuana Program Act.”

That law, commonly called Senate Bill 420, establishes patients' right to form collectives.

“If you're kicking people out, that's not consistent,” Nick said.

He hopes to meet with city officials to discuss the ordinance.

In the meantime, city staff are just beginning to look at how they will set up the licensing process. Officials floated the idea of a lottery at Wednesday's council meeting, but Holland said Friday that was unlikely.

“There's probably going to be some kind of process very similar to an RFQ — Request for Qualifications,” Holland said. “They would be reviewed to determine they are in full compliance with the ordinance and (state) guidelines.

“There would be a qualitative review of the operation, how it blends into the area how well it serves the needs of Palm Springs residents,” Holland said.

“I think it should be look at everyone's track record, who's done stuff for the community,” said Shawn Marley, a volunteer at Community Caregivers, dispensary on Palm Canyon Drive. “I just hope the city chooses wisely.”

<small>K Kaufmann covers can be reached at k.kaufmann@thedesertsun.com or 778-4622.</small>

<span class=postbigbold>Additional Facts</span>

<span class=postbold>The Palm Springs ordinance</span>
<ul class=postlist><li>The city would license only two nonprofit medical marijuana collectives or cooperatives that comply with the state attorney general's guidelines.</li>
<li>The collectives would be limited to areas zoned for industrial use.
Collectives could not be located within 1,000 feet of each other or within 500 feet of schools, public parks or playgrounds, youth centers, churches or residential areas.</li>
<li>Owners, employees and volunteers would be required to pass criminal background checks and register with the police.</li>
<li>Transactions would be by check or bank card only, no cash transactions.</li>

[palmspringsbum]

February 18, 2009

Medical marijuana cooperatives now legal in Palm Springs

By Stefanie Frith and K Kaufmann
The Desert Sun


Medical marijuana collectives and cooperatives will now be allowed in Palm Springs, following a vote Wednesday by City Council.

The approval means Palm Springs is the first city in Riverside County to allow these facilities.

The ordinance is expected to go into effect in 30 days following its second reading, officials said.

“This is an incredible first step,” Councilwoman Ginny Foat said.

The Palm Springs City Council voted 3-1, with Councilman Lee Weigel voting no and Mayor Pro Tem Chris Mills absent, in favor of the ordinance, which allows two collectives and/or cooperatives to operate within city limits.

This means several of the estimated seven dispensaries now operating in the city Palm Springs illegally will have to close.

City Attorney Doug Holland said the city is close to filing lawsuits against two of the existing dispensaries and is still gathering evidence against five more.

“If they are illegal, they ought to be shut down as soon as possible,” Mayor Steve Pougnet said.

[palmspringsbum]

Palm Springs City Council Approves Medical Marijuana Cooperatives and Collectives in CM, M1 and M2 Industrial Zones


Contact: Amy Blaisdell
Director of Communications
City of Palm Springs
(760) 323-8250


March 4, 2009
The Desert Sun


The Palm Springs City Council tonight approved an ordinance that amends the City's zoning code and allows for the operation of two medical marijuana collectives or cooperatives in the CM, M1 and M2 industrial zones.

The ordinance, which is in strict compliance with state guidelines put forth by California Attorney General Jerry Brown, will go into effect in 30 days, City Attorney Douglas Holland said.

All qualified applications for a collective or cooperative will be evaluated by the City Manager and the City Council. The Council will rank all qualified applications and grant regulatory permits to the two highest rated.

The City of Palm Springs will announce a date in the near future when applications will be accepted.