Pubdate: Thu, 2 Apr 2009
Source: Bay Area Reporter (San Francisco, CA)
Copyright: 2009 The Bay Area Reporter
Contact:  http://www.ebar.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/41
Author: Liz Highleyman
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Marijuana - Medicinal)

ADVOCATES CHARGE SF POT RAID DEFIES OBAMA POLICY CHANGE

Federal Drug Enforcement Administration agents raided another local 
medical cannabis dispensary in San Francisco last week, just days 
after U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder signaled that the Obama 
administration would not target patients and providers in the 13 
states with medical marijuana laws.

"We have a national directive from President Obama that policy has 
changed," said Shona Gochenauer, executive director of the patient 
advocacy group Axis of Love and chairperson of the Harvey Milk LGBT 
Democratic Club's Cannabis Caucus. "The raid is a slap in the face to 
President Obama because they know he's a reformist who is going to 
take steps toward sensible drug policy."

During the late afternoon raid March 25, DEA agents entered Emmalyn's 
California Cannabis Clinic, located in the South of Market 
neighborhood at 1597 Howard Street, where they removed bins of 
marijuana plants, growing equipment, cash, and computers. The clinic 
was open for business at the time, and witnesses said some disabled 
patrons had to be helped to the floor.

The San Francisco Police Department and state law enforcement 
officials did not participate in the raid, and SFPD spokeswoman 
Sergeant Lyn Tomioka confirmed that local police were not notified in advance.

At the time of the raid, Emmalyn's was operating under a provisional 
permit while it took final steps to meet requirements for licensing 
by the San Francisco Department of Public Heath, as outlined in state 
law and city regulations.

No one was arrested during the action, and Emmalyn's has since 
reopened for business. The reason for the raid remains unclear, since 
no charges have been publicly issued and affidavits were still under 
court seal at press time.

"Based on our investigation, we believe there are not only violations 
of federal law, but of state law as well," DEA Special Agent Anthony 
Williams said in a prepared statement. "The investigation is 
currently ongoing."

Contrary to speculation suggesting state tax irregularities, Alan 
LoFaso, chief deputy to State Board of Equalization chairwoman Betty 
Yee, told advocates that the board has no outstanding tax complaints 
related to Emmalyn's and had "no involvement whatsoever" in the raid. 
Yee's office indicated that even if there were tax allegations, the 
BOE would not involve the DEA.

Added former San Francisco District Attorney Terence Hallinan, who is 
representing Emmalyn's, "There is no evidence that I'm aware of that 
my client is in violation of state or local law or is errant in 
paying sales tax to the state."

"Any violations of California's medical marijuana law should be the 
purview of local and state officials," said Kim Hermes with Americans 
for Safe Access.  "Medical marijuana patients and providers deserve a 
chance to defend themselves under state and local law, which is not 
possible once the federal government gets involved."

Advocates Spring into Action

Within minutes of last week's raid, word spread throughout the 
advocacy community via text messages and e-mail, and people soon 
began to gather outside the building. Activists organized a noon 
rally the following day at the San Francisco Federal Building, which 
ended with a march to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's (D-San Francisco) office.

"We wanted to focus on getting in contact with our political allies 
as soon as possible rather than just standing outside with signs," 
Gochenauer told the Bay Area Reporter .

On Monday, Gochenauer, Emmalyn's proprietor John Baumgartner, and 
members of the Patient Advocacy Network met with Pelosi's deputy 
director, Melanie Nutter, to discuss the raid and present a list of 
demands, including a federal injunction against any further 
"investigations, raids, arrests, seizures, or prosecutions" until a 
new DEA administrator is in place and new policies are formalized.

Advocates also remain concerned about the fate of individuals 
currently facing federal charges for providing medical cannabis, and 
demanded that charges be dropped if defendants already convicted 
under federal law are found to be in compliance with state regulations.

Advocates are particularly incensed that DEA appears to be unaware of 
- -- or deliberately ignoring -- Holder's recent statements signaling a 
departure from the policies of the Bush and Clinton eras.

At a February 25 news conference, the newly appointed attorney 
general confirmed Obama's campaign promise that he would not be 
"using Justice Department resources to try to circumvent state laws 
on this issue." On March 18, Holder went further, telling reporters 
that the new policy is "to go after those people who violate both 
federal and state law."

"Wednesday's DEA raid was a clear step backward," said state 
Assemblyman Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco), who recently introduced a 
bill to legalize and tax marijuana. "With the increasing violence 
along the Mexican border, the DEA should be focusing their efforts on 
fighting these dangerous cartels rather than sick people seeking 
compassionate care."

Last week, Ammiano's bill was moved to a two-year calendar, however, 
meaning that hearings won't take place on his proposal this year. 
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake