Pubdate: Sat, 22 Aug 2009
Source: Hi-Desert Star (Yucca Valley, CA)
Copyright: 2009 Hi Desert Star
Contact:  http://www.hidesertstar.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3921
Author: Rebecca Unger
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?115 (Cannabis - California)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal)
Bookmark: http://mapinc.org/topic/dispensaries

YUCCA POISED TO BAN MARIJUANA DISPENSARIES

YUCCA VALLEY - The fate of medical marijuana  availability in Yucca 
Valley could be decided at  Tuesday night's planning commission meeting.

The Town's moratorium on new dispensaries could be  replaced by a 
development-code amendment prohibiting  the establishment of a new 
business and the use of an  existing business to distribute or sell marijuana.

The Town houses the only medical marijuana outlet in  San Bernardino 
County. California Alternative Medicinal  Solutions, a nonprofit 
health collective that furnishes  medical marijuana under state 
guidelines, received a  business permit and has been operating 
lawfully for  about a year at the Monterey Business Center. Except 
for complaints that dispensaries breed crime, CAMS'  operations have 
been incident-free.

Marijuana has been legal for medical use in California  since 1996, 
and an ID card system identifying users as  medically directed was 
established shortly thereafter.  San Bernardino County has been 
fighting in court  against issuing ID cards until this year, when the 
U.S.  Supreme Court refused to hear the county's appeal.

This month the county began taking applications from  medicinal-use 
patients who wish to get official  identification cards. Applicants 
must appear in person  at the county's San Bernardino offices, 
furnish a  doctor's recommendation, picture ID and completed 
forms  and pay a fee before the state will issue the card.

But unless they have green thumbs, the county's legal  users might 
have a difficult time getting the drug. On  Aug. 4, the Board of 
Supervisors extended an ordinance  that could prohibit the 
establishment of medicinal  dispensaries in unincorporated areas 
until June 2010.

Legal patients are allowed to grow a limited amount of  marijuana 
plants for personal medicinal use.

At Wednesday's meeting of the Hi-Desert Marijuana  Anti-Prohibition 
Project at the Castle Inn in Landers,  long-haired hippies and 
gray-haired grandparents vowed  to have their legal rights respected.

"The law is on our side," Hi-Desert MAPP chairman Rich  McCabe told 
the assembly.

"They can't ban us," agreed his wife, JoAnn. "They used  to use the 
feds against us, but not now!"

One of the attendees was a little more cynical. "If  they prohibit 
dispensaries, where should we get the  marijuana from - the Mexican 
drug cartels?"
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom