Pubdate: Sun, 26 Feb 2012
Source: Gazette, The (Colorado Springs, CO)
Copyright: 2012 The Gazette
Contact: http://www.gazette.com/sections/opinion/submitletter/
Website: http://www.gazette.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/165
Author: Maria St.Louis-Sanchez, The Gazette

MARIJUANA SHOP SHUTTERS TO AVOID FIGHT WITH FEDS

Behind two locked doors Sunday evening, employees at the Indispensary, 
a medical marijuana dispensary on East Bijou Street, were frantically 
working to close up shop.

After receiving a federal mandate in early January to close by Monday
or risk seizure and criminal prosecution, owners of the business
decided to shut down on Sunday.

They closed their shop to the public early and scurried behind scenes
to pack up the remaining marijuana inventory and leave by 7 p.m. - the
closing time dictated by state law.

"The federal government has made it quite clear that they would see
having any marijuana as possession," said Judy Negley, one of four
business owners of the store. "I don't want to give them any reason to
show up."

The Indispensary, 123 E. Bijou St., is tucked into the back of an
Independent Records and Video store and only accessible by ringing a
doorbell for entrance through locked door. The store is kitty-corner
to Palmer High School, 910 feet away to be exact, and was one of 23
dispensaries in Colorado targeted by the federal government because of
its proximity to the school. Colorado Springs statutes state that
dispensaries have to be 400 feet away from schools.

On a normal day, employees estimate the Indispensary would house 54
different kinds of marijuana with jars stacked on top of each other on
back shelves and the display case. The refrigerator was stocked full
of treats like marijuana-infused brownies, lemon bars and even salsa.

On Sunday, three water bottles were all that was left in the
refrigerator. On the store shelves were a couple of bottles of
marijuana-free herbal supplements and empty jars with labels like
"purple kush" and "Island Sweet Skunk."

"We're saving them," Negley said of the jars. "Whatever dollar we can
save, we will. They can't come after us for empty jars."

From the back room, she pulled out an 11 by 17-inch box loaded down
with small jars, sandwich bags of marijuana and packages of
cannabis-infused teas and coffees.

"This is it," Negley said, placing the box on top of the empty display
case. "This is all that's left."

She said the store was able to transfer some of the cannabis over to
the other two dispensaries owned by the business. But, like many
stores going out of business, the Indispensary liquidated most of its
stock in a huge sale where the marijuana was discounted by about 50
percent.

"Too bad there's a law that says I can't sell below cost," Negley
said. "Or I would have given it away to the patients who really needed
it."

She said the box from the back room was headed for the Medical
Marijuana Enforcement Division, where state law dictates it be destroyed.

"We want it all out so no one says we aren't complying," she said.
"The last thing the record store needs is DEA agents sticking their
guns into employee's faces."

She hopes the Indispensary will soon be able to open a new downtown
location. Before it can move though, it first needs a license issued
by the state. Negley said the business applied for the license a year
and a half ago. Now she's in the awkward position of trying to get a
license for a business that is technically closed.

"This hasn't been addressed, so it's not part of the rules," she said.
"There are a million different ways it could work out."

For now, the business is referring customers to the other locations on
West Colorado and East Platte avenues.

Employee Brian Balliett will move to the Colorado Avenue store. On
Sunday evening, he looked over the empty shelves.

"It's heartbreaking," he said. "All of the work we've put into this
place, and now it's all gone."
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MAP posted-by: Richard R Smith Jr.