Pubdate: Fri, 03 Aug 2012 Source: Press-Enterprise (Riverside, CA) Copyright: 2012 The Press-Enterprise Company Contact: http://www.pe.com/localnews/opinion/letters_form.html Website: http://www.pe.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/830 Authors: Darrell R. Santschi And Richard Deatley COURT RULES COUNTY CAN'T TARGET POT DISPENSARIES In yet another twist in the tangle of conflicting court decisions over California's medical marijuana laws, a judge ruled Friday, Aug. 3 that Riverside County's ban on medical marijuana clinics cannot be enforced in the county's unincorporated areas. Attorneys and advocates for the 21 dispensaries represented in the lawsuit hailed the ruling by Riverside County Superior Court Judge Ronald L. Taylor. Attorneys for the county said it was a "surprising and unusual decision" that would certainly be appealed. An attorney for dispensaries said the judge came down in favor of their arguments -- that local governments' health and safety regulations cannot conflict with state laws permitting medical marijuana storefronts. "When they impose a total ban on medical marijuana dispensaries, that does not agree with the state constitution," said attorney James De Aguilera, who represented the storefronts during a morning hearing before Taylor. Until the California Supreme Court rules on several medical marijuana cases before it, "what the judge ruled today is going to be the law in Riverside County," De Aguilera said. Taylor ruled that state law allows marijuana dispensaries -- and also shields them from local nuisance ordinances. Attorneys for the county said it opened the doors for storefronts. "This court decision gives a green light for pot dispensaries in unlimited numbers to operate anywhere and everywhere in unincorporated areas of the County of Riverside," said Jeffrey V. Dunn, an attorney with Best Best & Krieger, representing Riverside County. "That's a nightmare scenario and an unacceptable risk and danger to public safety." Patti F. Smith, a deputy county counsel, said the county would continue to look at all legal options to close the dispensaries, in light of the judge's decision. She said Taylor's ruling does not end the case. While there were 21 dispensaries named in the suit, only about 12 will actually be protected by Friday's ruling, she said. "There's a lot of options available," Smith said. "These businesses cannot show that they are legal under state law, and we know they are banned under our local ordinances. Not one of the dispensaries has shown they are legal under state law." Smith did not disclose what the options are, but local governments in the past 15 months have partnered with the federal government to take civil action against landlords of buildings that house dispensaries. Landlords typically get notices that marijuana is an illegal drug under federal law, and their property could face forfeiture proceedings for housing a dispensary. Like many attorneys who oppose the storefronts, Dunn and Smith both advocate that there is actually nothing in either the state's 1996 Compassionate Use Act (Prop. 215) or the state Legislature's Medical Marijuana Program that allows for dispensaries. Riverside County Supervisor Jeff Stone said the judge made an ill-advised decision that will be appealed. He also cited marijuana's illegality under federal law. Stone, a pharmacist, said if he sold medical marijuana, the federal Drug Enforcement Administration would shut him down within 24 hours. The same standards, he said, should apply to dispensaries. Taylor's ruling on the 21 dispensaries disagrees with a decision by another Riverside County judge made less than a month earlier that upheld the county's ban, but on a different group of dispensaries. Judge John Vineyard said in his case that dispensaries needed to prove they were operating legally; Taylor on Friday turned aside that argument. It also came during a window of opportunity for dispensary advocates. State appellate courts have been issuing published opinions back and forth that either uphold or deny local governments banning medical marijuana dispensaries. One issued last year by the Fourth District Court of Appeal division based in Riverside upheld bans; a later one from a different court overruled bans. Both have since been vacated as the California Supreme Court considers them. But in the roulette wheel of the latest published opinion on the matter, a Los Angeles-based appellate court said local governments could not ban the dispensaries. It was issued in early July and is months away from possibly being vacated by the Supreme Court. That made it a ruling that could be cited statewide on Friday, when Taylor made his decision. De Aguilera said Taylor's decision Friday was "pretty big, but it is consistent with the victories we have been winning lately." More than 225 cities and counties are estimated to have instituted bans of medical marijuana clinics, according to the Coaltion for A Drug Free California, which opposes them. Paul Chabot of the coalition said one thing he and dispensary advocates agree on is the need for settled law on the matter. "We really want a firm decision," he said. "We just need this to end one way or the other." - --- MAP posted-by: Matt