Pubdate: Sat, 14 Nov 2015
Source: Victoria Times-Colonist (CN BC)
Copyright: 2015 Times Colonist
Contact: http://www2.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/letters.html
Website: http://www.timescolonist.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/481
Author: Tiffany Crawford
Page: A3

NANAIMO RCMP ORDER POT SHOPS TO CLOSE

Cease-And-Desist Letters Delivered to 10 Dispensaries

The operators of several medical marijuana dispensaries in Nanaimo 
have been ordered to shut down or risk criminal charges.

Const. Gary O'Brien with the Nanaimo RCMP detachment confirmed Friday 
that the cease-and-desist letters were delivered on Thursday. He said 
Mounties have spoken with 10 dispensaries in the area.

In the letter, RCMP Sgt. Rob Christenson of the Nanaimo RCMP advises 
the shops that they "are operating illegally and are currently 
trafficking in substance (cannabis) contrary to Sec. 5(1) of the 
Controlled Drugs and Substances Act."

He writes that they are operating outside of Health Canada marijuana 
regulations, and states they may be subject to criminal prosecutions.

Asked why the RCMP decided to hand out the letters now, instead of 
when the shops opened months - in some cases years - ago, O'Brien 
would only say that the decision was part of an ongoing commitment to 
public safety.

"It is important that our position be made very clear and therefore 
we have notified the businesses in person of the ramifications should 
illegal activity be detected," he said.

However, Brandy Cavanagh, manager of the Mid-Island Health and 
Wellness Association, a dispensary that has 1,000 patients in 
Nanaimo, had a different take on why the police were issuing the notices.

She said in the past few months, several Vancouver dispensary 
"franchises" had opened in Nanaimo.

"They allow smoking on the premises, and they have sandwich boards 
and an obvious recreational type of feeling," she said.

"And I had kind of a bad feeling that it was going to ruin it for all of us."

Cavanagh said her dispensary will continue to operate as normal and 
has set up a petition asking the government to allow it to remain open.

In Vancouver, the city recently gave a green light to 11 of 176 
dispensaries that have applied for licences.

The remaining pot shops did not meet requirements for minimum 
distances from schools, recreation centres and other dispensaries.

O'Brien would not say whether the move was part of a larger 
provincial plan to crack down on illegal dispensaries and compassion clubs.

Vancouver's approach to dealing with dispensaries matches that of 
Seattle, which also licensed illegal pot shops before Washington 
state residents voted to legalize marijuana in 2012.

Faced with an explosion in marijuana-related businesses, Victoria 
council in May directed staff to develop new regulations for the 
shops, patterning their approach after Vancouver.

Other cities have taken measures similar to those in Nanaimo. 
Authorities in Abbotsford and Surrey, for example, say they have 
taken measures to close dispensaries operating illegally.

The federal Liberal government has pledged to make marijuana legal in 
Canada. However, the laws have not yet been changed, and marijuana is 
still considered a controlled substance under the Controlled Drugs 
and Substances Act.

Only companies licensed by Health Canada can produce and sell medical 
marijuana and cannabis oil. In B.C., there are only six licensed 
producers of medical pot.

- - with files from Kelly Sinoski, Vancouver Sun, and the Times Colonist
- ---
MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom