A man who sought to open Napa's first legal medical marijuana dispensary in 2011 was one of two men arrested last week on suspicion of growing and selling marijuana, according to the Napa Special Investigations Bureau. The clinic applicant, Mark Hammond, 50, of Napa, and Ryan Maeda, 29, were booked Jan. 12 into the Napa County jail in connection with growing marijuana for sale on an estate in the 2100 block of Soda Canyon Road, NSIB Lt. Leroy Anderson said. [continues 330 words]
Possession of a small amount of marijuana may still not be legal without a medical marijuana card, but a new state law makes the offense no more serious than a traffic ticket. Until this month, someone with an ounce or less of marijuana could be cited for a misdemeanor. Under the new law, which took effect Jan. 1, citations are an infraction, similar to a traffic ticket. The penalty remains the same -- $100. Both Napa County Sheriff's Capt. Tracey Stuart and Napa Police Capt. Steve Potter said they do not expect the new law to alter law enforcement operates. [continues 486 words]
About 35,670 marijuana plants with a street value of $1 million have been eradicated during a three-day countywide operation that ended Thursday, according to the Napa Special Investigations Bureau. Agents removed the plants from state, federal and private properties including remote locations in Snell Valley, Cedar Roughs near Pope Creek, Mt. Veeder Road and Robert Louis Stevenson State Park, said Gary Pitkin, Napa Special Investigations Bureau's commander. None of the private property owners are suspects, Pitkin stressed. Officers with the Campaign Against Marijuana Planting, a statewide multi-agency task force, and the Napa Special Investigations Bureau, joined forces for the operation, according to the bureau. [continues 85 words]
One of the potential candidates for a City Council seat in American Canyon has tried to operate medical marijuana dispensaries in her hometown, Napa and elsewhere. Kimberly Pelham, who runs Going Green in Corte Madera, a medical pot clinic, recently filed a candidate intention statement, the first step toward council candidacy. As of Tuesday, three others had filed initial candidate statements for the Nov. 2 election: Belia-Eugenia Ramos Bennett, a former representative for Rep. Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena; Don Callison, a council member since 2006, and Mark Joseph, the former city manager who resigned under pressure in December 2005 for reasons he said were political. [continues 376 words]
The American Canyon City Council approved a temporary moratorium on medical marijuana dispensaries after city staff reported someone wants to open a store in town. Federal and state law conflict on the issue. Federal law prohibits possession of marijuana. However, California leaves the rules regulating medical marijuana dispensaries to local jurisdictions. The City Council voted unanimously for the 45-day moratorium Tuesday after city staff said the city's general plan does not address medical marijuana dispensaries. The moratorium is effective immediately. [continues 303 words]
Should the sale of medical marijuana be banned in Colfax? The difficulty in interpreting the state and federal laws dealing with the sale of medical marijuana led city staff to discuss a possible ban at a staff retreat Oct. 13, said Colfax City Manager Bob Perrault. "There was no consensus," Perrault said Monday. "(But) it is an issue that I think needs to be discussed." No date was set for that discussion. Selling medical marijuana became legal in 1996 under California Proposition 215. In June, however, the U.S. Supreme Court decided that federal authorities can prosecute patients who use medical marijuana in California. That decision led to Colfax city officials discussing whether to follow the state or federal law. "We feel like we're kind of left in this land in between," Perrault said. Golden State Patient Care, the county's sole medical marijuana collective, opened last year off Highway 174 in Colfax. [end]
