In Berkeley, efforts to expand the city's medical cannabis industry have been slowed as contention between state and federal marijuana policies causes confusion among business owners, local governments, legal experts and patients alike. Berkeley has already begun to see the effect of federal lawmakers butting heads with officials in states where medical cannabis has been legal for years. The debate boils down to disagreement between those who advocate state's rights in medical cannabis regulation and federal entities reluctant to leave the management of any kind of drug - illicit or medical - up to differing interpretations between regions. [continues 637 words]
One of Berkeley's medical cannabis collectives has closed and another is at risk of being shut down following concerns that the businesses were illegally operating as dispensaries rather than collectives. On Dec. 8, the city's code enforcement supervisor Gregory Daniel sent letters to the Perfect Plants Patient's Group and 40 Acres Medical Marijuana Growers Collective -- two of the city's several collectives - -- notifying them that they were in violation of the Berkeley municipal code because they were operating in a non-residential zoning district. [continues 322 words]
Medical cannabis is viewed as both a burgeoning industry and a cause of judicial contention for many people in California and across the country. In Berkeley, federal intervention is beginning to affect the city's small -- but growing -- medical cannabis industry. In recent months, the U.S. Department of Justice has cracked down on medical marijuana in California, saying that many of the dispensaries and cultivators operating within the state's legal guidelines are actually violating federal law. According to a Feb. 8 letter sent to Representative Nancy Pelosi from California NORML Director Dale Gieringer, the U.S. Attorney sent a letter to the Berkeley Patients Group -- a local dispensary that has been operating in the city since 2000 -- indicating that Berkeley may now need to contend with federal medical cannabis. [continues 362 words]
