Pubdate: Thu, 27 Dec 2001
Source: Berkeley Daily Planet (US CA)
Copyright: 2002 The Berkeley Daily Planet
Website: http://www.berkeleydailyplanet.com/
Address: 2076 University Ave, Berkeley 94704
Contact:  (510) 841-5695
Author: Hank Sims, Daily Planet staff
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?115 (Cannabis - California)

CITY SCRUTINIZING TWICE-ROBBED MARIJUANA CLUB

City officials are keeping a close eye on a local medical marijuana club 
that has been robbed at gunpoint twice during the last two months.

The most recent incident occurred Dec. 13, at about 6 p.m., when armed 
robbers allegedly entered Berkeley Medical Herbs located at 1672 University 
Ave. and stole an undisclosed amount of marijuana and cash.

A friend of club owner Ken Estes told police that the robbers carried 
automatic, Uzi-like weapons.

Just two months earlier, the club was robbed at about the same time of day. 
In that incident, the robbers made off with a significant amount of cash 
and marijuana and escaped in a car owned by one of the club's employees.

The Berkeley Police Department said it would not release additional 
information on the latest robbery while the investigation is pending.

Meanwhile, Councilmember Linda Maio, representatives of the Berkeley Police 
Department and staff from the city manager's office have met with Estes, 
and have been attempting to formulate a response if problems at the 
beleaguered club continue.

Arrietta Chakos, the city manager's chief of staff, said in response to a 
City Council request, her office is watching the club and preparing a 
report on security at all the medical marijuana clubs in Berkeley.

"We want to make sure that we keep an eye on this," she said. "Our main 
concern is to maintain public safety."

Maio said her office has been spearheading attempts to place safety 
concerns about the club closer to the top of the city's agenda. "This being 
the second time this has happened, we have to get a lot serious a lot 
faster," she said.

Maio said she had held a neighborhood meeting on crime in her district 
shortly after the first robbery occurred. The meeting had been scheduled 
many months in advance of the robbery and was meant to address home 
burglaries and street stick-ups, but she found that many of the people who 
attended were very concerned about the robbery at the club.

"This is clearly not what we desire at all," she said. "It's unhealthy for 
everyone. It's not good for the neighborhood, and it's not good for the 
people that go there."

While the club is not technically in Maio's district - it's in 
Councilmember Dona Spring's jurisdiction - it does lie directly across 
University Avenue from it.

Maio said that she had gone by the club after the community meeting to see 
what was happening there. At one point she said she saw several 
"young-looking" people hanging around outside and on another occasion she 
saw a couple of large men with baggy jackets standing in front of the club 
facing University Avenue. She surmised that these men were part of the 
security operations put in place after the first robbery.

Dorrit Geshuri, executive director of the Alliance of Berkeley Patients, 
defended Berkeley Medical Herbs and Estes last week, and said that the city 
bears some responsibility for the latest robbery there.

According to Geshuri, the BPD had told the club to remove the "security" in 
front of the club on the day before most recent robbery.

"If they had asked the club to remove security, they should have increased 
the police presence in that neighborhood," she said.

BPD Chief Dash Butler said last week that the department had suggested that 
the club hire a professional security service, rather than the apparently 
ad-hoc duo the club had employed.

Geshuri said, though, that in the wake of the most recent robbery, Estes 
has planned to take additional steps to deter criminals. He will install a 
metal gate on the front door, so that people who wish to enter will have to 
be buzzed in, she said.

He also told Geshun that he will install closed-circuit security cameras 
throughout the building and around its perimeter, and will change the 
business hours of operation so that it is only open when it is light outside.

"We felt like this club has had a lot of problems, but we feel like it is 
addressable," she said. "What we're focusing on is making sure this doesn't 
happen again."

Maio said that if problems at the club continue, the city could consider 
taking the matter before the Zoning Adjustments Board, which could declare 
it a public nuisance.

"There's a certain amount of reluctance to go in that direction, because 
the BPD is looking at more of a law enforcement issue," she said.

But the problem facing the city, said Maio, is how to take action against a 
problematic club without unfairly penalizing other clubs.

"My aim is to enable people who need medical marijuana to get it, but not 
to take advantage of our compassion," she said. "This is the only club 
we're having problems with right now."
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MAP posted-by: Terry Liittschwager