Pubdate: Sun, 04 May 2008 Source: Desert Sun, The (Palm Springs, CA) Copyright: 2008 The Desert Sun Contact: http://local2.thedesertsun.com/mailer/opinionwrap.php Website: http://www.thedesertsun.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1112 Note: Does not accept LTEs from outside circulation area. Author: Amy Blaisdell, City News Service Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?115 (Cannabis - California) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal) COUNTY PLANS TO APPEAL MEDICAL MARIJUANA RULING Riverside County prosecutors will announce plans tomorrow to appeal a ruling to quash a search warrant used to get evidence for criminal charges against the operators medical marijuana outlet in Palm Desert. CannaHelp owner Stacy Hochanadel and his managers, James Campbell and John Bednar, all 31, were arrested in December 2006 and charged with felony possession of marijuana for sale, transport and sale of marijuana and keeping a place to sell controlled substances. Marijuana and financial records were seized at CannaHelp, 73359 El Paseo, in December 2006 during a raid by the Riverside County Sheriff's Department. With the primary evidence thrown out, prosecutors will announce their intention to file an appeal of the ruling by Riverside County Superior Court Judge David B. Downing during a trial readiness conference Monday, Deputy District Attorney Richard Cookson said. After his April 4 ruling, Downey said he looked at the facts carefully and concluded the three defendants were in compliance with the state's Compassionate Use Act and were operating a "legitimate business." Downing concluded the affidavit in support of the search warrant was flawed because Robert Garcia, the sheriff's investigator who prepared it -- although familiar with drug cases -- was not adequately trained in handling medical marijuana cases. Downing also noted that police see people selling drugs every day, but rarely prosecute medical marijuana sellers. He said Garcia wrongly asserted that the dispensary made profits of $1.6 milliont. Under cross-examination, he admitted that most of the money was used to buy more pot or to cover expenses. If the ruling stands, the case likely will be dismissed for a lack of evidence. "I expect it will be a lengthy process," Cookson said Thursday about his office's planned appeal with the 4th District Court of Appeals in Riverside. Bednar's attorney Phillip La Rocca said Friday that the three co- defendants plan to fight the case all the way to the California Supreme Court if necessary and that it was a situation "best laid to rest" by the district attorney's office. "It's a shame they're filing this (the appeal)." La Rocca said. "It's clearly a case in our favor and all they're going to do is set a precedent statewide against all law enforcement trying to deal with medical marijuana issues." La Rocca said the appeal process would be "lengthy and expensive" for the three men and could take up to two years. The defendants contend they were running a legal medical marijuana dispensary under Proposition 215 and Senate Bill 420. Under California law, marijuana can be sold on a not-for-profit basis to patients with a doctor's prescription, although it is illegal for any purpose under federal law. During a preliminary hearing in December to determine if there was enough evidence to order the three defendants to stand trial, Garcia testified that an undercover officer twice purchased medical marijuana on the premises for what he said was a back problem. However, he also said CannaHelp tried to comply with the law and that the dispensary refused to sell to the first undercover officer who tried to purchase marijuana because the employees could not verify his doctor's prescription. Garcia also conceded that the defendants never tried to hide their business from law enforcement and it would be unfair to compare them to street-level drug dealers. The three defendants have been free on their own recognizance on the condition they do not possess marijuana in excess of what state law allows. All three men are medical marijuana cardholders with prescriptions for the drug. They also cannot sell the drug or provide it to patients in a care-giving capacity. If convicted, the three men could face as much as two years in prison, according to prosecutors. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom