Pubdate: Wed, 30 Jun 2010
Source: Record, The (Stockton, CA)
Copyright: 2010 The Record
Contact: http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?Category=A_OPINION05
Website: http://www.recordnet.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/428
Author: Daniel Thigpen

DECISION ON POT SHOPS DELAYED

But Stockton Wins Bid To Close Medical Marijuana Dispensary

STOCKTON - City leaders put off a decision late Tuesday to regulate 
medical marijuana dispensaries while forcing another to close its 
doors the same day.

Up to three medical marijuana dispensaries would be allowed to do 
business in Stockton under regulations considered by the City Council 
during a long public hearing in which some 20 lawyers and medical 
marijuana supporters spoke.

"I want to as much as possible get this right," Vice Mayor Kathy 
Miller said, noting that several speakers brought up valid legal 
points that need addressing.

Earlier Tuesday, the city won its bid to force a central Stockton 
marijuana dispensary to suspend its operations and pay $40,000 in 
fines. The city claimed Pathways Family Health Cooperative Counseling 
on East Acacia Street was a scofflaw business when it opened last 
fall before the city had figured out how to regulate such operations.

The fall opening of Pathways prompted city leaders to revive the 
issue of dispensary rules, which they discussed years ago but dropped.

The proposed regulations would:

- - Initially cap the number of pot dispensaries that can operate in 
Stockton at three, with a future limit of one per 100,000 residents 
as the city grows.

- - Require dispensaries to obtain a $30,000 operator's permit in 
addition to other application fees.

- - Restrict dispensaries to operating at least 300 feet from homes or 
religious institutions; 500 feet from transitional housing 
facilities; and 1,000 feet from schools, libraries, parks and other 
dispensaries.

- - Impose other rules on security, lighting, operations and workers.

Lawyers and advocates, both local and from the Bay Area, filled the 
council chambers Tuesday. Some praised the city for its efforts and 
asked for minor changes to the proposed rules, while others 
criticized the regulations as too restrictive or as giving the Police 
Department too much oversight.

Hours before the City Council meeting, a San Joaquin County Superior 
Court judge ordered Pathways to close and to pay $40,000 in fines for 
violating an earlier order to suspend operations.

Earlier this year, the city won a preliminary injunction against the 
dispensary. Pathways appealed and reopened, arguing it should be 
allowed to stay open pending its appeal.

But at a contempt hearing Tuesday, Judge Lesley Holland denied the 
dispensary's bid. "This is really a refusal to comply with the order," he said.

After the ruling, Pathways director Lynn Smith said he closed shop 
immediately. He decried the judgment and said he was evaluating the 
store's next legal step.

"It's a shame the city's going to abandon the need of patients that 
use medicinal marijuana until they get their ordinance in place and 
get another cooperative open that can fill that need," he said. "It's 
always been about the patient, and it's still about the patient."

Attorneys arguing for the city Tuesday said that if Pathways applied 
for a permit to operate its dispensary under the city's new 
ordinance, it likely would not be allowed at the shop's current 
location, near a day care facility.
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MAP posted-by: Keith Brilhart