Pubdate: Wed, 23 Feb 2011 Source: Chico Enterprise-Record (CA) Copyright: 2011 Chico Enterprise-Record Contact: http://www.chicoer.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/861 Note: Letters from newspaper's circulation area receive publishing priority Author: Roger H. Aylworth, Staff Writer Cited: Board of Supervisors http://buttecounty.net/Board%20of%20Supervisors.aspx Bookmark: http://www.drugsense.org/cms/geoview/n-us-ca (California) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?253 (Cannabis - Medicinal - U.S.) BUTTE SUPERVISORS SEND MARIJUANA ORDINANCE BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD OROVILLE -- After five hours of passionate, often accusatory and sometimes threatening public testimony, the Butte County Board of Supervisors decided to send a proposed marijuana cultivation ordinance back to the drawing board. The proposed ordinance would have put limits on how many medicinal marijuana plants could be grown, based on the acreage of a lot, and how far they had to be from property lines. It also established fees and procedures to ensure each plant is registered and the grow approved. Before the hearing, hundreds of people - mostly strongly opposed to the ordinance - filled all the seats in the 190-capacity supervisors chamber, filled the aisles and stood against the back wall up to five deep. Oroville city Fire Marshal Dean Hill ordered most of those standing to leave the room because of fire restrictions, and even required some of those in the lobby to exit. Many speakers charged that the ordinance was an effort to end legal medicinal marijuana gardens within the county, a claim both County Attorney Bruce Alpert and District Attorney Mike Ramsey denied as they outlined the proposal. Ramsey and Sheriff Jerry Smith told the board medicinal marijuana gardens are sometimes covers for commercial operations. They said the skunk-like smell of the plants as they near maturity and the threat of armed thieves is a significant issue for public safety. But dozens came forward to say they would die if they didn't have ready and economical access to their medicine. One woman explained she has pancreatic cancer and the fees associated with the new ordinance would make it impossible to grow marijuana. "If you pass this, you might as well pull out your revolver and kill me," she said. Steve Cherms, who identified himself as a reverend in the United Cannabis Ministry, warned, "I will do everything I can do to see all of you are impeached. It will be the last thing that I do. I will put you out of office if it's the last thing I do, on my oath, on my life." Raymond Eugene Sperry, who didn't list a hometown, said the proposal made the supervisors "look like a bunch of Nazis." "This ordinance is a declaration of war. It is designed to make pot smokers second-class citizens. If it's war, we will fight you with a pen, or we will fight you with a sword, if you force us," he continued. On the other side of the question, Luther and Kathy McLaughlin, who live in unincorporated north Chico, said pot gardens in their residential neighborhood create a stench that drives them indoors during the late summer. They said they are afraid of the marijuana garden robberies, and they are concerned because some plants are so close to their property their grandchildren could just reach through the fence and grab a handful. After the public hearing was closed, Oroville Supervisor Bill Connelly said many of the marijuana advocates in the audience were his constituents, but he added there were many others he had heard from who endorsed controls on gardens. He said the problem essentially was a neighbor dispute. If everybody involved was more neighborly there would be fewer problems, he said. Chico Supervisor Larry Wahl agreed with the need for neighborliness. He also was concerned about home invasion robberies and shootings that had taken place over marijuana gardens in Chico. At the same time, he said harsh regulations with high fees would just result in "creative avoidance" on the part of the growers and lead to "unintended consequences." Wahl said he couldn't vote for the ordinance in its present form. All five members of the board expressed largely the same concerns and all were unwilling to vote on the proposed ordinance. Paul Hahn, the county's chief administrative officer, said it was clear the supervisors wanted a new look at setbacks and fees. He said a restriction that would allow only two mature plants and one juvenile on a lot smaller than one acre was "causing a lot of heartburn." Hahn said staff will review the ordinance and come back in about a month. The hearing was ended without a vote. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake