Pubdate: Sat, 30 Jul 2016 Source: Hamilton Spectator (CN ON) Page: A8 Copyright: 2016 The Hamilton Spectator Contact: http://www.thespec.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/181 BRIGHTER MOMENTS TEMPORARILY CLOSES POT DISPENSARY Owner optimistic it can reopen Sept. 1 if court case goes as planned Brighter Moments Dispensary has turned off the lights - for now. The marijuana dispensary on King Street East near Ferguson Avenue was raided by Hamilton police July 21. Four days after vowing to stay open, owner Luke Williams was advised by his legal counsel that his decision could put him behind bars until his first court appearance at the end of August. If court proceedings go according to plan, they could be operating in brick and mortar by Sept. 1, Williams said. "We want to come back, and we want to come back strong." For now, though, Williams and Cory Kaus, a volunteer operator, will be "medicating" patients door to door. "We're patients and they're patients, so we can legally medicate together," Kaus said. The police confiscated $50,000 dollars worth of marijuana products from the store. Williams was never told why police decided to raid the dispensary last week, even though he has an open-door policy since opening in the early fall last year. He says his user base, which is growing to 800-odd patients, may have had something to do with it. His store has been able to offer solutions that are lacking within the federal medical marijuana framework, which offers patients little more than dried versions of the plant, Williams said. "I had a 65-year-old patient walk in with dried plant and ask "how do I use this?" - -The Hamilton Spectator - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom