Irvine has become the latest Orange County city drawn into a legal battle with medical marijuana advocates, with The Power of Trinity Inc. this month challenging the city's denial of their proposed dispensary.
According to court records, Power of Trinity in November applied for a business license, hoping to run a medical marijuana dispensary in the 13400 block of Alton Parkway.
The license called for a warehouse where medicinal marijuana would be distributed to licensed wholesalers and prescribed patients, according to court filings. The medical marijuana would be ordered through the internet or by telephone and shipped to customers, with the occasional in-person pick-up of orders from patients who live nearby.
City officials denied the request, writing that they were unable to issue a business license to any operation that is illegal under federal, state or local law.
Power of Trinity this month filed a petition in Orange County Superior Court for a "writ of mandate" against the city, essentially asking for a court order directing public officials to approve their business license.
Attorneys for Power of Trinity in a recent court filing argued that since California voters have backed the medical use of marijuana, the city's decision to carry out federal laws against medical marijuana dispensaries is illegal.
Power of Trinity alleged in that same court filing that denial of its business license has cost $250,000 in damages.
“All they said is ‘you don’t comply with federal law,’ which we freely admit. But the city of Irvine doesn’t get to enforce federal law," said Herbert Papenfuss, an attorney representing Power of Trinity.
City officials declined to comment on the legal filing.
Irvine has received about a dozen general inquiries from medical marijuana dispensaries hoping to move into the city during the past 18 months, Spokesman Craig Reem said.
Reem would not comment on whether police or code enforcement has shut down any dispensaries operating within the city illegally.
Irvine Police in recent months located at least one dispensary they believed to be operating illegally, after the business reported than an armed robber had stolen $200 in cash and $150 in marijuana.
Several other Orange County cities, including Lake Forest, Costa Mesa and Dana Point, are already embroiled in legal battles to close marijuana dispensaries they claim are operating illegally within their cities.
Source: OC Register
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