VIDEO: John Grace public comment regarding medical marijuana in Long Beach

John Grace public comment regarding medical marijuana in Long Beach. From Long Beach City Council Meeting April 17, 2012.

NEWS: In Long Beach City, Frustration Leads to Desperation in Solving Medical Marijuana Issue

LONG BEACH, Calif. - On March 21 at 4:41pm, plain clothes officers not providing identification of the Long Beach Police Department, along with Long Beach Department of Finance workers, initiated an illegal raid against NatureCann Non-Profit Patient Group. Acting without a warrant or court order, the officer incursion involved forcefully breaking into the patient collective where three (3) patient volunteers were assisting fellow patients. An observer recording the event outside of the collective was knocked down by an officer who told him the police "can do whatever they want." Scores of businesses along the Atlantic Avenue Corridor were disrupted by the police presence and activity.

Although no warrant was obtained by the department, and no resistance was offered by NatureCann, specialized assault equipment and armed tactics were utilized to force entry into the property. In an attempt to avoid being filmed and prior to making entry, an electronic video surveillance system designed to assist law enforcement was instead destroyed and disabled by the officers. Three (3) volunteers were abducted by the officers on-site while other officers arrested the collective's security guard at a nearby restaurant where he was on break.

When asked about the reason for the incursion and arrest, one of the female NatureCann patient volunteers who declined to be named for fear of reprisal said, "I was in fear for my life, looking at the end of a loaded firearm pointed at my head, by an unidentified intruder twice my size. They broke in and started attacking us. We follow all State laws and provide for seriously ill patients." It was later determined that the volunteers had been arrested under a city ordinance recently rendered invalid by a higher court.

In February, 2012, the Long Beach City Council enacted a ban of all medical cannabis patient dispensaries after its permitting ordinance requiring "substantial" and non-refundable fees was deemed unconstitutional by a California appellate court. Although the ban states it applies to all medical marijuana dispensaries in the city, dispensaries that had paid the substantial fee are not being targeted by authorities. The city announced it would enforce the ban only against patient groups that had not paid the fees. Days after Long Beach passed its ordinance banning all collectives, another California appellate court deemed similar bans illegal.

In June, 2011, a Los Angeles Superior Court judge found that an earlier warrantless raid by Long Beach police officers and officials was improper. Patients involved in that case have filed a suit against the city seeking damages. In addition to being arrested, the volunteer said the police had taken all of the patient group's medication as well as electronic equipment without inventorying or reporting the seizures.

For more information contact Sergio Sandoval,Director of Public Relations, Pappas Law Group,Phone #949-382-1485Email – sergio.sandoval@pappaslawgroup.com

Source: NatureCann

NEWS: LA marijuana dispensary workers join labor union

LA marijuana dispensary workers join labor union

LOS ANGELES -- Marijuana dispensary workers in Los Angeles have joined a labor union to fight for their jobs in an industry that the federal government considers illegal.

Workers at 14 pot shops have formed the "medical cannabis and hemp division" of the United Food and Commercial Workers, Local 770. The 35,000-member union also represents grocery clerks, pharmacists and health care workers.
"This is the next step in professionalizing and stabilizing this new sector of the health care industry," Local 770 President Rick Icaza said at a news conference Thursday. "This is a positive step towards successfully integrating compassionate care into our system of health care."

Los Angeles currently caps the number of medical marijuana dispensaries, but the City Council is considering a full ban in light of a court decision that limits its ability to regulate them.

Icaza said the union would use its considerable political weight to pressure officials to find an alternative to a total ban.

That help will be welcome, said Yamileth Bolanos, president of the Greater Los Angeles Collectives Alliance, which represents dispensaries.

"It's time to bring in some big guns," she told the Los Angeles Times ( http://lat.ms/GQqPfS). "Not only are they threatening access for patients, they're also trying to take jobs away from our employees."

Pot clinics flourished in California after voters in 1996 voted to permit people to cultivate and possess marijuana for what became nearly any medical reason. As hundreds of dispensaries opened, cities and counties struggled to interpret the state law, which was light on specifics.

Some communities sought to outlaw the pot clinics under existing zoning and other ordinances, while others tried to regulate them.

Court rulings have further muddied the waters. Last month, a state appellate court ruled that cities cannot use nuisance ordinances to ban medical marijuana dispensaries.

A Los Angeles-based appellate court last year struck down Long Beach's attempt to license marijuana stores, ruling the local ordinance conflicted with federal law. And another appellate court upheld Riverside's right to close and prohibit dispensaries despite the state's medical marijuana law.

Early on in the Obama administration, the U.S. Justice Department said prosecutors wouldn't focus on pot dispensaries that were following state medical marijuana laws even though the entire industry was considered illegal under federal statutes.

But that attitude has changed, with federal prosecutors arguing that many ostensibly nonprofit clinics are raking in money by supplying marijuana to people without a medical need.

Since last year, federal prosecutors have warned California clinics that they are illegal, filed criminal and civil charges against some owners, and threatened to seize properties that are leased to pot growers. About 140 dispensaries in more than 20 Southern California cities have been told to shut down since October when federal authorities began their statewide effort.

The crackdown hasn't dissuaded some communities from welcoming pot shops. Earlier this month, Oakland officials granted approval for four new medical marijuana dispensaries in the city, bringing the total to eight. Officials said the four dispensaries would generate $1.7 million in annual tax revenue for the city.

Source: The Sacramento Bee

NEWS: Vallejo medical marijuana dispensary certification on hold, city manager says

Vallejo medical marijuana dispensaries anticipating a business license in the mail may have to wait a while.

City Manager Dan Keen said that he has suspended the city's plan to begin issuing business certificates to those dispensaries that have paid a $500 city business fee. The fee was authorized under a ballot measure voters overwhelmingly approved in the November election. The measure's passage has also led to the city approving a 10 percent tax on medical marijuana sales.

City Finance Director Deborah Lauchner said in a recent interview that several dispensaries have paid the fee, although she could not confirm how many. Calls to Lauchner this week were not returned.

Keen's business fee decision follows a maelstrom of questions and confusion about the legality of the city's estimated 20 or more dispensaries. Police began an enforcement effort on Feb. 21, and have raided several dispensaries just before the city began taxing them.

On Tuesday morning, Keen released a five-page memo to the Vallejo City Council. In it, he addressed concerns about the mixed message the city was sending in taxing dispensaries, while at the same time raiding them. Keen's memo acknowledged confusion and suggested that the council may wish to seek legal advice about not enforcing the tax collection "until the situation regarding the regulation of medical marijuana establishments becomes clearer."

The memo, given to council members on Friday, highlights several references in past city staff reports to plans for "vigorous prosecution of illegal medical marijuana operations."
Councilman Robert McConnell, among those who last week called for answers relating to the police crackdown's timing, said Tuesday that he had only glanced at Keen's memo so far.

"I think there's an awful lot more questions ... that need to be addressed," McConnell said. "I think we all have concerns, because it's an evolving saga. I think we have enough problems to worry about on our own in the police department area without getting into MMDs (medical marijuana dispensaries) and whether they comply with federal law.

"The area is about as clear as mud right now."

McConnell said he was unsure if he would continue to call for a public meeting about the issue, because it may require closed-door confidential talks with the city attorney.

Councilwoman Erin Hannigan said she was not surprised by Keen's memo. She added, however, that she understood the public's confusion over the timing of the raids. She also expressed concern over some allegations that police used unnecessary force during the raids against dispensary employees and clients.

Hannigan added that despite any confusion, dispensaries should not consider that a city business license tax makes medical marijuana sales legal in Vallejo.

"It wasn't a mystery to me," Hannigan said of the police raids. "We very clearly had a briefing by staff a couple of months ago as to what our plan was going to be."

Hannigan also shared frustration that the council's direction to its staff to draft regulatory measures to locally legalize dispensary operations had been put on hold because of ongoing legal action elsewhere. She said other cities have continued to move forward in regulating dispensaries while Vallejo has not.

Source: Vallejo Times-Herald

VIDEO: Mike Oliveri Gets the Final Word at a LA City Council Meeting

Due to transportation difficulties, Mike Oliveri (patient activist) arrives at the Los Angeles Council Meeting right at the tail end of Public Comment. Nevertheless he still manages to get in and on record, the case for medical marijuana collectives.

VIDEO: Long Beach City Council Postpones Medical Marijuana Dispensary Ban

NEWS: Rights of All Medical Marijuana Patients at Risk in Long Beach Case

In what will soon become one of the closest-watched court cases in medical cannabis history, Long Beach Superior Court sets the stage for a series of ongoing protests that highlight an injustice to all medical marijuana patients, providers, and advocates.

As medical marijuana patients poured out of the courtroom, another group pounded the pavement, as protests errupted for a second straight week as The People of the State of California VS. Joe Byron and Joe Grumbine unfolds.

The People vs. Joe, one of whom is a Long Beach business owner, the other an Executive Director of the non-profit group The Human Solution, is Los Angeles County’s DA Steve Cooley’s Flagship Case in his efforts to silence the two community leaders with his premise that “All Sales Are Illegal.”

Unfortunately, it’s working on Judge Charles Sheldon (who has a record of sentencing 3-strikes cases to the fullest, even on non-violent cases), as prosecutors got their way today in their motion to suppress the same rights the will of the people voted awarded people like Byron and Grumbine fifteen years ago.

“The law is clear, but Judge Sheldon, citing no reasons, is not allowing the defendents to exericise their rights to an Affirmative Defense, which the voters have clearly voted on,” reiterates Allison Margolin, one of the attorneys for one of the Joes.

This could be bad news for patients and dispensaries, providers and caregivers, and anyone who believes in the fundamental right to choose from the form of medicine, natural or synthetic, a patient finds to be most effective.

Kamala Harris inched her way to victory over Cooley largely due to the efficacy of the Americans for Safe Access ‘Not Cooley’ campaign in last year’s California Attorney General’s race because of this very issue.

The same population that could’ve turned Prop 19, which would’ve made California the first state to create regulations for marijuana use by adults, from a loss to a victory but did not, are the same group of people that didn’t want Steve Cooley making his “ALL Sales Are Illegal” perspective a state-wide stance.

Now that Cooley has set his sights on a target closer to the Los Angeles DA’s radar, the ‘Cooley’s Not Cool’ hat is back, as Joe and Joe both lost their right to their Affirmative Defense as medical marijuana patients directing a collective.

Most Federal medical marijuana cases do not allow patient’s rights to be shown to the jury, and this form of information censorship and manipulation tactics is being replicated in Cooley’s current case against the two men who had dotted all I’s and crossed all T’s while providing medical marijuana to qualified medical cannabis patients.

Even the rules they were following will not be allowed to be introduced to the Jury, once the trial begins. Long Beach’s current Congressman is even a Co-sponsor of the Truth in Trials Act, to ensure that the truth be a part of a blind Justice System.

While our Congressman, who recently endorsed the “Regulate Marijuana Like Wine” Initiative, to be a Co-sponsor on a bill that ensures transparency in medical cannabis cases, are we to assume that there is a clear need for such transparancy?

We don’t have to assume any longer, now that the lies to build the laws are being dismantled one by one, as right-leaning groups like the RAND Corporation are even publishing studies to prove than medical cannabis dispensaries make areas more safe because crime goes down, not up, like our ‘leaders’ would like us to believe.

Even elected officials in Long Beach, like Councilmembers DeLong, O’Donnell, and Schipske, who were buying the lie and perpetuating it tenfold, throwing the entire permitting process back several steps (as if their process wasn’t already flawed enough).

It’s not that Justice in Blind, however, it’s that for the prosecution to win this case, they need the Jury to be.

Unfortunately for the lead prosecutor in the case, Jodi Castano, who has admitted to not fully understanding the Endogenous Cannabinoid Signaling System (eCBss), which regulates the human body systems that keep us all alive, and doesn’t want the Jury to understand it either.

In fact, she is quoted as saying, “I’ve never even heard of it,” underscoring a larger problem.

Unless local Long Beach residents have been living under a rock these past few years, the jury pool will fully understand that this is a medical marijuana case, and they may follow Montana residents, where Jury Nullification has come up, and where Missoula couldn’t even seat a jury.

If they understand science and have access to a smart-phone or computer, and if they live in Long Beach, they most likely understand marijuana IS a medicine also, even if they know even less than Castano about the eCBss, who is prosecuting a case that is the clearest representation of wasteful spending as California reaches a second recession and resources become more scarce.

Many innocent people every day are victims of violent crimes, and many of those crimes go unsolved. Perhaps our law enforcement and court systems could be less controlled by politics, which is the driving force behind the perpetually-flawed perspective the war-mongering in the War on Drugs provides.

Long Beach is even in the process of providing permits for the same thing Joe Byron and Joe Grumbine are being accused of doing.

Twelve charges of sales occurred by undercover officers and informants who obtained legal medical cannabis recommendation by physicians, and then went into the medical marijuana dispensary to get the medicine their doctors deemed worthy of introduction to their own body’s marijuana system it makes.

Sounds like normal medical cannabis dispensing center (MCDC) protocol: a qualified patient comes in, gets what they were unable to grow for themselves, and pay for it.

As a matter of fact, it sounds like America to me too. Not that a California MCDC can earn a profit, but I do notice that health care delivery in America is for profit.

Health care insurance is for profit, the medicine is for profit, health care delivery is for profit (which is why 50 millions Americans don’t even have it), and even marijuana in a pill, Marinol, is FOR PROFIT!

Joe Byron and Joe Grumbine were operating a MCDC, and for those that found it too difficult to even go to a safe access point like their dispensary, they would set up and teach patients how to grow their own.

The whole plant is also much more effective than a synthetic, isolated, pathetic attempt to replicate the safe and natural substance in the first place. So natural in fact, we make it ourselves naturally.

One such natural body chemical, called Anandamide, Sanskrit for ‘Bliss’, is like Delta-9 THC, which is the psychoactive property. It only becomes psychoactive when THCA is heated up and turns into Delta 9.

Our body also has receptors that link with the cannabis plant’s properties that bind to each other like a key in a lock, many keys and many locks really, as our body’s cannabis system is responsible for maintaining homeostasis and regulating every other body system we have.

So it’s rather important that elected officials and appointed persons understand what they are trying to regulate, let alone restrict, which is what will happen if Cooley’s case is made by manipulation, omission, and censorship.

If Castano is forced to finish fighting Cooley’s War, more than one Braggart Soldier will ride away, taking marijuana prohibition with them, going quietly into their watermark, swept away by mandate.

Source: MedicalMarijuana411.com

NEWS: Study: Crime in surrounding area increased after closure of LA medical marijuana dispensaries

LOS ANGELES — A new study released Tuesday showed that when hundreds of medical marijuana dispensaries were closed last year in Los Angeles crime rates rose in surrounding neighborhoods, challenging claims made by law enforcement agencies that the storefronts are magnets for crime.

The report by the nonprofit RAND Corp. reviewed crime reports for the 10 days prior to and the 10 days after city officials shuttered the clinics last summer after a new ordinance went into effect. The analysis revealed that crime increased about 60 percent within three blocks of a closed dispensary compared to the same parameters for those that remained open.

“If medical marijuana dispensaries are causing crime, then there should be a drop in crime when they close,” said Mireille Jacobson, a RAND senior economist and the study’s lead author. “Individual dispensaries may attract crime or create a neighborhood nuisance, but we found no evidence that medical marijuana dispensaries in general cause crime to rise.”

Crime was among the concerns that prompted the City Council to pass the ordinance that put strict guidelines on the pot clinics and forced many of them to close. Law enforcement authorities have long argued collectives attract crime because they often handle large amounts of cash and thieves can resell marijuana.

Two workers at different dispensaries were killed during robberies in June 2010.

Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca went one step further last September when he said nearly all dispensaries operate as criminal enterprises, a claim that infuriated medical marijuana supporters who have said law enforcement officials have resorted to scare tactics to advance their agenda.

 “They have perpetuated this myth that there is more crime associated with collectives,” said James Shaw of the Union of Medical Marijuana Patients, an advocacy group for medicinal marijuana users. “This council should be emboldened to revise the ordinance so it’s not so draconian to the patients and their associations.”

Researchers looked at crime reports for 600 dispensaries in Los Angeles County — 170 that remained open and 430 ordered to close. They found that the further away from the clinics the less crime there was: within six blocks of a closed dispensary crime rose by 25 percent and by 10 blocks there was no perceptible change in crime.

The study said some of the factor for the increase may be because the storefronts had security cameras and guards, there was less foot traffic and fewer police patrols.

The city attorney’s office called the study “deeply flawed.”

 “It relies exclusively upon faulty assumptions, conjecture, irrelevant data, untested measurement and incomplete results. The conclusions are therefore highly suspect and unreliable,” the city attorney’s office said in a statement.

Councilman Ed Reyes called the report an “eye-opener” but said it was limited in its findings because it was conducted over a short period of time.

 “I think the study needs to continue because it’s a snapshot,” Reyes said. “It verifies how complex this issue is.”

Legal challenges still remain over whether city officials have the right to close dispensaries since state law allows medical marijuana collectives. Marijuana is still illegal under federal law.

A judge in December ruled certain portions of the city ordinance were unconstitutional. Council members amended the ordinance but a lottery that would allow 100 collectives to remain open has yet to be conducted.

Source: The Washington Post

Los Angeles Medical Marijuana Dispensaries, Collectives and Co-ops

« Back

We encourage you to call the collectives prior to making the trip, in case the hours have changed or the facility has been closed.

Adams/Hill Discount Center
2602 S. Hill St. [map]
Los Angeles, CA
Hours: Mon-Sat 10am to 8pm, Sun 10am to 6pm
Phone: 213-440-8595

Amsterdam Mart
4718 Fountain Ave. [map]
Los Angeles, CA 90029
Hours: Mon-Sun 10am to 10pm
Phone: 310-256-9959

Atwater Alternative Care Collective
3106 Glendale Blvd. [map]
Los Angeles CA 90039
Hours: Mon-Fri 11am-10pm, Sat-Sun 11am-9pm
Phone: 323-661-6200

Best Quality Herbal Medicine
1833 E. Vernon Ave. [map]
Los Angeles, CA 90508
Hours: Mon-Sun 8am to 12am
Phone: 323-233-1779

California Herbal Healing Center (CHHC)
1437 N La Brea Ave. [map]
Los Angeles CA 90028
Hours: Mon-Sun 11am to 11pm
Phone: 877-420-5874

City Compassionate Caregivers
606 E. 4th St. [map]
Los Angeles, CA 90013
Hours: Mon-Sat 10am to 8pm, Sun 10am to 6pm
Phone: 213-221-7086

Downtown Collective
1600 S. Hill St., Unit D [map]
Los Angeles, CA 90015
Hours: Mon-Sun 10am to 8pm
Phone: 213-746-5420
Web: dtc420.com

Downtown Discount Caregivers
111 E. 9th St. [map]
Los Angeles, CA 90015
Hours: Mon-Sun 10am to 8pm
Phone: 213-896-0016

Famous Medstop
3109 Beverly Blvd. [map]
Los Angeles, CA 90057
Hours: Mon-Sat 10am to 10pm, Sun 10am to 8pm
Phone: 213-365-0262

Five Star Collective
2076 Westwood Blvd. [map]
Los Angeles, CA 90025
Hours: Mon-Sun 10am to 10pm
Phone: 310-474-1213
Email: fivestarcollective@gmail.com
Website: http://fivestarcollective.com

Flower Of Life Collective (FOLC)
1950 S. Santa Fe Ave. Ste 109
Los Angeles, CA 90021
Hours: Mon-Sun 12pm to 8pm
Phone: 213-488-9464

Green (Near Universal City Walk and Movies)
3324 Barham Blvd. #A [map]
Los Angeles, CA 90068
Hours: Mon-Sun 11am to 11pm
Phone: 323-851-0911
Website: smokeitup420.org

Green Palace Collective
3615 Beverly Blvd. [map]
Los Angeles, CA 90004
Hours: Mon-Sun 10am to 10pm
Phone: 424-230-2220

Herbal Solutions Cannabis Consultants
735 N. La Brea
Los Angeles, CA
Hours: Mon-Sun 10am-8pm
Phone: (323) 933-4372
Website: cannabisconsultantsca.com

Hot Box Collective (HC)
143 N Western Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90004
Phone: (323) 460-6410
Website: http://www.hbc420.com
Email: info@hbc420.com

Hollywood Holistic
1543 Sawtelle Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90025
Hours: Mon-Sat 11am-8pm, Sun 12pm-6pm
Phone: (310) 481-0660
Fax: (310) 481-0659
Website: hollywoodholistic.org

Hot Spot Collective
4326 Melrose Ave. [map]
Los Angeles, CA 90029
Hours: Mon-Sun 11am to 10pm
Phone: 323-284-8060

Kaya Compassion Center
9146 Sepulveda Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90045
Hours: Mon-Sat 11am to 8pm, Sat-Sun 11am to 6pm
Phone: (310) 338-0357

Kelly's Collective
8638 W. Pico Blvd. [map]
Los Angeles, CA 90035
Hours: Mon-Sat 10am to 8pm, Sun 12pm to 8pm
Phone: 310-854-5874 (KUSH)

Kush Korner Caregivers
2214 S. Vermont Ave. [map]
Los Angeles, CA 90007
Hours: Mon-Sat 10am to 8pm, Sun 11am to 8pm
Phone: 323-733-2581

LA Organic Pharmacy
4911 Melrose Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90029
Hours: Mon-Fri 11am to 8pm, Sat 11am to 7pm, Sun 12pm to 4pm
Phone: 323-463-3920

Medicine Man Collective
1651 W. Temple St. [map]
Los Angeles, CA 90026
Hours: Mon-Sun 24/7
Phone: 213-375-7701

Mr. Greens Collective
3740 W. Sunset Blvd. [map]
Los Angeles, CA 90026
Hours: Mon-Sun 11am to 9pm
Phone: 323-663-6711

Nature's Herbs
1713 W. El Segundo Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA
Hours: Mon-Wed 10am-7pm, Thu-Sat 10am-8pm
Phone: (323) 777-1319

Olive Tree Collective
643 S. Olive St. #415 [map]
Los Angeles, CA 90014
Hours: Mon-Fri 11am to 7pm, Sat 11am to 5pm, Sun CLOSED
Phone: 213-627-2940

Rampart Discount Center
246 S. Rampart Blvd. Suit 272B [map]
Los Angeles, CA 90057
Hours: Mon-Sat 10am to 8pm, Sun 10am to 6pm
Phone: 213-925-8962

Silver Lake Caregivers
2323 Beverly Blvd. [map]
Los Angeles, CA 90057
Hours: Mon-Sat 11am to 8pm, Sun 12pm to 8pm
Phone: 213-483-1400

The Fountain of Well Being
3835 Fountain Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90029
Hours: Mon-Sat 11am-9pm, Sun 11am-6pm
Phone: 323-662-0900

The Green Easy
7948 W. 3rd Street
Los Angeles CA 90048
Hours: Mon-Thu 9am-11pm
Phone: 323-782-0255

United Herbal Center
2708 W. 8th St.
Los Angeles, CA 90005
Hours: Mon 11am-9am; Tue-Sat 11am-9pm; Sun 11am-8pm
Phone: (213) 739-7038

Western Compassion Center
7509 S. Western Ave. [map]
Los Angeles, CA 90006
Hours: Mon-Sat 11am to 8pm, Sun 11am to 6pm
Phone: 323-759-7509

Western Discount Center
1570 S. Western Ave. Suite 102 [map]
Los Angeles, CA 90006
Hours: Mon-Sat 10am to 8pm, Sun 10am to 6pm
Phone: 323-733-2913

Westside Discount Center
12211 Wilshire Blvd, Suite A [map]
Los Angeles, CA 90025
Hours: Mon-Sat 11am to 8pm, Sun 11am to 6pm
Website: westsidedc.com

Wonderland Collective
4406 W. Pico Blvd. [map]
Los Angeles, CA
Hours: Mon-Sun 11am to 8pm
Phone: 323-936-4410

NEWS: Glendale officially bans marijuana dispensaries

The City Council approved an all-out ban on medical marijuana dispensaries Tuesday night.

The ban, which was introduced last week, is slated to take effect Sept. 9, about two weeks before an existing moratorium prohibiting the dispensaries expires.

Current zoning codes have so far kept marijuana dispensaries at bay, but city officials, citing growing interest from collectives, have sought stronger language to keep them out.

Glendale’s ordinance uses zoning code to ban businesses that engage in any activity that violates federal, state or local laws from operating in any zone. The ordinance also identifies medical marijuana dispensaries as being banned in all zones.

Los Angeles passed an ordinance last year limiting the number of dispensaries to 70, exempting those in the city before 2007.

A lawsuit against Anaheim challenging its ban on medical marijuana awaits a ruling this month in Orange County Superior Court, which medical marijuana experts say could set a precedent. Still, Glendale officials have said they’re confident their ban is on firm legal footing.

Source: Glendale News Press

NEWS: Brea fight against pot shops in limbo

BREA – After six months of aggressively fighting three medical-marijuana clinics in the courts, Brea officials find themselves in the same legal limbo as other Orange County cities as they wait on an appeals court to issue a hotly anticipated decision.

The clinics join others throughout the county waiting to see if they can exist.

While Brea was able to get a judge to place injunctions on the three local dispensaries in March for violating a 2009 city law banning them, all three have cases before an appellate court to determine if the city's ordinance trumps state law allowing such clinics to exist.

One dispensary, Brea Alternative Medicine, had its injunction temporarily stayed by the 4th District Court of Appeal in Santa Ana and has continued to operate.

In the meantime, the city's attorneys have been unsuccessfully pursuing suits against the other two dispensaries, Physis Patients Association and Brea Medical Referral Network, for supposedly violating the injunctions:

• Despite hiring a private detective to locate him, as of Monday the city had been unable to serve the president of the Brea Medical Referral Network, Bruce Nguyen, court records show. Brea Medical Referral Network has continued to operate, and on Monday the city is scheduled to argue in Superior Court that the clinic is in violation of an injunction.

• A suit against Shibili Ziadeh, the president of Physis Patients Association, was thrown out on June 17, because the city did not serve him in person. Physis shuttered this week. A note on the dispensary's door says it will be shut down until further notice "due to the city of Brea's attack on compassionate medical marijuana. ... Now it is up to the court of appeals to reverse the city of Brea's stand on medical marijuana."

The appeal court has yet to make a definitive ruling on whether a California city can ban medical-marijuana dispensaries, which are allowed under state law but prohibited under federal law.

Last August, the 4th District Court of Appeal in Santa Ana ruled in a case involving Anaheim's ban on dispensaries, saying that federal laws banning marijuana do not trump state ones. The court sent the case back to Superior Court Judge David Chaffee to reconsider the case; he hasn't yet made a decision.

Many experts say that case could set a precedent.

James Markman, Brea's city attorney, agreed, adding that the lack of a clear decision from the courts has made the process drawn out and frustrating.

"I'd rather see one of these courts courageously step up and make a decision ... one way or the other," he said "Right now, we are in limbo."

During this limbo, Brea Alternative Medicine continues to operate in a quiet a strip mall on West Imperial Highway.

"People are concerned about their neighborhood, their properties and their customers, and the city, of course, feels the same way," Mayor Roy Moore said.

But Erik Chan, the clinic's president, says it is providing services that are legal for sick patients.

"People are trying to follow the law and what California policymakers have put in place – that is a good thing," he said. "It is an industry that is helping and supporting a lot of people. I see it as a very positive contribution to the greater good."

Source: OC Register

Anaheim Medical Marijuana Dispensaries, Collectives and Co-operatives

We encourage you to call the collectives prior to making the trip, in case the hours have changed or the facility has been closed.

AAA Wellness Center
503 N. Anaheim Blvd. Suite A [map]
Anaheim, CA 92805
Hours: Mon-Sat 9am to 10:45pm, Sun 9am to 9:45pm
Phone: 714-781-5874

California Med Aid
3970 E. Miraloma Ave. [map]
Anaheim, CA 92806
Hours: Mon-Sat 9am to 8:30pm, Sun 11am to 8pm
Phone: 714-678-1140

Chubby's Treehouse
1150 N. Richfield Suite D [map]
Anaheim, CA 92807
Hours: Mon-Sat 10am to 10pm, Sun 10pm to 6pm
Phone: 714-223-3992

H2O Collective
850 S. Brookhurst [map]
Anaheim CA 92804
Hours: Mon-Sat 10am to 12am, Sun 10am to 11pm
Phone: 714-561-3672

Kush House Caregivers
1213 S. Western [map]
Anaheim, CA 92804
Hours: Mon-Sun 10am to 10pm
Phone: 714-828-8836

Kush Kingdom
1083 N. Harbor Blvd. [map]
Anaheim, CA 92801
Hours: Mon-Sun 10am to 12am
Phone: 714 533 7594

Pharmers Choice
4506 E. La Palma [map]
Anaheim Hills, CA 92807
Hours: Sun-Fri 10am to 10pm, Sat 10am to 11pm
Phone: 714-777-4232

Releaf Health & Wellness
2601 W. Ball Road Suite 202 [map]
Anaheim, CA 92804
Hours: Mon-Sun 8am to 8pm
Phone: 714-826-5323

Zen OC
910 S. Euclid Ave. #D [map]
Anaheim, CA 92802
Hours: Mon-Sat 10am to 10pm, Sun 10am to 7pm
Phone: 714-533-8644

Silverlake Medical Marijuana Dispensaries Collectives and Co-operatives

Sunset Junction Organic Medicine
4017 W. Sunset Blvd. [map]
Silverlake, CA 90029
Hours: Mon-Sun 11am to 8pm
Phone: 323-660-0655
Website: sunsetjunctionmeds.com

Long Beach Medical Marijuana Dispensaries, Collectives and Co-ops

1 Love Beach Club
2767 E Broadway [map]
Long Beach, CA 90803
Hours: Mon-Sat 11am to 8pm, Sun 12am to 5pm
Phone: 562-343-5388
E-Mail: info@1love420.com
Web: http://www.1love420.com

562 Discount Meds
2025 E 10th St. [map]
Long Beach, CA 90804
Phone: 562-343-7007
Web: lbmmd.com

Alternative Therapeutic Solutions
5707 Atlantic Ave [map]
Long Beach, CA 90805
Phone: 562-428-7033
Fax: 562-372-3315
Hours: Mon-Sun 10am to 7pm
Web: facebook.com/ATS.MEDS
Twitter: twitter.com/ATSMEDS

Avalon Wellness Collective

1302 Gaylord [map]
Long Beach, CA 90813
Phone: 562-628-8881
Web: Weed Maps

Belmont Shore Natural Care
5375 E 2nd St., Long Beach, CA 90803
Phone: 562-987-0210
Hours: Mon-Sun 9:00am to 7pm
Website: belmontshorenaturalcare.com

C.A.R.E. Collective
3009 E. South Street [map]
Long Beach, CA 90805
Phone: 562-633-5874

Chronic Pain Releaf Center
1501 Santa Fe Ave. [map]
Long Beach, CA 90813
Hours: Mon-Sun 9am to 7pm
Phone: 562-432-5555
Website: http://www.myreleaf.com

Cornerstone Health & Wellness

1838 E. Wardlow St.
Long Beach, CA 90807
Phone: 562-426-9800
Hours: Mon-Sat 10am to 8pm, Sun 10am to 5pm
Website: cornerstonemeds.com/

Dank Depot
5595 E. 7th Street
Long Beach, CA 90804
Phone: 562-597-6041
Hours: Mon-Sun 10am to 8pm
Website: http://www.DankDepot.com
E-Mail: dank_depot@yahoo.com

Green Earth Center
3748 Atlantic Ave., Long Beach, CA 90807 [map]
Hours: Mon-Sat 11am-8pm, Sun 11am-6pm
Phone: 562-989-0300
Email: info@greenearthcenter.com
Web: greenearthcenter.blogspot.com



Greenhouse Caregivers
1428 W. Willow St. Long Beach, CA 90810 [map]
Hours: Mon-Sun 10am to 8pm
Phone: 562-290-8180
Email: ghcaregivers@verizon.net

Herbal Solutions:

1. 1206 E. Wardlow Rd. Long Beach, CA - 562-997-2929 - Hours: Daily 10am-8pm
2. 5746 E. 2nd St. Long Beach, CA - 562-434-5075 - Hours: Daily 10am-8p

High Quiggle Healing Center
1532 E. Broadway [map and more]
Long Beach, CA 90802
Phone: 562-951-3975
Hours: Mon-Sat 10am to 8:00pm, Sun 1:00pm to 8:00pm
Email: 420firestarter@gmail.com

Industry Green Collective
2200 N. Lakewood Blvd. [map]
Long Beach, CA 90815
Phone: 562-986-9400
Hours: Mon-Sat 10am-8pm, Sun 11am-6pm

Irie Collective
1424 E. Broadway Ave. [map]
Long Beach, CA 90802
Hours: Mon-Sun 10am to 7pm
Phone: 562-432-2111

Long Beach Collective
1731 E. Artesia Blvd. [map]
Long Beach, CA 90805
Hours: Mon-Sat 9am to 7pm, Sun 10am to 7pm
Phone: 562-934-2520

Long Beach Green Room
1735 E. 7th St. [map]
Long Beach, CA 90813
Hours: Mon-Sun 9am to 7pm
Phone: 562-591-0001

Natural Solutions
2130 W. Cowles St. [map]
Long Beach, CA 90813
Phone: 562-425-8310

NatureCann
4340 Atlantic Ave.
Long Beach, CA 90807
Hours: Mon-Sat 11am to 8pm, Sun 12pm to 5pm
Phone: 323-515-4500
Website: www.naturecann.com
Email: info@naturecann.com

Covers the following zip codes in Long Beach, California: 90745, 90746, 90747, 90749, 90755, 90801, 90802, 90803, 90804, 90805, 90806, 90807, 90808, 90809, 90810, 90813, 90814, 90815, 90822, 90831, 90832, 90833, 90834, 90835, 90840, 90842, 90844, 90845, 90846, 90847, 90848, 90853, 90888, 90895, 90899

East Los Angeles Dispensaries

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420 Grand Caregivers, Inc.
2802 S. Grand Ave.
East Los Angeles, CA
Phone: (213) 748-1992

The Bluegate Collective
3428 Whittier Blvd. [map]
East Los Angeles, CA 90023
Hours: Mon-Sat 11am to 8pm, Sun 11am to 7pm
Phone: 323-263-3009

The Holistic Co-Op
2627 E Cesar Chavez
East Los Angeles, CA
Phone: (323) 540-6700
Hours: Mon-Fri 11am-8pm, Sat-Sun 12pm-7pm

Santa Ana Dispensaries, Collectives and Co-ops

Accesss OC Central
1833 E. 17th St., Suite 322 [map]
Santa Ana, CA 92705
Hours: Mon-Sat 11am to 8pm, Closed on SUNDAYS
Phone: 714-972-2000

Aloha Community Collective Assn
2112 E. 4th St. Unit #227 [map]
Santa Ana CA 92705
Hours: Mon-Sun 10am to 7pm
Website: http://thedopeman.com

Coastal Collective
2001 E. 4th St. Unit 205
Santa Ana, CA 92701
Hours: Mon-Sat 11am to 8pm, Sun 11am to 6pm
Phone: 714-542-2277

Greenway Healing Center
2720 S. Bristol St.. Suite #109
Santa Ana, CA 92704
Hours: Mon-Fri 10am to 8pm, Sat 10am to 7pm, Sun 11am to 5pm
Phone: 714-545-4040

Go N' Green P.C.A.
1905 E 17th St #201
Santa Ana, CA 92705
Hours: Mon-Sun 10am to 9pm
Phone: 714-766-0420

MJ's Compassionate Care
13912 Ponderosa St, Unit G
Santa Ana, CA 92705
Phone: 714-613-2191
Email: mjswild@yahoo.com

Orange Coast Premier Collective
3619 W. Pendleton Ave. Ste A
Santa Ana, CA 92704
Hours: Mon-Thu 11am to 8pm, Fri-Sat 11am to 9pm, Sun 11am to 6pm
Website: http://www.ocpcollective.org
Email: info@ocpcollective.org
Phone: 714-591-7000

Orange County Cannabis Collective
1833 E. 17th Street Ste #114
Santa Ana, CA 92705
Hours: Mon-Sat 11am-8pm, Sun 12pm-5pm
Phone: 714-476-9270

Orange Co. Patient Group Collective
2315 E. 17th Street #4 [map]
Santa Ana, CA 92705
Hours: Mon-Fri 10am to 7:45pm Sat-Sun 11am to 6:45pm
Phone: 714-547-2525

Santa Ana Patients Group
1823 E. 17th St. Suite 209 [map]
Santa Ana, CA 92705
Hours: Mon-Thu 10am to 8pm, Fri-Sat 10am to 9pm, Sun 10am-7pm
Phone: 714-568-0041

South Coast Patients Center
1202 East 17th St Suite #200 [map]
Santa Ana, CA 92701
Hours: Mon-Sat 10am to 8pm, Sun 11am to 6pm
Phone: (714) 547-4800


Covers the following zip codes in Santa Ana, California: 92701, 92702, 92703, 92704, 92705, 92706, 92707, 92711, 92712, 92725, 92735, 92799

Santa Fe Springs Medical Marijuana Dispensaries, Collectives and Cooperatives

The Springs Herbal Remedies
11703 Los Nietos Rd. [map]
Santa Fe Springs, CA 90670
Hours: Mon-Wed 10am to 8pm, Thu-Fri 9am to 9pm, Sat 10am to 8pm, Sun 10am 6pm
Phone: 562-699-8960

Covers the following zip codes in Santa Fe Springs, California: 90605, 90670, 90671

Northridge Dispensaries, Collectives and Co-ops

Cannamed of Northridge
9345 Melvin Ave. Unit 1 [map]
Northridge, CA 91324
Hours: Mon-Sat 11:00am to 8:00pm (Sun CLOSED)
Phone: 818-882-4849

Neighborhood Canna Store (NCS)
8323 Reseda #102
Northridge, CA 91324
Phone: 818-576-0420

VIDEO: Cathy Bliss shares medical marijuana documentary with San Diego Planning Commission

Cathy Bliss, at the San Diego Planning Commission Meeting (January 20th, 2011), shares video from a documentary with medical professionals from California, speaking on the subject of medical cannabis and how it benefits the human body.

NEWS: Patient and advocates in San Diego are standing up and saying no more bans or restrictive ordinances

Patients and advocates in San Diego are standing up and saying no more bans or restrictive ordinances. California cannabis Coalition and many members of the cannabis community in San Diego have retained attorneys and began a ballot initiative. The initiative is called Citizens for Safe Access Ordinance (CSAO).

This is an effort of the San Diego cannabis community to acquire safe access for all qualified patients. Currently the city of San Diego has dragged its heels in an effort to make clear regulations in regard to medical marijuana centers. It’s looking like the city wants to impose a severe restriction as to where collectives can be. Out of the more than 100 zoning areas in San Diego the city officials will allow 5 of them The restrictions of 1000 feet from a school and church and other collectives will severely limit access to all qualified patients. If this ordinance that the city proposes is allowed then we have really cut our access to the medicine needed by qualified patients.

In an effort to end this madness, California Cannabis Coalition introduced the Citizens for Safe access ordinance. This will allow the collectives to operate. These are a few of the key points purposed as outlined by Jessica McElfresh, California Cannabis Coalition attorney:

• Medical Cannabis Centers will be allowed in most Commercial and Industrial zones as long as they are not within 600 feet of schools, playgrounds, libraries, or day care centers; within 500 feet of residential rehabilitation facilities or other Cannabis Centers or located in residential buildings.

• A cap will be placed on the number of Centers. Only those Centers with an approved Seller’s Permit issued by the California Board of Equalization on or before the date the initiative is approved for the ballot will be allowed to operate within the City.

• Centers that meet the cap requirement will be allowed a three year grace period to comply with the requirements of the initiative.

• Centers may relocate to any permissible zone at any time within the grace period as long as they meet the requirements of the initiative.

• Operators of Cannabis Centers may transfer ownership or control of their Centers at any time as long as the Centers continue to meet the requirements of the initiative.

• Center operators will be required to follow strict operational plans that require a detailed security plan, specific floor plans, limited hours of operation, and signage restrictions.

• The CSAO will authorize Medical Cannabis Centers to cultivate and dispense medical cannabis to qualified patients and primary caregivers.

• Persons with certain recent felony convictions may be disqualified from operating or working in a Cannabis Center. However, this does not include convictions for marijuana-related offenses.
• Minors (under 18 years of age) will not be allowed on the premises of a Cannabis Center unless accompanied by a parent or guardian.

• The consumption of cannabis or alcohol will not be allowed on the premises of any Center.
We need 100k signatures to get this on the ballot as of today we are on track to make the March 1st deadline to get it on the June Ballot.

Please support the CSAO for more information call 619-467-1235 or go to our web site www.calcc.info