Cannabis Law Group's Medical Marijuana Legal Blog

According to the Los Angeles Times, the City's Attorney's Office is making an attempt to stop a medical marijuana dispensary in Encino from operating before it even opens.

The Los Angeles City's Attorney's Office is looking to file an injunction against the operators of the medical marijuana company, JEP Collective. The Office is also seeking an injunction against the owners of the shopping center that was going to rent space to the business. The stopping center is located on Ventura Boulevard. The city is looking to stop the company before it opens because council members say that the owners of the company and the shopping plaza were going to violate a number of the city's zoning codes as well as the state narcotics abatement law.

Our Las Angeles medical marijuana lawyers understand that city officials across the state continue to throw bogus rules and regulations at these companies. Dispensaries and collectives are both part of a huge industry that the state needs to embrace. Comprehensive reform has the ability to benefit the patients, the owners, the city and the state if executed properly. Strict rules, bogus regulations and complete shutdowns are no way to treat an industry that offers so much to the state. Many times these regulations hurt residents the most as they're unable to obtain critical treatment for a number of diseases, disorders and illnesses.

The injunction was filed after the city attorney's office found out that the shopping center had approved a lease application for one of its units for the medical marijuana dispensary. This specific shopping center is located approximately 200 feet from the St. Cyril's Catholic Church. Also located just 400 feet away is the Valley Beth Shalom synagogue. Both of these establishments conduct classes and services for children on their properties.

According to Los Angeles city law, medical marijuana dispensaries are prohibited from operating within 1,000 feet from libraries, churches, schools and parks.

Under the Medical Marijuana Program, the Compassionate Use Act of 1996 and Proposition 215, patients that are under medical care and primary caregivers are allowed to cultivate and possess marijuana. This only comes after certified physician's approval and recommendation and after the patient received a county-issued marijuana health card.

Medical marijuana has been approved to treat any number of medical conditions, including the following:

-Arthritis

-Cancer

-Arthritis

-Migraines

-Seizures

-AIDS

-Glaucomna

-Muscle spasms

-Anorexia

-Seizures

-Nausea

-Cachexia

-Chronic pain

According to Los Angeles Cannabis Clubs, in addition to California, medical marijuana has been accepted in 12 other states across the U.S.

Continue reading "Medical Marijuana Dispensary in Encino Stopped by City Officials" »

Airport police in Indianapolis seized medical marijuana from a 36-year-old California breast cancer patient, according to the Indianapolis Star.

Our Costa Mesa medical marijuana attorneys are closely following the issue of legal problems that arise when a California medical marijuana patient crosses state lines. Even when crossing from California to Nevada (both states have medical marijuana laws), a patient can find himself in legal trouble. Either because of differences in state laws or because the patient's medical marijuana card is only good in one state.

Driving under the influence of drugs is another area of the law where a medical marijuana patient may be subjected to unfair arrest or detention.

In this case, the Transportation Security Administration reports that a screener found the marijuana in luggage passed through an x-ray machine at Indianapolis International Airport. Marijuana and a pipe were found inside a pink case. Screeners claim an alarm prompted them to search the bag.

The 36-year-old Van Nuys woman told police she had breast cancer and showed them her medical marijuana card. Authorities told her possession was still illegal in the state of Indiana. While she was not charged, the pipe, case and marijuana were confiscated and authorities indicated they planned to destroy the items.

As we reported recently on our Marijuana Lawyer Blog, law enforcement has apparently run out of real crime because authorities have begun targeting drivers they think are operating under the influence of marijuana.

Make no mistake about it: Whether authorities like it or not, California medical marijuana patients have rights. There is nothing saying they must stop driving. There is nothing saying they should be exposed to harassment from every bored cop in Southern California. Marijuana can remain in a person's system for up to 30 days -- long after its effects have dissipated. Just because someone tests positive for the presence of marijuana does not mean that he or she is driving under the influence of drugs.

The charge is nearly impossible to prove, in other words. And a driver should always consult an experienced Los Angeles criminal defense lawyer.

Continue reading "California Medical Marijuana Patients Stopped by TSA in Indianapolis" »

The fight over control of California's medical marijuana industry continued this week when Gov. Jerry Brown vetoed a measure that would prevent medical marijuana dispensaries in Los Angeles and elsewhere from operating within 600 feet of homes.

The Los Angeles Times reported the governor cited the rights of cities and counties to regulate the measure in rejecting the statewide law. Our Los Angeles marijuana defense lawyers continue to watch as government at all levels -- city, county, state and federal -- makes a mockery of the will of the voters.

The deservedly maligned Los Angeles medical marijuana ordinance mandates a 1,000-foot buffer from schools, public parks, churches or other protected areas and prohibits dispensaries from being located next to or across the street from homes.

Despite voter approval of medical marijuana in 1996 -- 15 years ago now -- seemingly every politician in the state of California wants a hand in creating regulation instead of tackling the real problems facing their communities. Dispensaries and patients should lawyer up. The industry has won a number of major court battles. Those who stand and fight have the best chance of being around when the rights of medical marijuana patients and collectives are ultimately upheld.

For now, the patchwork of measures are coming fast and furious from every level of government. In rejecting the measure, Brown cited his support for AB1300; the governor recently signed the measure, which gives cities and counties "clear authority" to regulate the location and operation of medical marijuana dispensaries.

Excuse us? NOTHING gives counties any such rights. It's amazing to us that millions (perhaps billions by the time it's said and done) of tax dollars are being spent to thwart the will of the majority of California voters and taxpayers. Voters who very nearly legalized recreational marijuana.

Brown has very clearly carried into the governor's office the anti-marijuana agenda he pushed as the state's attorney general.

"This bill goes in the opposite direction by preempting local control and prescribing the precise locations where dispensaries may not be located," Brown wrote in his veto message. "Decisions of this kind are best made in cities and counties, not the state Capitol."

The bill's sponsor, Sen. Lou Correa, D- Santa Ana, said he was disappointed. Correa said he introduced the legislation at the request of officials in Anaheim, where a dispensary opened on the ground floor of an apartment building. Correa said the bill would have permitted cities to choose their own buffer if not satisfied by the 600 foot.

"I'm disappointed for the community," Correa said. "All we were talking about is taking a buffer zone already in the law to keep second-hand pot smoke away from children at schools and extending it to keeping it away from residences."

We're not sure what second-hand pot smoke at schools has to do with anything. But then again we often find ourselves confused when watching politicians at work on the medical marijuana issue.

Authorities busy cracking down on medical marijuana use by sick patients want you to believe they are just enforcing the law as it's always been. They don't want to listen to voters. And they don't want to abide by the Compassionate Use Act of 1996.

But the truth of the matter is that marijuana was grown on large plantations in the United States until the 1920s. Not until after prohibition, when the nation banned alcohol, did marijuana become illegal. Alcohol was re-legalized a decade later -- medical marijuana remained illegal until California became the first state to legalize it shortly before the turn of the century.

Our Southern California medical marijuana attorneys want you to have the truth. And the truth is that marijuana has been used legally by residents of nations the world over for thousands of years. It was illegal for about 50.

Time Magazine reports marijuana was used in China as early as 2737 B.C. for the treatment of a number of ailments, including gout and malaria. There is even some evidence that marijuana was the first crop grown using the founding techniques of modern agriculture. Agriculture, in term, gave birth to modern society.

Not until the end of the 1800s, when as much as 5 percent of the population became unwittingly addicted to morphine used in medicines, did the tide begin to turn. In 1906, the Pure Food and Drug Act was created. The act brought the distribution of opium and morphine under the control of doctors -- it was this regulation of chemical substances that was a major shift in U.S. drug policy.

In 1914, drug use was defined as a crime under the Harrison Act. To bypass the rights of states, the feds used a tax of non-medicinal use of drugs and punished those who used drugs without paying the tax. By 1937, 23 states had outlawed marijuana and the federal government passed the Marihuana Tax Act. Even if they couldn't spell, the act made nonmedical use of marijuana illegal.

In World War II, the government grew huge hemp crops to supply the Navy with rope. Not until the 1950s, when Congress passed the Boggs Act and the Narcotics Control Act, were criminal penalties for marijuana defined.

Less than 50 years later, California became the first state to take back its rights -- legalizing marijuana use for medical purposes. Since then, 16 states have legalized medical marijuana: Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Washington.

Continue reading "History of Marijuana: Long History of Legal Use Until Prohibition " »

The tentative opinion of the Fourth District Court of Appeals in the case of the City of Riverside v. Inland Empire Patients Health and Wellness is unfortunately not favoring the Riverside medical marijuana dispensary.

The dispensary appealed a trial court finding, which upheld the city's right to shut down the dispensary after declaring it a public nuisance. The case is one of a handful being watched by medical marijuana dispensary attorneys in Riverside and elsewhere in Southern California.

As we reported recently on our Marijuana Lawyer Blog, dispensaries must continue to stand and fight against the local, state and federal interests that continue to infringe upon the rights of medical marijuana patients and collectives granted by voters in 1996.

Inland Empire Center is contending Riverside's ban on medical marijuana dispensaries is preempted by state law -- including the Compassionate Use Act of 1996 and the Medical Marijuana Program.

The court's tentative opinion sides with the city.

Inland Empire Center opened in Riverside in 2009. The city sued the dispensary operators and the landlords. The city sent a letter claiming code violations before filing suit. The trial court granted the city a preliminary injunction in November 2010.

The appeals court was asked to overturn the injunction on the grounds that the trial court abused its discretion. The court said at issue is whether Riverside's zoning rule is valid and enforceable. And whether the dispensary met its legal burden to show state law preempts the local ordinance, which it has failed to do in the case, according to the tentative opinion.

Also at issue in this case is the city's contention that a clinic next door was involved with the medical marijuana dispensary. Both were owned and/or operated by the same people. Doctors are not permitted to refer to clinics, which may also be a non-profit violation.

Oral hearings in the case are pending.

Continue reading "Riverside Medical Marijuana Attorneys Watching Inland Empire Case " »

Our Los Angeles medical marijuana defense lawyers note a recent L.A. Daily News article by Kevin James, which suggests reducing pay and benefits of council and making it a part-time position.

We think the idea has merit. A look at the disastrous L.A. medical marijuana ordinance is a good example of council's recent work. With the city facing critical budget shortfalls and other serious public health and safety issues, council has spent or will spend millions in tax dollars defending an ordinance it has repeatedly modified in an attempt to survive more than 50 lawsuits. All to address an issue voters settled more than 15 years ago. Combine that with the fact that the entire state nearly legalized marijuana altogether, and voters have clearly spoken.

Meanwhile, taxpayers are forking over $1.7 million per year per council seat. The L.A. City Council is the highest paid in the nation -- each member receives $178,789, as well as a car and a $100,000 taxpayer funded slush fund. Council employs a staff of more than 300. Changing council to part time -- as has been done in Washington D.C. and New York City, would also open up council to working professionals and help provide city hall with a much-needed dose of the real world.

Six of the 10 largest cities in the nation are run with part-time councils. And James reports that the L.A. council members only work part time anyway -- rotating through meetings to keep enough members in attendance to conduct business while providing each member with the maximum available time off.

"Los Angeles today is a city in secular decline. Its current political leadership seems determined ... to leave behind a dense, government-dominated, bankrupt, dysfunctional Athens by the Pacific," wrote Joel Kotkin, an urban development professor, in a recent piece in The Wall Street Journal.

James notes the city's medical marijuana ordinance as one of council's most egregious failings and points to the full-time positions as promoting corruption. More than half of council members have faced conflict-of-interest or ethical allegations and the Center for Governmental Studies' report, "Money and Power in the City of Angels," found that the L.A. Council votes unanimously more than 99 percent of the time.

The reported noted such unanimous decisions make it difficult or impossible to link votes to campaign contributions.

Continue reading "Disastrous L.A. Medical Marijuana Ordinance cited in Push to Reduce City Council to Part Time" »

A Las Vegas judge is the latest to dismiss criminal charges involving medical marijuana, the Review-Journal reported.

Our Los Angeles medical marijuana defense attorneys continue to monitor the issue. As we reported recently on our Marijuana Lawyer Blog, the court here has sided with patients and collectives when it comes to criminal charges -- despite the fact that the California Assembly and local legislatures have passed measures permitting criminal charges in connection with medical marijuana, which has been legal under state law for 15 years.

The judge found in this case that the prosecutor was selective about the evidence shown to the grand jury. This is incredibly dangerous, and unfortunately happens with alarming regularity. Grand juries are made up of citizens from the community. The standard of proof is fairly low in order to get criminal charges. And many believe the juries are predisposed to side with the prosecutors. Nor is there typically any defense evidence presented. Despite the incredible home field advantage, too many prosecutors can't resist further stacking the deck. The fact that people are wrongly charged should come as no real surprise.

The judge ruled the grand jury should have been shown paperwork filled out by the undercover officers, which indicated the marijuana was not for sale and that a co-op donation was not necessary to obtain the herb under the state's medical marijuana law.

In Nevada, law enforcement has virtually shut down the industry by claiming co-ops were accepting compensation in the form of donations, which violates state law. Like so many other states, law enforcement in Nevada is having a difficult time understanding they no longer run the show when it comes to marijuana laws -- the people have spoken. The VOTERS have spoken. Like medical marijuana in Los Angeles, it will be those who stand and fight for their legal rights who have the best chance of standing in victory at the end.

The defendant in this case was one of 13 defendants. He argued Nevada law is nonsensical because it permits patients to possess marijuana but makes it illegal to obtain it! They were indicted on 11 counts of sale of a controlled substance for providing medical marijuana to a Las Vegas police officer who had a medical marijuana card.

Lawmakers there have made such a mess of things that even the judge is confused.

"Well why don't they (the Legislature) make up their mind if they want to make it legal or not," the judge said. "I'm looking at it thinking I can't make any sense out of this law."

In Nevada, one law makes it legal for a medical marijuana patient (cardholder) to produce, deliver or possess marijuana. However, other state and federal laws make it illegal to buy or sell marijuana. Again, elected politicians are thwarting the will of the voters.

The judge dismissed the charges without prejudice -- meaning the state could choose to recharge. The defendants could also face charges under federal law.

Continue reading "Vegas Tosses Criminal Charges in Medical Marijuana Case " »

Ahh! Great idea. San Jose wants to make collectives grow all of their medical marijuana on site. Our Orange County medical marijuana defense attorneys suppose the next complaint will be break-ins at dispensaries in the area. Or that they are too big.

Whether it's the medical marijuana ordinance in Las Angeles or silly rules as far away as San Jose, local governments continue to pander for the cameras rather than addressing budget concerns and other dire needs of the day. From coast to coast, a look at the apparent agenda of far too many local politicians would suggest there are few pressing concerns other than infringing upon the constitutionally guaranteed medical marijuana rights of patients.

In the meantime these elected officials are costing their communities millions of dollars in legal fees -- fighting an issue that was decided by voters while Bill Clinton was in the White House.

Harborside Health Center is a collective located in a North San Jose industrial park. At 6,000 square feet, it is the city's largest collective but would have to become three times larger -- a virtual Wal-Mart of cannabis -- in order to be large enough to grow all of its own product on site.

Local politicians will probably pass size restrictions next. That, or federal drug raids will target these operations.

The basic issue here is that the politicians don't have any idea what they are talking about. Election to office does not make one an expert on all things. However, far too often not enough research is done before passing arbitrary laws. A perfect example is the airport use tax being debated in Congress. The idea is to charge private planes a tax for landing. Sounds simple (ok, kindof simple aside from the brand new bureaucracy that would be created to charge, collect and distribute the tax). But what far too many politicians have not properly considered is that pilots often practice landings in order to improve their skills and avoid accidents. By passing the use tax, Congress could simultaneously discourage pilots from practicing -- thereby increasing the number of airplane crashes!

San Jose has some time. Council is meeting on the issue to discuss several other elements, including:

-How many medical marijuana collectives should be permitted. Council is looking to reduce the number from 140 to 10. We guess that means there will be about 130 lawsuits to defend. Not to mention marijuana superstores to meet the demand.

-How will council choose which collectives live and which die?

-Where will the city allow collectives.

For too long, San Jose has been outright hostile to the medical marijuana industry -- forcing patients to go to San Francisco, Berkeley or elsewhere in order to obtain their medicine.

Oh yes, and just by the way: None of San Jose's current medical marijuana dispensaries could satisfy all provisions of the law as it's currently proposed. In other words, all 140 would be deemed illegal.

Continue reading "Medical Marijuana in San Jose: It's a Circus, Put a Tent Over It" »

Our Los Angeles medical marijuana attorneys frequently report when our L.A. politicians act before they think. And we are never short of opportunities -- particularly when it comes to their knee-jerk reactions over medical marijuana, which has apparently become the only pressing issue in the city they care to address.

As the Sacramento Bee reports, the Union of Medical Marijuana Patients has filed a legal challenge in Los Angeles Superior Court. The case challenges the Los Angeles medical marijuana ordinance based on the fact that the city failed to do an environmental impact report.

"The City is compelled to consider the results of this dramatic change to the neighborhoods of the surviving patient associations or collectives, including a potential increase in traffic, parking, noise, air and water pollution, land use, utilities, and many other factors," Director James Shaw wrote.

The agency notes the ordinance, which council passed in January 2010, was so legally dubious that a judge placed a hold on its implementation and the city has repeatedly amended it in an effort to survive 57 lawsuits. Shaw said an environmental impact study needs to be done regarding the reduction in the number of dispensaries from more than 400 to less than 100. To say nothing of the fact that most of the remaining 100 will have to move.

"The 75 percent reduction in available locations means, just to give one example, that cultivation has to be quadrupled at the 100 remaining collectives, which would need to use a lot more electricity and water and dispose of additional waste water and plant matter," the complaint states.

Shaw said about 100,000 medical marijuana patients rely on the medicine in Los Angeles. The ordinance will result in a tremendous disruption in service and undue travel. He said a prohibition that would require dispensaries to locate at least 1,000 feet from schools, libraries, parks and child care facilities means most would have to located in distant industrial and rural areas. Such a move would create "a tremendous hardship on the most seriously ill."

He also disputes the oft-spouted analogy of regulating liquor stores -- noting there are more than 3,400 liquor stores in the city -- or 34 times the number of medical marijuana dispensaries.

Continue reading "Los Angeles Medical Marijuana Ordinance Challenged for Lack of Environmental Impact Study" »

The recent arrest of Rodney King on DUI charges in Riverside County highlights the issue of DUI charges involving medical marijuana in Los Angeles.

Our Riverside medical marijuana defense lawyers are seeing an increasing number of medical marijuana patients accused of driving under the influence. In this case, King faces up to a year in prison on the DUI charge. He said he was using medical marijuana to deal with back pain.

As we reported in August on our Marijuana Lawyer Blog, authorities are handing out an increasing number of DUI drug charges in Los Angeles. Authorities believe as many as 1 in 10 nighttime drivers in the L.A. area are under the influence of marijuana. And the L.A. times reports more than 1,000 serious and fatal accidents a year in L.A. involve a driver high on marijuana.

Police believe such accidents have increased by 50 percent in the last decade.

"Marijuana is a significant and important contributing factor in a growing number of fatal accidents," said Gil Kerlikowske, director of National Drug Control Policy in the White House and former Seattle police chief. "There is no question, not only from the data but from what I have heard in my career as a law enforcement officer."

Folks, it's ridiculous. It hasn't been that long ago since the L.A. sheriff held a press conference and spent the day waiving lollypops while warning parents of marijuana-laced candy in their child's trick-or-treat bag.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports "specially trained" officers are returning to their communities with the ability to tell whether a driver is operating a vehicle under the influence of drugs.

If you are stopped and accused of driving under the influence of drugs, simply remain polite, remain quiet, and contact an attorney. In many cases, such charges are nearly impossible to prove. Authorities rely upon intimidation and a defendant's own statements to try to secure a conviction. You may not be obligated to take a blood test. And even if results show the presence of marijuana it does not mean you were under the influence at the time of arrest. Marijuana can remain in your system for up to 30 days -- long past the time when it impacts your ability to drive.

As for these "specially trained" officers, we think psychics could do as good a job. We don't even believe field sobriety tests are a credible tool. In each of these cases the results of such "testing" are nothing more than the opinion of an officer about your guilt. Considering the fact that an officer's job is to collect evidence of your guilt, these tests are anything but objective and a motorist has little or no chance of passing.

You have the right to remain silent. Exercise it. And contact an L.A. medical marijuana defense lawyer to protect your rights.

Continue reading "DUI/Drug charges in Los Angeles best handled by experienced Medical Marijuana Defense Lawyer" »

Last week, Governor Jerry Brown signed a bill that allows all local governments to regulate the locations of medical marijuana dispensaries in California. The bill, AB 1300, was first introduced by Assemblyman Bob Blumenfield (D-Woodland Hills). It was also supported by the Los Angeles city attorney, according to NBC.

This law aims to settle the issue; pot shops continue to sue local government over location regulations. Under this new law, cities throughout California will have the ability to file criminal or civil charges against shops that violate the new regulations.

Our Orange County medical marijuana attorneys will continue to fight these rules and regulations. A court ruling has already sided with patients and collectives on the issue of criminal charges -- ruling patients and collectives should not face criminal prosecution for something that is legal under state law.

State and local governments continue to have a difficult time understanding the obligation to obey the state Constitution. The state's marijuana law was passed by the voters. Our attorneys do not believe state or local government has the right to construct rules or regulations that infringe upon the voter-approved rights of patients. As is usual with state government, too many of the politicians have forgotten that they work for the voters.

The governor also received SB 847 to further regulate the medical marijuana industry. This bill aims to stop medical marijuana shops from opening up within 600 feet of homes and residential areas. Although this bill has yet to be signed, it's another real threat to the livelihood of the industry. A number of residents in local residential areas rely on the convenient location of these shops to receive their prescribed medication. Limiting their operational areas will put dispensaries out of reach for many deserving patients.

"The new law will provide a framework for stability after years of struggling with a Wild West, lawless proliferation of dispensaries across California that sometimes constitute a public nuisance or worse," Blumenfield said.

The governor has 12 days to decide on that SB 847, which was introduced by state Sen. Lou Correa (D-Santa Ana).

A number of our medical marijuana dispensaries believe that the new law will only lead to a repeat of historic regulations. Take Los Angeles for example. Back in 2010, the Los Angeles City Council and Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa passed and signed an ordinance that required medical marijuana dispensaries to:

-Only provide medical marijuana patients that "participate in the collective cultivation of marijuana at or upon the location of that collective."

-Keep their businesses at least 1,000 feet away from all schools, libraries, child care facilities, parks, religions institutions, substance abuse rehabilitation centers, youth center and any other medical marijuana collective.

-Close shops from 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 a.m.

-Operate as a not-for-profit establishment. The only compensation it would be allowed to collect would be to cover expenses for cultivating, growing and providing the products.

It was these requirements, along with a limit on the number of dispensaries, that lead to hundreds of closed shops in the city.

A number of dispensaries have been shut down since the new law was signed, but companies are fighting back. Five dispensaries have already been shut down in Westwood, California. More are expected to be forced to close up shop.

The bottom line is that medical marijuana is a lucrative industry and should be regulated as a legitimate business in the U.S. But unnecessary regulations that put these companies out of business are only violating owners and patient's rights.

Continue reading "Medical Marijuana Dispensaries in Los Angeles Regulated by City Government under AB1300" »

A medical marijuana dispensary in Lake Elsinore will reopen after an appeals court granted a stay preventing the city from enforcing its ban on medical marijuana dispensaries.

Our Lake Elsinore medical marijuana defense attorneys continue to see victories won by dispensaries and collectives who stand and fight for their rights against the unfair and arbitrary laws being passed by local politicians. Medical marijuana has been legal in California since 1996. It's time city councils got used to it. If you are neck-deep in bureaucracy, call the CANNABIS LAW GROUP and begin fighting back.

The California Fourth District Court of Appeal put on hold a Riverside County Superior Court order that permitted the city to enforce its ban on medical marijuana collectives. Recently, our Anaheim medical marijuana defense attorneys reported on our Marijuana Lawyer Blog that a similar appeal would likely be necessary to fight a local judge's decision in Anaheim.

Often it takes an appeals court decision to win justice for medical marijuana patients, growers, collectives and dispensaries under California law. It's those who stand and fight who are finding the best opportunities to survive and thrive.

In the order, Justices questioned whether cities can prohibit medical marijuana dispensaries, when they are permitted under state law. They also ruled the city has not shown that the dispensaries constitute a nuisance. The order permits the owner of "R Side Medical" to reopen, but requires the business to comply with code and safety regulations.

Cities continue to use licensing requirements and code and zoning enforcement to regulate or force the closure of medical marijuana businesses operating legally under state law. The end result, even in areas where such businesses remain legal, is a bureaucracy that is nearly impossible to navigate. Negotiate from strength. Contact the CANNABIS LAW GROUP.

This particular collective has operated in three storefronts. At the last location, the business was raided by sheriff's deputies and code enforcement officers. Three people were arrested and authorities seized marijuana, hashish and cash.

The owner filed a lawsuit in Riverside County Superior Court in May 2010, asking the judge to declare the city's ordinance unlawful. But, like the Anaheim case, the local judge sided with the city.

Continue reading "Victory for Medical Marijuana in Lake Elsinore Demonstrates Likely Appeal Path of Anaheim Decision " »