BERKELEY ORDINANCE LIMITS MEDICINAL CANNABIS

(U-WIRE) BERKELEY, Calif. -- Berkeley residents who rely on marijuana for
medical purposes say they are shortchanged by a new ordinance outlining the
amount of legal possession.

The decision comes as debate over the extent to which California should
permit medical marijuana sweeps the nation. Oakland currently has a case
before the Supreme Court, which will force the justices to determine what
rights patients have in accessing the drug.

The Berkeley City Council adopted the Medical Marijuana Ordinance last
Tuesday, which allows patients to possess 2.5 pounds of dried marijuana and
grow up to 10 plants. The council resoundingly dismissed a dueling proposal
calling for 144 plants -- deemed "too liberal" by many city officials.

Berkeley is one of the last cities to establish legal guidelines of
marijuana possession for qualified patients. While San Francisco determines
legal amounts by examining personal situations, Oakland allows "qualified"
patients to grow up to 144 plants.

The long-anticipated ordinance was met with rousing disapproval at the
council meeting from patients who regularly use the drug. After the 8-1
vote adopting the lesser amounts, the room erupted with chants from nearly
50 activists, crying out, "We'll see you in court," "Shame on you" and
"Where's the compassion?" as they walked out of the chambers.

"I think this should be supported by people needing to grow their own
(marijuana)," said Val Adase of the city's Cannabis Buyer's Co-op. "Not
everybody can afford what they need for their own. With the 10-plant limit,
you can have half your crop wiped out by spider mites."

Adase said the growing method is endorsed in Proposition 215, which
California voters passed in 1996. The law allows patients, with a doctor's
approval, to grow and possess marijuana, although it does not specify legal
amounts.

City officials debated for over an hour the merits of two opposing
proposals before reaching their decision. While the approved ordinance for
2.5 pounds and 10 growing plants originated from the city manager's office,
the city's Community Health Commission argued for more plentiful amounts --
144 plants and six pounds of the drug per person. It also placed no limit
on collectives.

City Manger Weldon Rucker cited incidents of past violence and break-ins
involving marijuana. Increasing amounts of the drug in residences will
negatively effect the crime rate city-wide, according to the staff report.

The city has done a good job in curbing illegal drug use, although
"historically there have been problems," he said at the meeting.

"I don't want to confuse the issue," Rucker said. "Medical marijuana is
okay, but I think we have to be practical from the standpoint of
irresponsible use of marijuana as a drug."

2.5 pounds is not an average, but a "very generous dose," maintained Poki
Namkung, the city's health officer.

"I think the guidelines that have been established in the city manager's
ordinance are humane," Namkung said. "No person who needs medical
marijuana will be denied access to it with those in place," adding that
other state health officers were "astonished" to hear about the 144-plant
quota for which the commission was lobbying.

While some city officials were hesitant to ignore the months of work by the
commission, others said they were wary to follow Oakland's lead,
particularly in light of Oakland's pending case in the Supreme Court.

"It really is a shame that our federal government wants to be so tough on
this plan," said Councilmember Dona Spring, who was the sole dissenter
against the ordinance. "They won't do the right thing and make this a
pharmaceutical product."

Don Duncan, director of the Cannabis Buyers Club in Berkeley, said, if
necessary, the grop will work on its own legislation for the November 2002
election.