TRIAL BEGINS FOR 2 ACCUSED UNDER POT-GROWING LAW

Two men arrested for growing more than 800 pot plants went on trial Monday
in the second recent local case looking at issues stemming from the state's
medicinal marijuana law.

Jury selection was under way for Kenneth E. Hayes and Michael S. Foley.
They told investigators they were growing the plants for a 1,200-member San
Francisco buyers club called CHAMP -- Cannabis Helping Alleviate Medical
Problems -- that was run by Hayes.

The men were arrested in May 1999 after officers found the plants in a
greenhouse near Petaluma. Also seized were 14 pounds of marijuana, more
than a pound of hashish and $3,700.

The state law, voter-approved Proposition 215, allows marijuana possession
with a physician's approval for medical patients and their caregivers.