ATTORNEY GENERAL JERRY BROWN WON'T RULE ON POT

No Clarification From State Leaves Valley Hanging

Medical marijuana patients, dispensary owners and city officials
seeking clarity on the legality of dispensaries won't get the
definitive answers they're seeking after word Wednesday that
California Attorney General Jerry Brown will not issue an opinion on
the matter.

Many in the Coachella Valley and across the state were anticipating
the opinion, originally expected by the end of summer, in the hopes
that it would contain clearer legal guidelines for this confusing and
controversial issue.

State law allows medical use of marijuana for patients with a doctor's
letter of recommendation but neither permits nor bans dispensaries.
Federal law bans all use or sale of the drug.

"It's disappointing to know people keep backpedaling, and it never
gets resolved," said Stacy Hochanadel, owner of CannaHelp, a
dispensary in Palm Desert.

Earlier this year, the Riverside County District Attorney's Office
charged Hochanadel and two of his managers, John Bednar and James
Campbell, with three felony counts each of possessing and selling
marijuana and operating a dispensary.

Last month, the case was continued in anticipation of the attorney
general's opinion.

Deputy Attorney General Marc J. Nolan said it is cases like
Hochanadel's, one of several medical marijuana cases around the state,
that led to the decision to cancel the opinion.

"We have a longstanding policy to not issue legal opinions if the same
legal opinions are being decided in court," Nolan said. "We do not
want to be perceived as trying to influence litigation."

But without clarity , cities such as Palm Springs, which has two
operating dispensaries, are in legal limbo. "We had hoped we were
going to get an opinion that would better put us into a position where
we could move (on) the legality of dispensaries," said City Attorney
Doug Holland.

The city has a dispensary moratorium in place. But city leaders held
off on an ordinance allowing dispensaries in anticipation of Brown's
opinion.

Still, the city has taken no action against Community Caregivers,
which opened earlier this year, and the Collective Apothecary of Palm
Springs, a recently opened dispensary, both located on Palm Canyon
Drive.

Staff at each dispensary declined comment Wednesday.

Seven cities in the Coachella Valley now have dispensary bans or
moratoriums in place. Only Cathedral City and Rancho Mirage have taken
no action on the issue, and officials for these cities said none is
planned.

SIDEBAR

Medical marijuana advocates and opponents react to the cancellation of
the attorney general's opinion on the legality of dispensaries.

Lanny Swerdlow, president of the Marijuana
Anti-Prohibition Project: "A lot of cities and counties
have been watching (for the opinion), and he's ducked
the issue and that's not right."

Ingrid Wyatt, spokeswoman for Riverside County DA Rod
Pacheco: "Nothing's changed as far we're concerned. Our
position remains the same as in the white paper
(opposing dispensaries), and has not been altered or
swayed in any way."