CLAIM FILED FOR MARIJUANA TAKEN BY DEPUTIES FROM PLACER COUNTY

The Man Says He Grew 17 Plants For Medical Purposes, As Allowed By
Prop. 215

CITRUS HEIGHTS -- A man who claims he was growing marijuana for
medical purposes, as allowed by Proposition 215, is seeking money from
his homeowner's insurance company for plants seized by sheriff's deputies.

Chris Miller and his wife were arrested on marijuana cultivation
charges after Placer County sheriff's deputies raided his home in March 1999.

All charges were dropped.

Now Miller, 48, is trying to persuade Allstate Insurance Co., which
insures his home, to pay him about $9,000 for the loss of the 17
plants seized by deputies.

Miller maintains he was growing the drug under the provisions of Prop.
215, the 1996 California ballot measure that authorizes medicinal use
of marijuana.

Allstate has offered Miller a settlement of $1,272, an amount he
rejects.

"With that offer, after I get through with my legal fees and $500
deductible, I would be left with less than $75," Miller said.

Because the claim hasn't been settled, Allstate cannot publicly
discuss it, said Sue Francesconi, a spokeswoman for the company.

"I can assure you that we are working with Mr. Miller and his attorney
in good faith and we are currently negotiating," Francesconi said. "We
want to offer him a fair settlement ... and we will."

Insurance claims for lost medical marijuana are "a new issue for
insurance companies to grapple with," said Candysse Miller of the
Insurance Information Network of California, a trade association for
the property casualty industry.

"The law (Prop. 215) has only been on the books a short time ... and
there are a lot of intangibles that really haven't been sorted out,
such as proving the medical use of the marijuana and determining what
the accurate price is," she said.

Despite those issues, more and more insurers are reimbursing clients
for destroyed or stolen medical marijuana, Candysse Miller said.

Robert DeArkland, 71, of Fair Oaks became the first known Californian
to receive such a reimbursement through his household insurance.

Last summer, he received $6,500 from CGU California Insurance for 13
marijuana plants that were taken from his garage by Placer and
Sacramento County sheriffs' deputies on Oct. 1, 1998. DeArkland, who
has arthritis and prostate cancer, sought reimbursement after charges
were dismissed.

In November, Ryan Landers, who has AIDS, collected $9,750 from
Travelers Indemnity Co. for the theft of two pounds of marijuana by
three gunmen who invaded his Sacramento apartment.

A Sacramento man who requested anonymity received $12,375 from CGU
California Insurance after an armed intruder took three pounds of
marijuana from his home in September.

Miller says marijuana abated the pain caused by arthritis and injuries
he'd suffered in three disabling car and motorcycle accidents.

Miller said when Placer County sheriff's deputies raided his home on
March 18, 1999, they ignored a framed note from his doctor reading, "I
recommend cannabis use for my patient, Chris Miller."

The Millers also have filed suit in Sacramento federal court charging
that the raid violated their civil rights.