COUNTY JOINS POT-FIGHTING LAWSUIT

Taking a Stance Against Medical Marijuana

Merced County is gearing up for a smoking showdown with civil rights
groups that could determine the future of state medical marijuana laws.

The county is expected to file legal papers on Friday that will join
San Diego and San Bernardino counties in arguing that federal laws
banning marijuana supersede any state laws allowing the use of the drug.

The Merced County Counsel's Office joined the legal battle three
months ago in an effort to overturn Proposition 215, the 1996 measure
that allows Californians to use marijuana for medicinal purposes.

But most members of the county Board of Supervisors say they want the
marijuana laws clarified, but don't want to see the drug completely banned.

They were hard-pressed to explain why they all voted to join a
lawsuit that would prohibit any marijuana use, even for medicinal purposes.

"I don't know," said Supervisor Kathleen Crookham. "I would assume
we're involved because so many people raised the issue."

Supervisor Jerry O'Banion said he didn't think the county was taking
a stance on the issue.

"I don't look at it as we're siding on someone's side," he said.

But Merced County's attorneys argue in a complaint filed in San Diego
Superior Court that Proposition 215 "is invalid as a matter of law."

Supervisor Mike Nelson, who is the only member of the board who said
he is opposed to the use of medical marijuana, said the supervisors
voted to join the lawsuit after Merced resident Grant Wilson
repeatedly showed up to board meetings earlier this year.

At each meeting, Wilson asked supervisors to vote on whether the
county should issue identification cards for people who were
prescribed medical marijuana, as ordered by the Legislature in 2003.

Merced County and most other California counties have not set up an
identification system yet, saying it would cause too much confusion
for health and law enforcement officials.

Nelson, who is the chairman of the board, denied Wilson's requests
each time. Instead, Nelson voted to join the lawsuit.

"Mr. Wilson has continually come asking for some determination," he
said. "So to help him along, we're asking for a determination."

The lawsuit would have gone on without Merced County's participation
however, and the court would have eventually reached a ruling that
would clarify which marijuana laws should prevail.

Asked if the county could have waited for the lawsuit to play out
instead of devoting staff time to the effort, Nelson replied, "Perhaps."

Wilson could not be reached for comment Friday. In a letter he sent
to Nelson in July, he said he felt "misled and deceived" by the
board's decision to join the lawsuit.

Supervisor Deidre Kelsey, who said she supports the right for
patients to be prescribed marijuana, said she voted for the county to
join the lawsuit that would eliminate that right because the county's
participation would give local officials some say in how the legal
battle is resolved if the case is settled.

"It gives us an opportunity to give our input at the table if there's
an opportunity for negotiations," Kelsey said.

Supervisor John Pedrozo could not be reached for comment Friday.

Deputy Counsel Walter Wall, who is assigned to argue against
Proposition 215 for Merced County, provided basic details about the
marijuana lawsuit, but declined to comment on why the county decided
to join the legal effort.

San Diego County supervisors voted 3-2 last November to file suit
against the state to overturn Proposition 215. The lawsuit also seeks
to eliminate the 2003 law passed by the Legislature that requires
identification cards for marijuana users.

San Bernardino County joined the legal battle in January and Merced
County jumped in five months later. No other counties have joined the lawsuit.

The counties' opposition has mounted in recent weeks. A judge ruled
Aug. 5 that the American Civil Liberties Union, the Drug Policy
Alliance and Americans for Safe Access could join the fight against
the three counties.

Another group, called Safe Access Now, rallied marijuana-rights
supporters in Merced County in May after supervisors voted to join the lawsuit.

A half dozen locals and Aaron Smith, a Safe Access Now lobbyist,
called on county officials to drop the legal effort because they said
other courts have already backed the legality of Proposition 215.

"It would be a great misappropriation of Merced County's limited
resources to entangle itself in this costly lawsuit," Smith said in a
statement released at that time.