CITY PONDERS MEDICAL MARIJUANA ZONES: PANEL TO CONSIDER WHERE PATIENTS CAN
SMOKE POT

When and where is it OK for a medical patient to smoke medicinal
marijuana in public?

A Sacramento City Council committee will debate that question
today.

The council's law and legislation committee is scheduled to look over
a proposal for a new city law that would ban medicinal marijuana
smokers from puffing within 100 feet of any person or building, such
as a restaurant or office.

The ban would extend to 1,000 feet around schools, and possibly around
other places children congregate, such as the city zoo, officials said.

Ryan Landers, a local medicinal marijuana advocate, said he plans to
testify that the law violates patients' rights because it is too
restrictive. At least one council member, Darrell Steinberg, said he
supports the idea, but will express some concerns as well.

The proposed law, drawn up by the city attorney and police at the
request of City Councilman Robbie Waters, is less restrictive than one
passed last year by the county Board of Supervisors. That law bans the
smoking of medicinal marijuana anywhere in public. It applies in any
unincorporated areas of the county.

The city of Sacramento has been wrestling with the issue since Landers
was arrested last year for smoking marijuana on the K Street Mall.

Landers, who is HIV positive, said he smokes marijuana to ease nausea
and work up an appetite. He has a doctor's approval to do so.

Proposition 215, passed by California voters in 1996, makes it legal
to smoke medicinal marijuana and to cultivate small amounts of it for
medical use.

Amid confusion over the law, the charges against Landers were dropped.
That led Waters, a former Sacramento County sheriff, to seek a law
limiting the smoking of marijuana in public.

Waters and others have argued that smoking marijuana in public sends a
wrong message to children, who may not understand the medicinal aspects.

"The idea is not to take legitimate uses away from people," he said.
"We want to keep this from escalating to where people are smoking
marijuana on bus stop benches."

Police Capt. Ernie Daniels said city officials are trying to adhere to
the spirit of Proposition 215, but notes in a report to the council:
"The ingestion of medicine, especially one that disperses smoke into
the surrounding area, should be a private matter and not a public display."

Steinberg said he thinks the proposed ordinance's limitations are
reasonable, but he is disappointed that the ordinance doesn't address
a request he made to look into a way some health-related organizations
can be given the OK to cultivate marijuana for patients.

Steinberg said he thinks the city should help medicinal marijuana
users legally. "I would not favor a Cannabis Club because of the
potential for abuse, but I would look for a partnership with a
health-related facility to make sure there is no abuse," he said.

Landers said the ordinance allows medicinal marijuana users almost no
place to smoke when they are out of their homes.

"At 10 feet away, you are definitely not going to breath marijuana
smoke," he said. "If the person is discreet, kids are not even going
to realize what is going on."

The committee hearing is scheduled for 12:15 p.m. today at City Hall.
The committee is as an advisory body to the full council, which will
take up the matter at a later date if it passes the committee.

Checked-by: Patrick Henry