OAKLAND SEEKS TO SHEILD SELLERS OF MEDICINAL POT

Oakland officials leaped to the forefront of the medical marijuana movement
Thursday, designating the staff of the Oakland Cannabis Buyers' Cooperative
as city agents.

The move is designed to shield them from criminal prosecution. Robert
Raich, an attorney for the club, said designating staff as city agents will
protect them under the Controlled Substances Act of 1970, which gives
immunity from federal and criminal liability to agents enforcing an
ordinance relating to controlled substances.

Federal prosecutors are moving to shut down the Oakland club, along with
several others which sprang up after voters approved Proposition 215, the
medical marijuana initiative, in 1996. A federal judge later ruled the
initiative did not override federal law against distributing marijuana.

Checked-by: Mike Gogulski