POT CLUB IN OAKLAND ENDURING

Director not worried by recent court rulings

In the midst of legal actions taken against medical marijuana clubs in San
Jose and San Francisco recently, Oakland's pot club appears to be the last
one standing clear and easy -- in a manner of speaking -- in the Bay Area.

Unintimidated by a recent court ruling ordering the closure of the San
Francisco club and the recent arrest of San Jose director Peter Baez on
drug dealing charges, Jeff Jones, executive director of the Oakland club,
says his organization will endure -- one way or the other.

``So far we've been allowed to operate publicly with full city approval,''
he said. ``The police have helped regulate.''

Should the legal status of the Oakland Cannabis Buyers Club ever change,
however, the mission would remain the same, Jones said.

``If they want to start attacking us, we will go underground, go
door-to-door, and they'd have a hell of a time catching us,'' he vowed.

Oakland's club is not without its own problems. Federal agents posing as
primary caregivers beat the Oakland club's security measures, and used
their pot purchase to initiate a criminal case against it that is still
pending.

The most recent federal order to close the San Francisco club also sent its
clients scurrying to the Oakland club, Jones said.

``The last time they closed we had 600 calls for membership in three
days,'' Jones said.

Dennis Peron, who ran the San Francisco club, has left the club and handed
over the reins to Hazel Rogers, 78, a card-carrying member.

)1998 San Francisco Chronicle