S.J. POT CLUB LIMITS CLIENTS

The Santa Clara County Medical Cannabis Center said Wednesday it will no
longer accept new clients because of the club's legal troubles.

A voice on the center's answering machine informed callers that the cutoff
was "due to recent events forced upon us by the San Jose Police Department
and the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office."

The voice was that of Peter Baez, co-founder of the year-old center on
Meridian Avenue, which serves about 270 members who can legally obtain up
to an ounce of marijuana a week with a physician's approval. Many of the
clinic's clients suffer from AIDS and cancer while others have glaucoma or
other illnesses.

Baez, who was arrested last week on a charge of selling pot to a client
without a prescription -- an allegation he strongly denies -- said three
people who came to sign up had to be turned away on Wednesday because of
the dwindling marijuana. They had been sent there by the Pace Clinic,
which treats AIDS patients.

During Baez's arrest, police had confiscated office records and patient
files. When they departed, Baez said they left behind 2 1/2 pounds of
marijuana. The center's assets have been frozen in connection with the
case.

"This has put us in a situation that is not going to benefit our patients,"
Baez said. "We'll continue to give it out until it's gone." After that,
"we'll have to make some tough decisions," he added.

Baez's arrest was an unusual development for an operation that has
generally gotten along well with law enforcement agencies, avoiding some of
the conflicts other California cannabis clubs have encountered since voters
passed Proposition 215, the 1996 medical marijuana initiative.

The state law faces a challenge in federal court by the Clinton
administration, which seeks to overturn it on grounds that the measure is
superceded by a federal ban on the sale of marijuana.

Troubles for Baez and the cannabis center began to smolder when a San Jose
man, Enrique Robles, was convicted on a misdemeanor charge of possession of
marijuana. Robles claimed he was getting the marijuana for medical
purposes. Police said he had no prescription.

Authorities said Baez had allegedly sold Robles marijuana numerous times
between Oct. 22, 1997 and Feb 25.

Without naming Robles, the club said it had oral approval from a doctor to
sell marijuana in the case that led to Baez's arrest. The district
attorney's office said a check to three doctors, whose neames were obtained
from the center, revealed that all denied having authorized a prescription
for Robles.