S.F. SET TO DEFEND MEDICAL POT CLUBS

SAN FRANCISCO -- With government lawyers arriving from Washington this week
to shut down Northern California's medical marijuana clubs, this often
irreverent bay-side city has mustered all its political weight to make sure
the ill can still get pot.

San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown and the mayors of four other California
cities sent letters to the White House on March 18, asking the Clinton
administration to "respect local government's expertise" when it comes to
marijuana and the seriously ill.

City District Attorney Terence Hallinan filed friend-of-the-court papers
two days earlier threatening that the city might use its own workers to
distribute marijuana if the federal government closed the clubs, the main
outlet for the drug since it was legalized for medical use under
Proposition 215, a voter initiative passed in 1996.

"We're saying, 'Hey, this is not your business,' " Hallinan said in a
telephone interview. "San Francisco has been dealing with this for years."

Five years before Proposition 215, the city passed an initiative supporting
the distribution of marijuana to the sick. Proponents of the plant say it
helps AIDS and chemotherapy patients maintain their weight by fighting
nausea and increasing appetite.

On Tuesday, U.S. Department of Justice lawyers will ask a federal judge in
San Francisco for an injunction closing six Northern California marijuana
clubs that were shut as part of a civil suit filed in federal court Jan. 9.
Despite Proposition 215, all possession of marijuana is still against
federal law.

The clubs -- two in San Francisco and one each in Oakland, Santa Cruz,
Ukiah and Marin County -- represent about 80 percent of the medical pot
distributed in the state.

Marijuana activists see Tuesday's hearing as a major test for the new law,
and have dubbed the case "United States vs. Medical Marijuana."

The case is also the first attempt by Washington to regain its footing
since drug czar Barry McCaffrey threatened in 1996 to impose sanctions on
doctors who recommended marijuana to their patients. That plan backfired
when a federal judge said it violated the First Amendment and enjoined drug
officials from taking any action against doctors.

"If it wasn't such a political issue, I'd say the federal government has
finally found an effective strategy," said Michael Vitiello, a professor at
McGeorge School of Law who has written about Proposition 215. "The legal
issues aren't that difficult, but the political side is very interesting."

Justice Department lawyers will clearly have the law on their side,
Vitiello said. Federal law always trumps state law. But popular support for
giving the seriously ill access to marijuana could force the federal
government into some form of compromise on the issue.

Proposition 215 passed by about 56 percent of California voters.

The mayors of West Hollywood, Oakland, Santa Cruz and San Francisco said in
their March 18 letter writing campaign that closing the clubs completely
could endanger the public health of their cities.

"If the centers are shut down, many of these individuals will be compelled
to search back alleys and street corners for their medicine," the mayors
wrote. "This will not only endanger their lives, but place an unnecessary
burden on our local police departments." With a tradition of progressive
politics and active gay community, San Francisco has earned a reputation
for innovation and controversy on AIDS-related issues.

City leaders have openly rebuked efforts by state Attorney General Dan
Lungren to shut down medical marijuana outlets.

In 1992, San Francisco went against state law to endorse clean needle
exchange programs to stem the spread of the HIV virus by intravenous drug
users.

"San Francisco has always been a little ahead," Hallinan said. "I don't
think there's a person in this city who doesn't know someone who has been
affected by AIDS."

Leaders from San Francisco and other cities are expected to attend a rally
in support of the marijuana outlets set for Tuesday morning outside the
federal courthouse.