JUDGE'S RULING TARGETS S.F. MARIJUANA CLUB

Founder ordered to stop providing pot

SAN FRANCISCO -- A Superior Court judge Thursday reinstated an injunction
against the Cannabis Cultivators Club that orders the medical marijuana
outlet's founder, Dennis Peron, to get out of the business of selling pot.

Superior Court Judge David Garcia commanded Peron to stop "furnishing,
storing, administering or giving away marijuana at (the club) or any other
location," under the injunction, which was sought by Attorney General Dan
Lungren.

The injunction follows a State Supreme Court decision Wednesday that let
stand a ruling that the club is not a "caregiver" under Proposition 215,
the 1996 law that lets seriously ill people and their caregivers possess
marijuana.

Peron, who co-authored Proposition 215, raised the possibility of civil
disobedience if the state moves to halt his operation.

"If Dan Lungren wants to come and bring in the tanks. . . be my guest," he
said. "Let him carry us out; we've got quite a few wheelchairs up here
that'll make it tough."

J. David Nick, the club's lawyer, said the club is not affected by the
injunction because it is in compliance with the law. It no longer "sells"
marijuana to its members, he said, but is "reimbursed" for cultivation
costs.

Attorney general's office spokesman Matt Ross said he expected the club to
comply with the order today. He would not speculate on what action the
state will take if club members refuse to shut down their operation,
saying, "Let's wait and see."

The injunction specifically targets the San Francisco club, and a hearing
on a permanent injunction is set for April. But state officials contend
that all of the state's 20 or so clubs are operating illegally.

Under the injunction, the club would no longer be able to distribute
marijuana as a "caregiver." Club members could conceivably continue to
congregate there to smoke their own marijuana.

The cannabis club's cash bar bustled Thursday, with club members standing
four deep to purchase marijuana that ranged from $30 low-grade Mexican
grass to $60 premium "California green."

Some worried that the club might soon be shut down. "I'll have to get in
line early tomorrow, because we might get raided," said club member Vanessa
Dunmore.

"If they shut this down, we will be back on the street looking for our
medicine," said Steven Scott, 25, who moved to San Francisco from Chico
because of the club. "You can't get marijuana legally in Chico."

Others lounging at the club watching a movie on a large-screen television
did not seem fazed.

Proposition 215 passed in November 1996 with about 56 percent of the vote.
Proponents argued that the drug helps the seriously ill by improving their
appetite and alleviating the nausea associated with chemotherapy.

The attorney general's office raided Peron's club about three months before
Proposition 215 passed, and then got an injunction to close it. But Judge
Garcia ordered the club reopened on the grounds that it served as a
"caregiver" under the new law.The 1st District Court of Appeal overturned
Garcia's ruling, and the State Supreme Court backed the appellate court
this week.

Copyright ) 1998 The Sacramento Bee