Berkeley council's medical pot policy

By Cecly Burl
STAFF WRITER

BERKELEY It has been many moons and many more tokes since Berkeley
police at the direction of city officials considered pot smokers a high
priority bust.

Not surprising, considering this tolerant city is the birth place of the
Free Speech Movement and ground zero for Vietnam war protests, not to
mention the home of such free living cultural icons as Wavy Gravy.

Yet Berkeley, long a world leader on Issues that protect human rights,
is just now beginfling to address the legal implications of Proposition
215, the medical marijuana initiative passed by voters last year.

Tonight, the City Council is expected to agree with three city
commissions and authorize a panel to develop a city policy on the humane
use, cultivation and distribution of marijuana for medical purposes.

With continuing crackdowns on the Cannabis Buyers' Club in San
Francisco, such a policy comes none too soon, advocates say.

Alameda County Superior Court Judge Larry Goodman on Monday refused to
dismiss charges against club founder Dennis Peron and flve others
accused of selling pot for nonmedicinal purposes.

The defendants sought to have the charges dismissed under Proposition
215, but the judge ruled the defendant's activitles were not covered
under the new law.

Deputy Police Chief Roy Meisner said maruuana accounts for a mere 1
percent to 3 percent of all arrests in Berkeley, usually if someone is
caught smoking a joint in front of an officer or if the weed is
discovered during investigation of another crime.

But Proposition 215 opened a whole new can of worms, Meisner said. In
March, he helped draft a police training bulletin to guide patrol
officers who encounter people using or sup~ying maruuana under a doctor's
recommendation.

This law has so many nuances to it," he said. "We didn't feel comfortable
not giving guidance to our officers who might be caught in the middle.
The law was very confusing to everyone.

The guidelines help officers determine if someone is legally allowed to
use marijuana or possess it as a caregiver, so nobody's time is wasted,
Meisner said.

Dan Smith, a member of the Police Review Commission, which along with
the city's community health and disability commissions support the
comicil item, said a clear policy is needed.

He said proponents of a city policy were less worried about existing
police practices than what might happen if they tried to establish a
buyers' club in Berkeley similar to those in San Francisco and Oakland.

Berkeley resident Joan Brown, 62, who suffers from colon and liver
cancer, drives to Oakland every few weeks to stock up on marijuana
muffins, which she says help her sleep at night. She said she would
welcome a policy that led to a buyers' club in town.

"I would definitely love It if there were a ~ace here," she said. "It
would make It a lot easier."

Jeff Jones, executive director of Oakland's club, said between 10
percent and 20 percent of his customers live in Berkeley.

"Speaking as an activist, it helps to work out issues and problems before
they exist," Jones said. "Berkeley is the No. 1 place for disabled people
and accessibility, so there wiU be a vast number of people who benefit
from an established policy."