MEDICAL POT SHOP OPENS IN MONTROSE

The Western Slope is catching the eye of more than a few medical
marijuana green-thumbs.

Bill Hewitt of Montrose opened a medical marijuana dispensary in
Montrose this week to provide the drug to the nearly 300 registered
medical marijuana users in Mesa, Montrose, Delta and Garfield counties.

Hewitt said he has been growing medical marijuana as a caregiver for
patients for about a year, but TLC for THC, which is the name of his
dispensary, will be his first business-front location.

"I'm not really in business," Hewitt said. "I don't make anything
right now. I give more away than I sell."

Drew and Richard, who declined to give their last names for fear of
federal prosecution, opened Nature's Medicine, a dispensary in
Loveland, six months ago and traveled to Grand Junction in January to
meet with medical marijuana users in the area.

The men said they served one Western Slope patient at their Loveland
location and were planning to bring marijuana from Loveland to the
Western Slope if more patients were interested.

Richard said if they had 15 to 20 regular patients in the area, the
two would expand Nature's Medicine with a location in Grand Junction.

"We're here to find out if people want us here," he said. "We don't
want to step on any toes."

An amendment passed by voters in 2000 allowed medical marijuana users
who have registered with the state to possess less than 2 ounces of
marijuana or grow up to six marijuana plants. The amendment also
allows that person to designate a caregiver, who can possess or grow
the same amount of marijuana.

Dispensary owners and medical marijuana patients cannot be arrested
for drug charges under local or state law in Colorado, but they can
faces charges under federal law. However, federal prosecution is rare.

Hewitt, Richard and Drew shared similar stories of starting their
dispensaries. The men said they were medical marijuana users who got
tired of patients having to obtain the drug they were legally able to
have through illegal means.

"If you are sending patients to the street, you aren't taking out the
crime part of it," Drew said.

"We want to supply people with a safe place to go, and get rid of the
drug dealer."