WIDER ACCEPTANCE OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA HAS ANTI-DRUG GROUPS WORRIED

It looks like any other doctor's office, with white walls, a
receptionist's window and soothing background music.

But then there's the marijuana cookbook in the corner case, and the
"Medical Marijuana Survival Guide" handed out to patients.

The Temecula branch of Alternative Care Clinics opened four months
ago, part of a growing network of Inland businesses connecting
patients with medical marijuana.

"We used to get a lot more questions," said Jonathan Arbel, ACC's
director of operations. "Now it's just more recognized as a
legitimate treatment."

"It seems like it's a lot less of a negative thing now," said Tom
Wiggins Jr., administrator for Inland Empire Cannabis Consultants of
Temecula.

The trend worries a local anti-drug organization.

"Yes, we remain concerned that a pro-drug movement is afoot in the
Inland Empire," Roger Anderson, parent coalition chairman of the
Inland Valley Drug Free Coalition, wrote in an e-mail.

"The pot users don't really want a 'medicine.' They just want to get
high," Anderson wrote.

Medical marijuana is taking root amid new court rulings and policy
changes.

Last year, a state appeals court upheld a law setting marijuana
guidelines. On Feb. 18, Palm Springs became the first city in
Riverside County to change its zoning to allow medical marijuana
collectives and co-ops; two will be permitted to operate in an
industrial area.

Last summer, state Attorney General Jerry Brown released guidelines
for law enforcement in dealing with medical marijuana. The Riverside
County Sheriff's Department is overhauling its policy on the matter.
San Bernardino County still wants to overturn the state law.

While federal law forbids the use of marijuana for any purpose,
activists hope President Barack Obama's election will help their
cause. He has pledged to end federal raids on medical marijuana
dispensaries.

a shorter drive

Obtaining medical marijuana used to require a drive to Palm Springs
or Los Angeles, said Lanny Swerdlow, a registered nurse and one of
the county's most vocal medical marijuana activists.

Now, at least seven doctors in western Riverside County write
marijuana recommendations and dozens of delivery services connect
patients with the drug, Swerdlow said.

Formed four years ago, ACC has offices in San Diego, LA, Long Beach
and Palm Springs.

The Temecula office fills a market demand, Arbel said.

Located in leased space in a commercial office district, the
700-square-foot clinic is open once a week.

After filing out paperwork, patients discuss their condition with a
licensed doctor, who determines whether marijuana can help.

Illnesses from glaucoma to AIDS qualify for marijuana treatment under
California law.

If they are approved for treatment, ACC patients get a doctor's
recommendation and an ID card.

The card and a 24-hour verification service help patients avoid
problems with law enforcement.

The clinic does not have any marijuana on-site, and staff is barred
by law from telling patients where to get it.

"If they ask, we tell them to Google it," Arbel said.

California also has a voluntary ID card system for patients. Health
departments in 47 counties, including Riverside, issue the cards.

More than 27,000 cards have been issued to date, state figures
indicate.

Setting guidelines

Medical marijuana became legal in California when 56 percent of
voters approved Prop. 215 in 1996.

In 2003, state lawmakers passed the Medical Marijuana Program Act,
which set up the state ID card system and established rules for
patients to cultivate marijuana.

San Bernardino County joined San Diego County in challenging the act,
saying it contradicted federal law.

The state 4th District Court of Appeals rejected their argument last
August, and the California Supreme Court declined to hear the case in
October.

San Bernardino and other counties are taking the case to the U.S.
Supreme Court, which recently asked for briefs, said Lt. Rick Ells of
the county Sheriff's Department.

The high court has not decided whether to take the case, he
said.

San Bernardino refuses to issue ID cards.

The guidelines released by the attorney general allow marijuana
collectives and co-ops to exist so long as they don't operate for
profit. The groups must not purchase marijuana from illegal sources
and must have detailed records proving users are legitimate patients.

The Riverside County Sheriff's Department is updating its medical
marijuana policy to keep up with recent changes, said Capt. Mitch Alm
of the sheriff's special investigations bureau.

The policy, which has no timetable, will set guidelines for field
operations, he said.

Anderson, of the drug-free coalition, hopes the federal government
maintains a tough stance on marijuana.

"We don't want our communities looking like Los Angeles or San
Francisco where there are more pot shops than Starbucks," he wrote.