ADVOCATES CHARGE SF POT RAID DEFIES OBAMA POLICY CHANGE

Federal Drug Enforcement Administration agents raided another local
medical cannabis dispensary in San Francisco last week, just days
after U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder signaled that the Obama
administration would not target patients and providers in the 13
states with medical marijuana laws.

"We have a national directive from President Obama that policy has
changed," said Shona Gochenauer, executive director of the patient
advocacy group Axis of Love and chairperson of the Harvey Milk LGBT
Democratic Club's Cannabis Caucus. "The raid is a slap in the face to
President Obama because they know he's a reformist who is going to
take steps toward sensible drug policy."

During the late afternoon raid March 25, DEA agents entered Emmalyn's
California Cannabis Clinic, located in the South of Market
neighborhood at 1597 Howard Street, where they removed bins of
marijuana plants, growing equipment, cash, and computers. The clinic
was open for business at the time, and witnesses said some disabled
patrons had to be helped to the floor.

The San Francisco Police Department and state law enforcement
officials did not participate in the raid, and SFPD spokeswoman
Sergeant Lyn Tomioka confirmed that local police were not notified in advance.

At the time of the raid, Emmalyn's was operating under a provisional
permit while it took final steps to meet requirements for licensing
by the San Francisco Department of Public Heath, as outlined in state
law and city regulations.

No one was arrested during the action, and Emmalyn's has since
reopened for business. The reason for the raid remains unclear, since
no charges have been publicly issued and affidavits were still under
court seal at press time.

"Based on our investigation, we believe there are not only violations
of federal law, but of state law as well," DEA Special Agent Anthony
Williams said in a prepared statement. "The investigation is
currently ongoing."

Contrary to speculation suggesting state tax irregularities, Alan
LoFaso, chief deputy to State Board of Equalization chairwoman Betty
Yee, told advocates that the board has no outstanding tax complaints
related to Emmalyn's and had "no involvement whatsoever" in the raid.
Yee's office indicated that even if there were tax allegations, the
BOE would not involve the DEA.

Added former San Francisco District Attorney Terence Hallinan, who is
representing Emmalyn's, "There is no evidence that I'm aware of that
my client is in violation of state or local law or is errant in
paying sales tax to the state."

"Any violations of California's medical marijuana law should be the
purview of local and state officials," said Kim Hermes with Americans
for Safe Access. "Medical marijuana patients and providers deserve a
chance to defend themselves under state and local law, which is not
possible once the federal government gets involved."

Advocates Spring into Action

Within minutes of last week's raid, word spread throughout the
advocacy community via text messages and e-mail, and people soon
began to gather outside the building. Activists organized a noon
rally the following day at the San Francisco Federal Building, which
ended with a march to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's (D-San Francisco) office.

"We wanted to focus on getting in contact with our political allies
as soon as possible rather than just standing outside with signs,"
Gochenauer told the Bay Area Reporter .

On Monday, Gochenauer, Emmalyn's proprietor John Baumgartner, and
members of the Patient Advocacy Network met with Pelosi's deputy
director, Melanie Nutter, to discuss the raid and present a list of
demands, including a federal injunction against any further
"investigations, raids, arrests, seizures, or prosecutions" until a
new DEA administrator is in place and new policies are formalized.

Advocates also remain concerned about the fate of individuals
currently facing federal charges for providing medical cannabis, and
demanded that charges be dropped if defendants already convicted
under federal law are found to be in compliance with state regulations.

Advocates are particularly incensed that DEA appears to be unaware of
- -- or deliberately ignoring -- Holder's recent statements signaling a
departure from the policies of the Bush and Clinton eras.

At a February 25 news conference, the newly appointed attorney
general confirmed Obama's campaign promise that he would not be
"using Justice Department resources to try to circumvent state laws
on this issue." On March 18, Holder went further, telling reporters
that the new policy is "to go after those people who violate both
federal and state law."

"Wednesday's DEA raid was a clear step backward," said state
Assemblyman Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco), who recently introduced a
bill to legalize and tax marijuana. "With the increasing violence
along the Mexican border, the DEA should be focusing their efforts on
fighting these dangerous cartels rather than sick people seeking
compassionate care."

Last week, Ammiano's bill was moved to a two-year calendar, however,
meaning that hearings won't take place on his proposal this year.