COUNCIL PASSES ON MEDICAL POT

Tie Vote Dooms Dispensary Law

There won't be a medical marijuana dispensary inside Sonoma city
limits any time soon. That was the result of a 2-2 vote stalemate by
the Sonoma City Council Wednesday night, with Mayor Ken Brown recusing
himself from the debate on advice of City Attorney Tom Curry.

Brown's wife, Jewel Mathieson, is owner and operator of a medical
marijuana dispensary in Santa Rosa. But the debate over legal pot
promises to continue in the wake of proposed legislation by
Assemblyman Tom Ammiano, D-San Francisco, to legalize and tax its
sale, and in light of comments by Gov. Schwarzenegger encouraging a
debate on the issue.

On May 6, the Governor announced his support for "an open debate" and
called for a thorough study of the legalization and decriminalization
experiences of other countries. Holland has for years adopted de facto
decriminalization of marijuana, which is readily available in "coffee
houses" in major cities, even though its sale remains illegal. A
recent Field Poll revealed that 56 percent of California's registered
voters favor legalizing and taxing marijuana, and the Obama
administration has signaled its reluctance to prosecute medical pot
dispensaries.

But for two members of the Sonoma City Council, the time wasn't right
for change in the pot laws or in the ordinance that currently
precludes licensing cannabis clinics/dispensaries in town.

Councilmember Aug Sebastiani, who sent out pre-meeting e-mails
promoting an anti-dispensary message on his "Aug Blog," said such a
facility is "not appropriate for Sonoma." He questioned whether any
potential dispensary site would meet the proposed 1,000-foot setback
from "youth facilities," and criticized language in the proposed
ordinance that failed to identify Train Town as a "youth facility." *
He called that a "most glaring oversight."

While he said he sympathized with the needs of legitimate marijuana
patients, he said "a few are ruining it for the many," referring to
the common possession of medical marijuana cards by Valley teens.

In sum, concluded Sebastiani, "Since there's no place in this town
that's appropriate, we shouldn't have one."

Also weighing in on the issue was Sonoma Police Chief Bret Sackett,
who said he understands, "the difficult position the City Council is
in," expressed his sympathy for the needs of legitimate patients, but
said he is concerned about the "numerous unqualified users" who obtain
medical marijuana cards.

Citing statistics from a recent White Paper on Marijuana Dispensaries
prepared by a task force of the California Police Chiefs Association,
Sackett said that patient records reveal that 50 percent are under the
age of 30, 12 percent are under 20, and that only 2 percent had
primary target diseases like AIDS, glaucoma and cancer.

Sackett also said that contrary to popular belief, dispensaries are
not strictly legal under state law, "except in the rare examples of
co-ops."

And he adamantly questioned the provision of the proposed ordinance
allowing 2,000 dispensary visitors a month. That figure, he said,
"grossly overstates the need" and will "attract a criminal element
from high crime areas."

The benefits of a local dispensary, said Sackett, "are vastly
outweighed by the negative impacts."

But that didn't sit well with Sharon Brooks, a medical-marijuana user
and the disabled, scooter-bound resident of a local mobile-home park.
"I don't have other options," she insisted. "My caregiver and I are
old. We can't grow marijuana, and we can't get to Santa Rosa to buy
it."

During public comments, 13 citizens spoke to the council, six were
opposed, five in favor and one was unclear. Of the five in favor,
four were dispensary operators.

As the debate unfolded, council members Laurie Gallian and Steve
Barbose succinctly expressed their support for the ordinance. But
Joanne Sanders, who had earlier voted to proceed with development of
the proposed ordinance, said she had changed her mind.

Sanders said her opposition was partly a product of information
provided by Sackett, partly the result of "soul searching," and partly
the belief that if a dispensary is allowed it will require more law
enforcement attention at a time when Sonoma could be facing a $500,000
deficit. One police officer, she pointed out, costs more than
$200,000. She said the potential cost of additional law enforcement
efforts could be "a potential drain on city services at a time when we
may not have the money to pay for it."

But Barbose cited "a dear friend" and medical-marijuana user, now
dead, who benefited from the drug, pointed out "the U.S. Supreme Court
does not regard it as a significant problem," and concluded, "I still
think we should have a medical marijuana dispensary."

The council was thus deadlocked 2-2 and the measure failed.