GROUP WANTS MEDICAL MARIJUANA COOPERATIVE

RICHLAND -- A medical marijuana advocate pressed Richland leaders this
week to support collective cannabis growing.

Chet Biggerstaff of the Three Rivers Collective brought his message to
the city council after discussing the issue with the city for about
the past nine months.

He has expressed the goal of setting up a group growing operation and
a storefront dispensary in Richland to improve access for hundreds of
medical marijuana patients in the Tri-Cities.

He said Tuesday that medical marijuana users don't have good options
for getting the product. If they grow it themselves, they become
targets for law enforcement. If they buy it, it's expensive, or they
have to leave town to get it.

"How many of you have to drive to Seattle or Portland to get your
medicines?" Biggerstaff asked the council. "I doubt any of you, but we
do. We're discriminated against constantly."

Washington law allows residents who suffer from a terminal or
debilitating illness and have a written recommendation from their
doctor to legally possess a 60-day supply of marijuana. But the law is
ambiguous about how they're supposed to get it.

Biggerstaff has said the keys to having a successful collective
include transparency, public education and city support -- which
hasn't come thus far, he said.

He told the council he wants to work with the city to develop a
template for a nonprofit collective and future facilities that would
follow a set of rules and help reduce the cost of buying marijuana.

"The prices of cannabis right now are ridiculous," he said.

His proposals have been met with resistance, he said. Authorities have
told him a collective can't grow or share marijuana because it's not
specifically permitted by state law.

"The last time I checked, if something's not specifically allowed or
disallowed, it's legal until it's made illegal," he said. "So I have a
real problem being told that by certain people."

City Attorney Tom Lampson told Mayor John Fox that the state attorney
general hasn't provided an interpretation on the subject. But he said
his department has recommended to Biggerstaff that his group ask the
Legislature to revise the law to authorize what he wants.

"We went through our impression of what the state statutes provide,"
Lampson said. "They are contrary to what Mr. Biggerstaff believes."

Fox said the city should proceed with caution.

"Absent an AG opinion or legislation, I doubt we can proceed, but that
can be discussed further," Fox said.

Biggerstaff's Three Rivers Collective group holds open meetings at 2
p.m. on the first and third Saturday of the month at the Richland
Community Center. For more information, go to www.4-20.org.