L.A. STEPS UP EFFORT TO CLOSE POT SHOPS

City Sues Three Collectives and Moves to Evict 18 Others From Their
Stores, Saying They've Violated State Laws

Los Angeles city prosecutors Thursday escalated their efforts to shut
down medical marijuana dispensaries, suing three collectives and
moving to evict 18 others from their stores.

The actions, which stem from undercover police operations at the
dispensaries, follow City Atty. Carmen Trutanich's pledge to take
aggressive steps to reverse the rapid spread of pot shops. Hundreds
have opened while the City Council debated an ordinance to regulate
them. The council passed the law last month, but it has not taken effect.

The lawsuits against Organica, which straddles Culver City and Los
Angeles, and two Holistic Caregivers outlets in South Los Angeles
allege that they have repeatedly violated state laws and seek
injunctions to force them to stop selling marijuana.

And, opening a new front, the city attorney's office sent letters to
18 landlords saying that dispensaries on their property are breaking
the law and should be evicted.

"Law enforcement targeted them and then brought the evidence to us,"
said Assistant City Atty. Asha Greenberg, who has spearheaded the
legal action against dispensaries.

On Thursday, police and federal agents raided Organica. The
dispensary's operator, Jeff Joseph, was arrested, but no charges have
been filed.

The three lawsuits are similar to one the city attorney's office
filed against an Eagle Rock dispensary called Hemp Factory V. Last
month, a Superior Court judge sided with Trutanich and agreed that
state law does not allow collectives to sell marijuana, a decision
believed to be the first in the state to question a practice that is
now widespread.

The judge ordered Hemp Factory to stop selling marijuana. Greenberg
declined to say whether it has complied. "We'll deal with them as
soon as I get a little time," she said.

Organica and Holistic Caregivers have been targets of law enforcement
for several years.

The Holistic Caregivers stores, on Crenshaw Boulevard and South
Vermont Avenue, are among a number owned by Virgil Grant. One in
Compton was identified as the dispensary that sold marijuana to a
driver allegedly under the influence in 2007 when his truck hit a
vehicle that a California Highway Patrol officer had pulled over. The
accident killed the stopped vehicle's driver and paralyzed the officer.

Federal, state and local officials conducted undercover buys and
raids at Grant's stores. Grant pleaded guilty last year to possession
with the intent to distribute a controlled substance.

The Drug Enforcement Administration launched an investigation of
Organica, which is on Washington Boulevard, in March 2008 and raided
the dispensary four months later. The store was raided again in August.

In October, when he threatened to prosecute dispensaries for selling
marijuana, Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley singled out Organica.

Joseph closed his dispensary after the second raid, saying that he
wanted to wait for the city's ordinance so he would know how to
operate legally. He reopened in December, he said, to try to comply
with that ordinance.

Under that law, dispensaries registered with the city in 2007 and
still in business will be allowed to stay open. Organica was one of
the 186 registered stores.

In a call from jail, Joseph sounded despondent. "This is stupid. This
should not be happening," he said. "I have no idea what to do. I
really was in a situation where I had to stay in compliance."

In addition to the lawsuits, the city attorney's office also notified
18 landlords and dispensary owners that state law allows it to evict
the stores, if the landlords do not do so. "It allows us to step into
the landlord's shoes," Greenberg said.

She declined to identify the locations or release a copy of the
letter, but said all the stores were the target of police operations.
"These are all cases investigated by LAPD based on community
complaints," she said.

The letters give the property owners 30 days to tell the city
attorney's office what action they have taken.