L.A.'S MEDICAL MARIJUANA TROUBLES HOLD LESSONS

The Obama administration gave Hawaii and other states that have
legalized medical marijuana the freedom to go forward with their
efforts to make it available to patients. The Legislature should
provide for a distribution system with safeguards to protect against
the kind of carnival atmosphere that has jarred Los Angeles.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder announced last October that the
Justice Department would not waste energy prosecuting patients who
use marijuana for medical purposes. The George W. Bush administration
had hounded such state-allowed operations, mainly in California.

The Los Angeles City Council this week approved an ordinance that is
expected to shut down 80 percent of the city's nearly 1,000 medical
marijuana dispensaries. The action came after community groups had
long complained about the numerous dispensaries near residential
neighborhoods, schools and parks.

"These are out of control," said Councilman Ed Reyes, whose committee
oversaw the writing of the ordinance. "Our city has more of these
than Starbucks."

At the same time, Colorado state legislators are considering a bill
that would bar doctors from working out of dispensaries or offering
discounts to patients who agree to use a particular dispensary. It
also would prohibit dispensaries within 1,000 feet of schools, day
cares and other dispensaries, similar to the Los Angeles proposal
that the mayor is expected to sign.

Hawaii legalized marijuana for medical purposes a decade ago.
However, in the absence of medical marijuana dispensaries, the
state's more than 4,000 patients have had to obtain marijuana from
drug traffickers.

The medical marijuana program has been assigned to the Department of
Public Safety's narcotics division, which has been accused of
violating privacy by releasing the identities of patients and doctors.

Gov. Linda Lingle has ignored 2009 legislation directing her to
create a task force at finding a way for patients to acquire it
legally. Her administration has insisted on adhering to the federal
law that the Justice Department has decided to ignore.

Bills before this year's Legislature would place the medical
marijuana program under the Department of Health, where it belongs.
Marijuana has been found to be effective in easing pain from such
diseases at AIDS, cancer and multiple sclerosis. The department would
license producers and dispensers.

The proposal importantly would create a task force assigned with
developing a distribution system and identifying requirements for the
licensing of producers and production facilities. The Los Angeles
experience should be helpful in determining how such a system should
operate.