SLO COUNTY SETTLES POT LAWSUIT FOR $20,000

Los Osos Woman Says She Had Right to Medical Marijuana Deputies Destroyed

A Los Osos woman has received $20,000 from the county after her
medical marijuana was improperly destroyed by the Sheriff's
Department, her attorney said Tuesday.

San Luis Obispo lawyer Louis Koory said that his client, Kimberley
Anne Marshall, 46, of Los Osos, filed a claim against the county after
deputy sheriffs searched her home based on a probation search for her
son.

Koory stated that deputies located the 18-month supply of marijuana in
a locked closet and seized it; they later destroyed it after the
District Attorney's Office decided not to prosecute the case.

Marshall suffers from hepatitis, and back and lumbar injuries, Koory
said. She's qualified by state law to have up to six pounds of medical
cannabis, he said.

The settlement amount represents the dollar amount for the roughly six
pounds of medical marijuana that his client had, Koory said.

The sheriff received an order from Superior Court Judge Dodie Harman
to destroy the cannabis, but Koory said Marshall had a constitutional
right to recover her property.

Federal law prohibits possession of marijuana, while state law allows
it for qualified recipients who use it for medical purposes.

"The sheriff destroyed the property while aware that no criminal
charges would be filed and that (Marshall) had a physician's
recommendation for medical cannabis," Koory wrote.

The Sheriff's Department has yet to review the settlement offer and
has asked for a review of the case, said Rob Bryn, the department's
public information representative.

Even so, the $20,000 was paid to Marshall on Monday, Koory said.