LEGAL CANNABIS INSTITUTE OFFERS CLASSES ON POT

Upstart Institute Aims To Serve A Growing Medical Marijuana
Industry

In a new twist on higher learning, a school that opened in Mira Mesa
earlier this year aims to teach students how to open and operate
medical marijuana collectives.

The school, which opened six months ago, is the brainchild of Nicole
Scott, a self-described soccer mom from Del Mar.

Scott, 46, said she got the idea for the school, called the Legal
Cannabis Institute, last year when she was trying to figure out what
it would take to start a collective.

"There is a lot of bad information out there and confusing
information," said Scott, the mother of a 5-year-old boy. Before
opening the school, she said she ran a nonprofit whose aim was to
improve girls' self-esteem.

The school's curriculum includes classes on medical marijuana law, how
to grow cannabis and how to cook with the herb. Housed in an
industrial park building in Mira Mesa, the school offers classes each
Saturday that are taught by a small group of instructors, including
three attorneys, a nurse and a "grow wizard."

Scott said the school offers not only information for medical
marijuana patients, but possible career opportunities for people in
the "cannabis world."

The fledgling school has opened its doors at a time when the laws and
regulations surrounding medical marijuana are still not clearly
defined. Law enforcement in the county has cracked down on
dispensaries, closing 14 establishments in a countywide raid on Sept.
9, 2009.

Following the raids, federal prosecutors filed drug charges against
two of the pot shop owners, including James Stacy, who ran a
dispensary in Vista.

Several cities and the county have enacted temporary bans on new
dispensaries until regulations are adopted.

A growing industry?

Scott, who declined to say if she used medical marijuana, said she
hopes the school can teach people about medical marijuana laws and
help them avoid getting into trouble.

The school, billed as San Diego's only medical marijuana school,
attracts students from all walks of life, Scott said, including a
retired nurse looking to start a medical marijuana delivery service
and an artist looking to design packaging for pot.

Scott said she sees a growing medical marijuana industry in the county
with the potential to create numerous jobs and businesses. She
estimated there are more than 200 medical marijuana-related
establishments in San Diego County, including dispensaries and
delivery services.

More are likely to follow, she said, due to changes in the laws
regulating marijuana.

In 1996, voters in the state passed the Compassionate Use Act, which
legalized marijuana for medical use. Eight years later, the
Legislature passed the Medical Marijuana Program Act, which lets
people cultivate marijuana collectively and created a patient ID program.

In November, California voters will decide whether to legalize
marijuana use under the Control and Tax Cannabis Initiative. It would
allow local governments to control and tax the sale of small amounts
of marijuana to adults 21 and older.

'Just education'

Moreover, the county Board of Supervisors is expected to vote
Wednesday on two ordinances regulating medical marijuana collectives
in the unincorporated areas of the county. The ordinances were
developed after the county lost a years-long court battle against the
state's marijuana laws.

County law enforcement officials said they were not familiar with the
medical marijuana school and declined to say much about the privately
run institution.

"Not knowing anything about them, I would hesitate to make a comment,"
said Deputy District Attorney Steve Walter, who heads the district
attorney office's narcotics division.

Sheriff's Cmdr. Ed Prendergast said he also was unaware of the school,
but added that providing information about medical marijuana was not a
crime.

"As long as it's just education, I don't think that we would have any
problem with that," Prendergast said.

However, Prendergast said that people should be aware that the
information they get now may no longer apply in the future. That is
because the county and the city of San Diego are developing their
medical marijuana ordinances, he said.

"People need to be wary until these ordinances are finalized,"
Prendergast said.

'It's confusing out there'

Scott said she is aware of the pitfalls of an industry that is
constantly changing and under fire. She said the school's instructors
are experts in the field and are able to adapt their two-to
three-hour courses to include the latest information.

The instructors include Lance Rogers, a criminal defense attorney who
has successfully defended felony charges against medical marijuana
operators in San Diego County, and Roger Brown, an attorney with more
than 20 years' experience and an advocate for medical marijuana.

During an open house held at the school earlier this month, more than
60 people listened to instructors talk about medical marijuana. The
crowd, packed into one of the classrooms, included young and old,
patients and caregivers and sick and healthy people.

Among them was Holly Carroll, a 55-year-old North Park woman who said
she used marijuana to ease the pain from arthritis. Carroll said she
went to the open house to learn more about the school.

After listening to the instructors, Carroll said she planned to
enroll.

"I think we need to protect ourselves," she said. "We need to know
what the laws are. It's confusing out there."

Classes cost $99 each and are open to anyone who is at least 18 years
old.

For more information, visit www.legalcannabisinstitute.com.