MOBILE MARIJUANA OPERATION SIDELINED

CLAREMONT - Until recently, Ronald Chavez would drive his vehicle to
homes and apartments in the Inland Valley and drop off orders of marijuana.

The owner of Claremont-based Tasty Licks would make deliveries to
anyone with a valid medical marijuana identification card.

But the operations of the mobile medical marijuana company were
curtailed earlier this month when the Los Angeles County District
Attorney's Office announced it would prosecute anyone who performed
such a delivery service.

"I stopped delivering because I heard things about that, actually,"
said Chavez, a Pomona resident.

District Attorney Steve Cooley said delivery of medical marijuana and
selling the drug online are illegal. Cooley said those who do so
could face felony charges.

The statement released June7 by Cooley, who is running for state
attorney general, was in response to claims that medical marijuana
providers in Los Angeles had found a loophole by making house calls
to those seeking pot.

Chavez said he was advised by his attorneys to revamp the
business.

"So I'll be on hold for a little while," he said. "I have to make
sure everything's good to go."

Tasty Licks could be back as soon as early July, Chavez
said.

The company was about to make a profit prior to its shutdown thanks
in part to a solid reputation among customers who praised its
delivery speed and quality of marijuana, Chavez claims.

The customers would call Tasty Licks and either put in an order for
medical marijuana or ask to view samples at their homes.

Deliveries were typically made for free after 10 p.m. in Los Angeles
and Orange counties, as long as the customer was a member of the
nonprofit and had a reservation.

"We provide the highest quality indica, sativa and hybrid medical
strains," boasted the company's Web site, www.tasty licks.org.

Chavez said he printed business cards and paid for advertisements in
magazines.

Tasty Licks had fewer than 100 customers, and they ran the gamut from
young adults to seniors, Chavez said.

Chavez said business really started to take off in October when U.S.
Attorney General Eric Holder said pot-smoking patients or their
sanctioned suppliers should not be targeted for federal prosecution
in states that allow medical marijuana. The Justice Department
statement said federal prosecutors are being told it is not a good
use of their time to arrest people who use or provide medical
marijuana in strict compliance with state law.

Chavez now directs his customers to magazines that advertise mobile
medical marijuana companies.

There have been numerous mobile medical marijuana clinics in the
Inland Empire, and they "help people get their medicine they can't
get through collectives and storefronts," said Lanny Swerdlow,
president of the Inland Empire chapter of the Marijuana
Anti-Prohibition Project.

The clinics are illegal in Los Angeles, Riverside and San Bernardino
counties.

"Steve Cooley says everything is illegal. Here (in Riverside and San
Bernardino counties) it's illegal not because that's illegal, but
because it violates zoning ordinances," Swerdlow said.

Chavez received a business license in Pomona for a Tasty Licks shaved
ice company in 1996. It was not renewed in 2009. He declined to
comment on the status of his business license.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.