WHO CAN JUSTIFY THE RAIDS?

This Is Why Chico Needs a Medi-Pot Ordinance

Two weeks ago, in Chico and elsewhere in Butte County, a grave and
unfortunate campaign was waged against individuals, their homes, and
their collectives in the name of "fighting illegal activity" related
to medical cannabis.

As a legislative advocate for the medical-cannabis industry, I have
the honor of traveling the state and working closely with civic
leaders, police departments, and dedicated city staff on this popular
issue. Never in my tenure as a cannabis lobbyist have I witnessed such
blatant disrespect for the rule of law as the gross events that
unfolded last week in the North State.

As the state of California actively reaches out to embrace medical
cannabis and its great and promising future, I cannot comprehend why
100 peace officers from more than two dozen law enforcement agencies
would be called away from the line of duty to raid the homes and
businesses of our citizenry.

It is shocking, almost embarrassing, to read reports about home
invasions led by armed agents who invaded a city on the eve of
Independence Day to carry out an agenda that appears misinformed,
ill-guided and unjust. Such theatrics appear to ignore the attorney
general of the United States of America and his order that the era of
raids is over.

I proudly represent Mr. Dylan Tellesen and the Citizen Collective. For
the last nine months, Mr. Tellesen and his team have dedicated
themselves to working hand-in-hand with the city of Chico and its
stakeholders to create a model ordinance to lawfully and effectively
guide the successful regulation of medical cannabis.

It is my hope that we can continue to work together to create an
outcome that works for the city of Chico and for qualified patients: a
win-win resolution that is based on civic partnerships, public safety
and patient rights.

This entire circus of a tragedy could have been avoided--as it has
been addressed in other cities and counties--by issuing zoning
violations to any dispensary operating without a permit through the
Code Enforcement Department. Instead, our beloved city of Chico made
the national papers as a city of sting operations and home invasions.

We must now work to repair our image by holding certain people
accountable to explain the justification for these out-of-touch,
costly and undemocratic raids. I suggest we "get it right" as a city
and a community by creating a model ordinance for safe access to
alternative medicine for qualified patients. When we do this, we can
go back to being Chico--a city of progress, vision and democracy.