JUDGE REFUSES TO THROW OUT RANCHO MIRAGE DISPENSARY SUIT

A lawsuit filed by two marijuana dispensaries against Rancho Mirage is
moving forward after a judge overruled a city motion to have the
$848,000 case thrown out.

These motions, known as "demurrers," are frequently filed in a case's
early stages and declare it has no legal basis.

Riverside County Superior Court Judge Randall White ruled June 3 the
issues underlying the case against the city were too large to be
dismissed lightly.

"The Medical Marijuana Act contemplates the existence of lawful
medical marijuana dispensaries," he wrote. "It cannot be determined at
the demurrer stage what a complete and permanent ban on such
dispensaries can be reconciled with the provisions" of that law.

The suit was filed Feb. 3, the same day the City Council banned
dispensaries in the city while authorizing home delivery and a
transportation subsidy for patients belonging to dispensaries that
didn't offer free delivery.

Jessica McElfresh, an attorney representing the two dispensaries, said
the ruling is encouraging for her clients.

"The court said basically ‘no, this is a very important case,
and we're acting on an important issue,'" she said.

City Attorney Steve Quintanilla said the ruling isn't necessarily a
setback for the city.

"We got some clarification from the court on what the issues will be,"
he said.

Desert Heart Collective operated briefly as a dispensary within the
city after it was denied a business permit. The other dispensary,
Metro Meds, also had its permit application rejected from the city but
never opened its doors.

The suit claims the city violated its own municipal code by not at
least considering issuing a business permit, as well as state law with
an extended moratorium, or temporary ban, on dispensary operations.

The next hearing will be a case management conference Aug. 2, where
future hearing dates will be set, evidentiary matters handled, and
settlement options discussed.

"We sent out a settlement demand to the city, but we haven't gotten
any response from them," McElfresh said.

Quintanilla said there's a reason: "We haven't had a council meeting
yet. These people don't understand we do these things every two weeks."

The council will discuss the offer in closed session Thursday, he
said.

The council votes on allowing delivery and subsidizing transit have
never taken effect because the city hasn't lifted the moratorium on
dispensaries, which expires in December.

The moratorium, or temporary ban, can't be extended any further under
state law. Quintanilla said he's not sure what will happen if the
dispensary case isn't resolved by then.

"I can't predict where the council's going to be in December. I can't
predict where state law is going to be in December," he said.

The rules did change late last week after the U.S. Attorney General's
Office released a memo that stated the federal government would
continue to prosecute dispensary operators even if they are located in
a state where medical marijuana has been legalized.