FIT FOR WORK?

In Regulated World Of Medical Marijuana, Employees, Too, Face Tight
Scrutiny

Durango Police Sgt. Deck Shaline was knocked in the head by a suspect
who had been running from police after allegedly swinging at a bouncer
of the Lost Dog Bar and Lounge.

Shaline and another officer tackled the suspect, who was described as
a kick boxer in the police report. On the night of June 29, 2009,
Shaline tore his pants leg and suffered bruises to his knees and legs,
requiring medical attention.

Two years later, Shaline encountered his assailant again when he
performed a criminal background check for the Local Licensing
Authority. [name redacted], 23, wanted to get a job at a medical marijuana
dispensary.

[name redacted] argued that he should have been allowed a license to work
because his criminal conviction for attempted assault was expunged as
after he met the conditions of his plea bargain. But Durango City
Manager Ron LeBlanc, also chairman of the licensing authority, said
the board's decision to deny [name redacted] was a no-brainer.

"Head-butting a police sergeant is not a community standard we want to
start," he said.

LeBlanc said the "community should know we're not letting just anybody
work" at local medical marijuana dispensaries.

Prospective employees with criminal histories must go before the Local
Licensing Authority to plead their case before they can get work.

The three-member board, which also regulates liquor stores, weighs
each employment case on its merits, but prefers that candidates have
not been in trouble with the law for at least five years. Speaking for
himself, LeBlanc said he would never vote for someone with a felony, a
violent record or continued pattern of substance abuse.

Since late 2010, five prospective employees have been rejected by the
local board because of problems with either their criminal records or
their truthfulness in filling out their disclosure forms, such as not
disclosing a domestic-violence case. Two others elected not to go
through the hearing process. Thirteen were approved by the board, said
Dana Evans, the board clerk.

The city's nine medical marijuana dispensaries employ 60 workers
altogether. To be sure, many local dispensaries have never come before
the board for employment issues because of their employees' clean records.

As chairman of the licensing board, LeBlanc prides himself on taking a
hard line against applicants with troubled pasts, saying he will vote
against any candidate who has proved incapable "of making a
responsible, adult decision."

According to the audio tapes and minutes of these public hearings,
LeBlanc often sounds like a disapproving father. He once asked a
prospective employee of Natures Own Wellness Center why she had a
history of making "harassing phone calls."

Crystal Mayes responded that it was just "bickering between friends."
She was approved for employment, but her boss, Travis Polluck, the
owner of Natures Own, was scolded by the board for bringing in five
job prospects with criminal records.

[name redacted], the job candidate who was rejected, finds the process
arbitrary. He thought it was unfair that the board rejected him but
accepted others with drunken-driving records.

[name redacted] further argued that it is inconsistent for the city to not do
background checks of the employees of liquor stores as well.

Rasta Stevie Smith, manager of the Animas Herbal Wellness Center, also
thinks the board should consider the final disposition of a criminal
case and not simply a person's arrest record.

"You're innocent before proven guilty," Smith said.

Bob Ledger, former city manager and current board member of the Local
Licensing Authority, acknowledged that medical marijuana dispensaries
are held to a high standard, but it is because they're "supposed to be
a medical enterprise."

"What we find disconcerting is that many of the applicants have had
significant issues with the law; for many of them it's alcohol and
substance-abuse issues," Ledger said.

Debbie Marquart, who opposes the legalization of marijuana, believes
the licensing authority and city officials are too lenient with the
medical marijuana community.

"They're laughing behind your backs," Marquart told the City Council
in December.

She does not like that the licensing authority will often approve job
applicants if their records have been clean for the last five years
even though they might have had drug convictions in the past.

Marquart does not understand how the medical marijuana community can
claim to be this legitimate, "upright industry" if so many of its
employees have criminal records.

"It makes me uncomfortable," she said in an interview.

Smith responds that no one is perfect.

"I haven't found any angels," he said.

Smith also argues that local and state regulations are the strictest
in the nation. In addition to the local background check, employees
must undergo a second background check with the state Department of
Revenue before they can get a license to work.

He welcomes the scrutiny as protection from federal
oversight.

"It's a blessing. If the feds ever come in, they'll have nothing to
complain about," Smith said.