COUNCIL PUTS LIMITS ON MEDICAL MARIJUANA GARDENS

Police Feared New Curbs In Fresno Could Send Pot Growers To Clovis Area

The Clovis City Council approved temporary regulations Dec. 6
governing the growth and distribution of medical-use marijuana within
city limits.

The restrictions, adopted by a unanimous vote, prohibit medical
marijuana dispensaries serving three or more patients. They also
include stipulations that the drug be cultivated under strict
supervision away from neighborhoods and schools at a rate of no more
than six mature or 12 immature plants per qualified individual.

"Without a city ordinance in place, medical marijuana dispensaries
could operate within the city without restrictions," according to the
Clovis Police Department.

Clovis Police Capt. Russ Greathouse, in urging passage of the
ordinance, said the city of Fresno's October decision restricting
medical marijuana dispensaries there has raised fears that growers may
relocate to outlying communities like Clovis.

Greathouse said cities with neighborhood marijuana gardens have
reported numerous problems ranging from the "skunk-like" smell of
ripening plants to a marked increase in trespassing, burglaries and
violent encounters between growers and citizens.

Police Chief Jim Zulim's department keeps no records on how many
people are currently growing the drug within city limits, but it
points to a 2003 incident to highlight the potential for trouble.

That year, a Clovis couple was arrested at home for cultivation of
marijuana and for armed commission of a felony after they had taken to
sleeping in their back yard armed with shotguns to thwart area high
schoolers from jumping the fence to raid their medical marijuana
garden. According to a police press release, the couple was also
accused of paying Bulldog gang members to assault one young trespasser.

"It's a situation that will lead to something none of us want to see
happen," Greathouse said.

Though still a federal crime, California voters approved the use of
medical marijuana with the Compassionate Use Act of 1996. This year,
the state legislature granted cities the right to regulate application
of the law.

Whether or not federal drug laws trump state law where medical use is
concerned is an issue currently before the U.S. Supreme Court.

"This all may be a moot point if [the 1996 law] is found
unconstitutional," said Council Member Jose Flores.

The council will revisit the issue Jan. 10 to consider a permanent
ordinance.