MEDICAL MARIJUANA DISTRIBUTORS TURN TO FREMONT CLINICS

City Council Imposes 45-day Moratorium To Deter Cannabis Facilities Seeking
New Home

FREMONT -- As several East Bay cities move to shut down medical marijuana
shops over concerns they are magnets for crime, distributors have been
turning to places like Fremont to keep cannabis flowing to their patients.

But Fremont officials, initially caught off guard, approved a 45-day
emergency ban on the dispensaries Tuesday night to "protect the public
health, safety and welfare."

The City Council voted by consent to ban medical marijuana dispensaries as
the city studies related licensing, zoning and other regulations. The
council will have an opportunity in November to extend that ban by up to
two years.

Hayward, Oakland and San Francisco -- where shops have been established --
have seen a rise in illegal drug activity and drug sales, robbery of
patients leaving dispensaries and loitering around dispensaries, Fremont
officials said.

The closure of many of those shops by cities has prompted dispensaries to
consider moving to Fremont.

That's a growing concern for Fremont planning and law enforcement
officials. Interim Planning Director Jeff Schwob said during the past six
months, the city has had two or three inquiries "by people fishing for
answers" to see what Fremont's codes would allow.

But Fremont and many other jurisdictions don't have any zoning codes
outlining where such facilities could be located.

"They could come in and put one across the street from the Police
Department or next to a school," police Chief Craig Steckler said.

Hayward grappled with similar issues last year once city officials learned
of several dispensaries operating downtown. Instead of changing its zoning
code, which doesn't allow dispensaries, it ended up grandfathering in the
existing dispensaries for several years in hopes it will have more guidance
from the state down the line.

"I think concern about criminal activity is misplaced," said William
Dolphin, spokesman for Americans for Safe Access, a Berkeley-based medical
marijuana advocacy group. "I don't think that's been the experience of
Oakland and other cities that have carefully regulated dispensaries."

In 1996, California voters passed the Compassionate Marijuana Act, which
allows a person with a doctor's recommendation to use cannabis legally for
medical purposes.

A new state law, Senate Bill 420, provides additional rules on medical
marijuana, including a voluntary program for identification cards for
qualified patients and doctors, and limits on the amount of cannabis
patients may receive.

Dolphin said local governments have a responsibility and obligation to
implement the law.

"It is a right that Californians have to access medical marijuana when
authorized by their doctors," Dolphin said. "This (moratorium) is a poor
use of taxpayers' resources to circumvent the will of the people."

But Fremont officials said it is unclear whether federal law -- which
considers marijuana distribution and use illegal -- can be superseded by
state law.

"This is an inherent conflict between state statute and federal statute,"
Steckler said. "We should not be put in a position to turn a blind eye to
federal law."