FEDS INDICT MEDICAL POT DISPENSARY OPERATORS

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration announced a set of
indictments Tuesday alleging that operators of nearly a dozen medical
marijuana dispensaries -- including two in West Hollywood --
profiteered from the illegal distribution of pot.

Among those accused are the operators of Compassionate Caregivers, a
chain-store medical marijuana operation that did more than $95
million in business.

"These dispensary operators are no different than any other drug
trafficker: They prey on people in our communities to make a profit,"
said Timothy J. Landrum, special agent in charge of the DEA in Los Angeles.

Authorities say the owners of Compassionate Caregivers, Larry R.
Kristich and James Carberry, ran dispensaries in Oakland, San
Francisco, San Leandro, Ukiah, Bakersfield, San Diego and West Hollywood.

The indictment alleges that profits from marijuana sales were used to
purchase expensive automobiles and real estate in Costa Rica. At a
West Hollywood shop known as Yellow House, operators accepted credit
cards and did more than $1.7 million in business in a single month,
the indictment contends.

Others indicted included the operators of dispensaries in Corona and
Morro Bay, where patients were charged two to three times the street
value of marijuana, according to San Luis Obispo County Undersheriff
Steve Bolts.

He called it "a super-sized retail drug-dealing center working under
the cloak and smoke of Prop. 215," the 1996 ballot measure that
legalized medical cannabis in California.

Also indicted in Morro Bay was Dr. Armand T. Tollette Jr. He is
accused of writing marijuana recommendations for minors, failing to
conduct physical examinations and paying "finder's fees" in marijuana
for client referrals. Under federal law, conspiracy to distribute
marijuana carries a sentence of up to 40 years in prison.