COUNTY MOVES TOWARD A BAN ON POT CLUBS

Marijuana Dispensaries Have Not Been Allowed to Open Since a
Temporary Moratorium in 2006

Contra Costa supervisors took the first step toward prohibiting
medical marijuana dispensaries in unincorporated areas of the county
on Tuesday, aiming to pass a new ban by March.

Such facilities have not been allowed to open since the county
approved a temporary moratorium in April 2006. That moratorium lapses
April 10, the reason supervisors have asked county attorneys to draw
up an ordinance that bans land uses that violate state or federal law
- -- including cannabis clubs.

The only legal medical marijuana business in the unincorporated
county -- MEDelivery of El Sobrante -- will be allowed to remain open
since it applied for a land-use permit before a moratorium two years
ago, supervisors said. However, it would be closed if it tried to expand.

Using marijuana -- even for medical purposes -- is illegal under
federal law, according to a 2005 U.S. Supreme Court ruling. This
conflicts with state law, which allows residents with certain medical
conditions to use marijuana with a doctor's recommendation.

"There's a strange dance going on with medical marijuana laws in
California," said Contra Costa District Attorney Robert Kochly.

The federal Drug Enforcement Administration last month mailed letters
to hundreds of California landlords of medical marijuana
dispensaries, threatening them with imprisonment and property
forfeiture if they allowed the practice to continue.

Contra Costa supervisors were concerned that the county might be in
trouble with the federal government if they allow MEDelivery to keep
operating. But Kochly said he's never heard of federal authorities
targeting a local government agency simply because they regulate
medical marijuana use.

A task force made up of Supervisors Susan Bonilla and Mary Piepho,
law enforcement leaders, health officials and others also looked into
allowing dispensaries if they were located a safe distance away from
schools and parks.

But the committee recommended a ban instead because too often people
use dispensaries as a means to buy marijuana and then sell it on the
street, Kochly said.

"As long as there are doctors who will give a written recommendation
for a couple hundred bucks of cash, then no amount of regulation can
stop the secondary markets," he told supervisors. "This marijuana is
available for just about anybody who wants to make an investment in a
doctor's recommendation."

No one publicly spoke against the proposed ban at the supervisors' meeting.

Lauren Unruh, a medical marijuana activist from Pleasant Hill, said
in a phone interview that a dispensary ban would only encourage a black market.

"It's like saying if you eliminate all the bars in town, alcohol
consumption would end," she said. "When you put in a dispensary, you
are helping to eliminate the illegal market."

The county's Planning Commission is expected to vote on the proposed
ban on Jan. 29, followed by a hearing before the Board of Supervisors
next month.