OFFICIALS SEEK TO BAN MEDICAL MARIJUANA OUTLETS

Months before a moratorium is due to expire, Pleasanton's police
chief and city attorney are proposing an outright ban on medical
marijuana dispensaries in town.

Citing incidents of armed robberies, burglaries, vagrancy and resale
to nonqualified persons in other communities with marijuana
dispensaries, Police Chief Michael Fraser and City Attorney Michael
Roush will recommend Tuesday that the City Council adopt an ordinance
making it illegal to operate a dispensary in the city.

The ordinance, however, would not prohibit those qualified under
state law from privately using medical marijuana.

The statute would also exclude patients at state-licensed facilities,
such as health care, hospice and residential care for the elderly,
from partaking as long as the facilities operate under city zoning guidelines.

Voters approved the Compassionate Use Act in 1996, making medical
marijuana legal for patients with a doctor's recommendation. SB420
established guidelines for distribution, as well as an identification
card program.

In 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed the federal government's
power to enforce federal drug laws.

The federal-state conflict led Pleasanton and dozens of other cities
to enact moratoriums on the establishment of marijuana dispensaries.
Since then, about 20 cities, including Concord, Dublin, Pleasant
Hill, Antioch, Oakley, Pinole, Livermore, San Pablo and Hercules,
have banned dispensaries.

When Pleasanton extended its moratorium last summer, the council
asked for information on whether the community's needs for medical
marijuana were being met, about Alameda County's identification card
program and dispensaries operating in the county, and whether any
communities with dispensaries did not have criminal problems.

According to the city staff, the only local organization prescribing
medical marijuana is Tri-City Health Center in Fremont. The staff at
the health center said some patients do not feel comfortable going to
dispensaries in Hayward or Oakland, due to other unsavory customers
and vagrants outside the establishments.

The staff report lists other communities with dispensaries, including
Castro Valley, San Lorenzo, Berkeley, Pacheco, Santa Clara and San Francisco.

Of communities that allow dispensaries, officials from Berkeley and
Arcata reported no significant increase in police calls in those
areas, but added that there is a problem with medical marijuana
resold to nonqualified persons, including minors.

Based on the information gathered, Fraser and Roush contend that
medical marijuana dispensaries should not be allowed to operate in Pleasanton.

While there are no specific numbers on those in Pleasanton with
Alameda County medical marijuana identification cards, the county
staff noted "the distribution of people getting cards has been fairly
proportional throughout the county based on overall population size."

Since Alameda County began issuing identification cards in August,
there had been 1,186 cards issued by February. The cost of the cards
increased from $50 to $103 on April 1.

Other Bay Area cities and counties that have adopted regulatory
ordinances allowing dispensaries include Oakland, Berkeley, Hayward,
Martinez, Santa Rosa, San Jose, Santa Cruz, San Francisco and Alameda County.

In November, Albany voters approved a measure that would allow a
single dispensary in the city. El Cerrito is also considering
allowing one dispensary to operate in a three-block area.