Huizar's 'Gentle Ban' of Marijuana Dispensaries Wins Committee Approval

Nearly a month after LAPD narcotics officers raided and shut down American Eagle Collective, a prominent medical marijuana dispensary in Eagle Rock, the City of Los Angeles came a step closer Tuesday to banning medical marijuana dispensaries outright, while allowing patients to grow their own cannabis or get it from a licensed caregiver.

The City Council's Planning and Land Use Management Committee voted unanimously to approve a proposed ordinance that would ban all dispensaries in the city until the California Supreme Court rules on whether—and how—cities can regulate the distribution of medical marijuana. A ruling by the state's high court is not expected for at least a year.

The ruling will not go into effect, however, until it is approved by the full city council.

Huizar Proposed Ordinance

The ordinance proposed by Council Member José Huizar would allow mini-collectives of three or fewer patients to jointly grow their own marijuana at one location and would allow patients to transport cannabis.

Huizar and fellow committee members Ed Reyes and Mitch Englander also
disapproved of a separate plan by Council Member Paul Koretz aimed at preventing the City from prosecuting a set of about 100 dispensaries that follow strict restrictions on where they could operate, the hours they could be open, and requirements for tight security.

The committee, however, allowed the separate plan by Koretz to move forward, citing a request by other Council members to hear both plans at the same time before the full city council.

Flawed Regulation, Legal Hurdles

City officials have been trying since 2007 to regulate dispensaries and limit their number to close to 100. Early attempts led to an explosion in the number of dispensaries trying to establish before the city placed a cap on the total number of pot shops.

The city's current approach to medical marijuana regulation is in many ways a response to the California's 2nd District Court of Appeal's ruling in the case of, Pack v. City of Long Beach, which was issued in October. 

The court ruled that cities may pass laws restricting the rights of pot shops to operate, but regulations affirming the right for dispensaries to exist violate federal law, under which marijuana is listed as an illegal drug banned for all purposes.

Following the District Court ruling, Superior Court Judge Anthony Mohr ruled on October 14 that L.A.’s marijuana ordinance is valid and that its enforcement cannot be challenged by as many as 29 dispensaries that had sued the City over the issue. But Mohr also advised the City to revisit the ordinance to determine whether it can withstand a preemptory challenge in light of the Pack ruling and the fact that the L.A. ordinance has a provision for a lottery for dispensaries and other regulatory mechanisms.

In January, The California Supereme Court issued an order indicating its intent to review Pack v. City of Long Beach and another controversial case,

In the meantime, the High Court has vacated both cases, pending its own review.

Nevertheless, Huizar and other advocates of stricter regulation have solidered on in the efforts to enact a wider ban of medical marijuana in Los Angeles.

'Gentle Ban'

Huizar said his plan, dubbed a "gentle ban" by the City Attorney's office, is necessary because of poorly written state laws that do not allow dispensaries and provide too broad of a description of who can qualify for a medical marijuana prescription.

"If you don't like the state law, let's change the state law," Huizar told the committee and an audience of about two dozen marijuana advocates.

Attorney Steven Lubell, who represents dispensaries in a lawsuit against the city, said he understands the growth of illegal pot shops is out of control, but disagreed that banning dispensaries is the way forward.

"You're cutting off access to the patients, which is against what Proposition 215 says," Lubell said. "Instead of totally banning and waiting for the supremes to rule, have some form of regulation that works in the interim."

Medical marijuana supporters told the Council that growing medical-grade
marijuana takes years of practice and expertise that average patients do not have.

The two competing plans will be heard by the public safety committee as early as Friday before heading to the full Council.

Dispensaries in Northeast L.A.

A manager of the on York Boulevard named Danielle (she declined to share her last name), said law-abiding dispensaries are being punished as a result of the city's inability to adequately regulate the medical marijuana industry in Los Angeles.

"There are no standards, and there should be," she said. "We're very professional here, but there are lots of others in the city who aren't. Our mission is to dispense medical marijuana to people who need it, not some fool on the street who wants to have a good time."

Danielle said that the Green Earth Collective has taken measures like hiring security guards and ensuring that no non-members are allowed to enter their shop in order to limit the types of threatening or raucous behavior often associated with dispensaries.

"No one can come in who is not a member and isn't approved to receive medicine," Danielle said. "We also make sure security is watching so there aren't any hand-offs in front of the store or things like that."

Three Eagle Rock-based medical marijuana dispensaries, including American Eagle Collective, are among at least two-dozen facilities in Los Angeles that have been the targets of lawsuits by the City Attorney’s office.

While AEC has been accused of violating City zoning laws (see attached PDFs for details) the City has sued two other Eagle Rock dispensaries on Colorado Boulevard—Organic Healing Center and Colorado Quality Pain—for violating a law that requires such facilities to be located outside a 600-foot radius of schools.

A motion to seek a preliminary injunction against AEC is scheduled for Thursday, May 31, in the court of Superior Court Judge John Wiley, Jr.