-Caveat Lector-
Lockyer Gives Quiet OK to S.F. Pot
Clubs
But distribution should be discreet
and low-profile
Edward Epstein, Chronicle Staff Writer
Saturday, March 20, 1999
California's attorney general told San
Francisco authorities yesterday that
medicinal marijuana distribution in the city
can proceed if it is done discreetly, so that
federal authorities do not feel the need to
intervene.
The advice from Bill Lockyer, who supported
the passage of Proposition 215 in 1996, was
a tacit recognition that pot is quietly being
dispensed for medicinal use in San
Francisco.
The distribution is taking place even though
U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer ordered
the high- profile Cannabis Cultivators Club
shut down last year for violating federal law.
The court order also closed a few other big
Bay Area pot clubs.
``I respect local community values,'' Lockyer
said after a meeting in the office of Board of
Supervisors President Tom Ammiano.
Others on hand included San Francisco
District Attorney Terence Hallinan, City
Attorney Louise Renne and Dr. Mitch Katz,
director of the city's Department of Public
Health.
``If local law enforcement is supportive of
implementation of Proposition 215 and their
policies don't provoke outside prosecution, I
have no intention of intervening,'' added
Lockyer, a Democrat who was elected in
November to replace Dan Lungren, who
vigorously opposed legalizing the medicinal
use of marijuana.
Lungren dueled with Dennis Peron, founder
of the Cannabis Cultivators Club, but it was
the federal government that finally shut down
the 9,000-member operation.
Since then, smaller groups have quietly tried
to take up the slack. They work with Hallinan's
office to ensure that patients produce
verifiable recommendations for treatment
from doctors, and they shun publicity in order
to avoid federal attention.
A reporter's call to one of them to ask about
its operations brought this response: ``I can't
comment. We're trying to stay open. The city
is well aware of what we're up to.''
``My advice to them is to keep their heads
down. Keep a low profile,'' Hallinan said after
the late-afternoon meeting.
One pot club that will comment is the Oakland
Cannabis Buyers Club, which is appealing
Breyer's order. It is still taking in patients, but
instead of dispensing pot, it refers them to
other organizations that distribute the
substance.
``I think Lockyer can defy the feds,'' said the
Oakland club's Jeff Jones. Lockyer has
appointed a task force to determine how
California can implement Proposition 215,
despite federal disapproval.
``If the task force were to say that clubs can't
operate because of the federal government,
then they aren't being creative enough,''
Jones added.
Ammiano said he took heart from Lockyer's
words. ``If we attempt to distribute marijuana
to those who are verifiably sick, and if that is
not done with an in-your-face attitude, we can
almost guarantee that those people's needs
will be met,'' he said.
The office of U.S. Attorney Robert Mueller
declined to comment on Lockyer's statement
that low-key pot distribution probably would
not spark a federal response. Calls were
referred to Washington, D.C., where Justice
Department offices were already closed.
Lockyer also said he plans to lobby in
Washington on Monday along with attorneys
general from other Western states that have
passed pot propositions. Bolstered by a
study released this week that showed
marijuana is effective in combatting the side
effects of some diseases, they want
marijuana reclassified by the federal
government as a less-dangerous substance.
They also want the government to step up its
research into marijuana's medical uses.
Those at the meeting discussed having the
city Department of Public Health get into the
medicinal pot distribution business. But both
Lockyer and Ammiano said there are many
unanswered questions about such direct city
involvement.
For now, Ammiano suggested, the city will
explore the idea of having the department
help verify that patients' referrals from doctors
are genuine.
�1999 San Francisco Chronicle Page A15
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Steve Wingate
California Director
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