LA County Eyes Ban On Medical Pot Outlets
LOS ANGELES (CBS) — The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted 4-1 today to direct its attorneys to write an ordinance banning medical marijuana outlets in unincorporated areas.
KNX 1070's Claudia Peschuttia
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Supervisor Michael Antonovich first proposed the ban in July, concerned that as Los Angeles and other cities crack down on dispensaries, more sellers would open up in the unincorporated areas of the county. He warned that more outlets would bring more crime to the area.
Advocates and medical marijuana patients argued for safe access to medically necessary marijuana throughout the county.
"Work with me, please," said Victoria Zavala, who runs a medical marijuana collective in unincorporated Quartz Hill. She directed her comments to Antonovich. "We need safe access in our area."
Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky urged the board to ask the Department of Regional Planning to consider more specific restrictions on permits for legal dispensaries, instead of an outright ban. He said that county counsel should also be directed to use the "toughest-available" enforcement mechanisms against illegal operators, including fines of up to $1,000 per day.
"A comprehensive ban is not going to achieve the objectives that all of us want to achieve," said Yaroslavsky. "It's the illegal ones that are creating...almost all of the problems," he said.
A 2006 Los Angeles County ordinance prohibits dispensaries within 1,000 feet of churches, daycare centers, libraries, playgrounds and schools and requires that the businesses be permitted.
No permits have been issued for outlets in the unincorporated areas, though a handful are pending.
But several pot shops have opened without the operators getting permits, including one just two doors away from a county library and another across from a sheriff's training site, according to members of the board.
The process for closing illegal outlets typically takes three months, according to County Counsel Andrea Ordin.
Supervisor Gloria Molina agreed that a few bad apples among the medical marijuana retailers were causing problems, but also blamed the county's attorneys.
"Why don't we use what we've got to get (illegal outlets) out of the incorporated areas?" asked Molina.
In the absence of immediate action by counsel, she said she had to support the ban.
The ban may also face legal challenges. An outright ban imposed by Anaheim was upheld by a trial court, which said that federal law supports the ban, even though it conflicts with state law. But an appeals court reversed that ruling and returned the matter to the lower court in August.
The proposed language of the Los Angeles County ordinance states that if the California Supreme Court or Court of Appeals rules a complete ban illegal, the county's existing ordinance would remain in effect.
"I'm not prepared to vote for a ban today," said Yaroslavsky, who cited personal friends with terminal illnesses who used the drug to ease their pain.
Staffers were working to get the final language of the ordinance in front of the board within the next two weeks, said county counsel Rick Weiss.
The ordinance will take effect 30 days after that final vote.
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