cannabisnews.com: Moratorium Sought on New Pot Clinics





Moratorium Sought on New Pot Clinics
Posted by CN Staff on January 16, 2007 at 07:38:49 PT
By Patrick McGreevy, Times Staff Writer
Source: Los Angeles Times 
Los Angeles -- Concerned by a 2,350% increase in the number of medical marijuana dispensaries in Los Angeles in a one-year period, Police Chief William J. Bratton is calling for a moratorium on new facilities until strict rules can be adopted governing them.In a report to the Police Commission, Bratton said he wants to ban existing dispensaries within 1,000 feet of schools, churches, parks and places designated exclusively for the care of children. He also advocates limiting their hours to 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The establishments are allowed under a 1996 state ballot measure and a more recent state law making marijuana available to patients by prescription to relieve pain or nausea.Bratton said the number of dispensaries increased from four in November 2005 to 98 a year later. "This has fostered an increase in … crime problems and caused quality-of-life issues for families and communities, as evidenced by the 110 complaints received from neighbors, business owners and concerned citizens concerning these dispensaries," Bratton's report states.The Police Commission will consider his recommendations today.Los Angeles Police Department officers have been called to clinics because of problems including robberies, burglaries and drug use in front of the clinics, Lt. Paul Vernon said. Without regulations, he said, officers are hamstrung. Snipped:Complete Article: http://tinyurl.com/y28n3fSource: Los Angeles Times (CA)Author:  Patrick McGreevy, Times Staff Writer Published: January 16, 2007 Copyright: 2007 Los Angeles TimesContact: letters latimes.comWebsite: http://www.latimes.com/CannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml
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Comment #13 posted by mai_bong_city on January 17, 2007 at 07:44:28 PT
argh. 
our medical use law here says we can't use on a school bus or in a school or in a public park.....but we have no plan for dispensaries as yet - however, i find it strange that in this same town, in this state, a sexual offender is allowed to live NEXT DOOR to a day care center, and the offender seems to have more rights than we do to protect children - there is no law prohibiting sexual offenders from living next door to schools, day care centers, anywhere children gather.....strange....wrong.
i remember when i 'came out' as a medical marijuana user, how all the parents of the kids who'd been around me all their lives and were now grown and healthy teens were disturbed, like i'd exposed their children to some kind of harm - when my neighbor down the road hosted a party for her daughter's 18th birthday. this woman purchased cases of alcohol for the kids, allowed them to get drunk in her home, and then, horrifically, allowed the kids to drive themselves home at 5 in the morning.
one boy never made it home. his friend will live forever with the knowledge he killed him. 
and the parents were afraid of me? had i known what was going on, i would have opened my home to those kids to sleep it off, to keep them safe. and i've never given marijuana to a child. 
i guess all i'm saying is, they're going after the wrong bunch it seems, always. i'm so tired of being vilified. 
they should remember to teach their children well. stand the offspring of a marijuana smoker next to the alcoholic's. how about letting the kids teach us, for a change? i bet you, they could.
and just - well, on top of it - because i'm a medical marijuana user, i can't adopt or have a foster child, either. no matter i have proven myself a responsible, able adult that raised a child rather successfully on her own - they won't let me love and nurture a child that needs a parent, because they don't want them exposed to me and my medicine.
that hurts. it hurts me, and it hurts some child that could benefit from love.
a puff in peace to y'all~*
mbc.
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Comment #12 posted by Richard Zuckerman on January 16, 2007 at 16:11:41 PT:
"Robberies, burglaries, and drug use"
All business establishments need to consider the amount of security, depending on the nature of the business. Surely, the medical Cannabis clinics need to rethink lax security precautions. I would implore all medical Cannabis clinics to have at least an armed security guard. That's right, people: At least one person with a GUN!!! And videotape coverage of the property. As a matter of law, now that so many incidents have been reported, medical Cannabis clinics can actually be found liable for failing to provide adequate security!!!! I read a couple of weeks ago that police patrol cars of East Brunswick, New Jersey, are equipped with digital video. PERHAPS THE MEDICAL CANNABIS CLUBS SHOULD HAVE AT LEAST ARMED GUARD AND DIGITAL VIDEOTAPE COVERAGE!!!! IF YOU DO NOT, THEN GET READY TO BE SUED, PROPERTY OWNERS AND BUSINESS OPERATORS!!!Richard Paul Zuckerman, Post Office Box 159, Metuchen, New Jersey, 08840-0159, (Cell phone)(848) 250-8879, Diploma in Paralegal, New York University, 2003; B.A. in Political Science, Kean College Of New Jersey [Kean University], 1987 ["Associate in Applied Science, Peep Show Technology, Union County Voc. Tech."].
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Comment #11 posted by afterburner on January 16, 2007 at 15:32:21 PT
*** Canada: Storm Brews Over Drug Strategy *** 
*** Canada: Storm Brews Over Drug Strategy, Globe and Mail (Canada),
(Mon, 15 Jan 2007) http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v07/n052/a08.html Excerpt: "Canada's drug strategy, renewed with much fanfare in 2003, has put too much emphasis on law enforcement instead of on means to combat illicit drug use and minimize its human toll, says the report that is to appear in the HIV/AIDS Policy and Law Review." ***CN QU: PUB LTE: Pot Laws Luciferous, Mirror, (11 Jan 2007) Stan White 
http://www.mapinc.org/newstcl/v07/n049/a02.html?176CN BC: Compassion Clients Left Holding The Bag, Parksville Qualicum Beach News, (12 Jan 2007) 
http://www.mapinc.org/newstcl/v07/n049/a04.html?176CN BC: PUB LTE: Time and Resources Wasted, Comox Valley Record, (10 Jan 2007) Scott Lyle
http://www.mapinc.org/newstcl/v07/n049/a08.html?176CN BC: PUB LTE: Who Was Russell Hurting Here?, Parksville Qualicum Beach News, (12 Jan 2007) Alison Myrden
http://www.mapinc.org/newstcl/v07/n048/a01.html?176CN ON: PUB LTE: Legalization Would Reduce the Number of Dangerous Grow-Ops, The Standard, (15 Jan 2007) Matt Mernagh 
http://www.mapinc.org/newstcl/v07/n048/a09.html?176Medicine, not politics.
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Comment #10 posted by FoM on January 16, 2007 at 13:09:27 PT
OT: Should Illegal Drugs Be Taxed? 
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1578857,00.html
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Comment #9 posted by ekim on January 16, 2007 at 11:17:12 PT
HI Whig good to see you
if anyone is interested in Leap and would like to have a speaker at a event seehttp://www.leap.cc.events/remember Howard Wooldridge is lobbying in DC for Leap and will try to go with you to your congress persons office if you just ask him if he has a opening.wooldridge leap.cc
http://www.blog.leap.cc/
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Comment #8 posted by FoM on January 16, 2007 at 11:12:53 PT
ekim
I am almost bubbly about Obama but I am a woman and he is cute. How do you like that for a good reason? LOL!Weeds didn't do anything when I watched the Golden Globes. Something called Ugly Betty won. Weeds got sort of dark this last season and it lost some of it's humor and that could be why they didn't win.
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Comment #7 posted by ekim on January 16, 2007 at 10:51:19 PT
looks like Sen Obama is going for it
i hope that he will stand up and bring a member of Leap on his team.FoM how did Weeds do last niteit would be good to have a member of Leap on the advisory board of Weeds
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Comment #6 posted by FoM on January 16, 2007 at 10:47:08 PT
whig
It's good to see you.
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Comment #5 posted by whig on January 16, 2007 at 10:42:02 PT
no opinion offered
Where is not "within 1,000 feet of schools, churches, parks and places designated exclusively for the care of children" within a city?Hello everyone, I still read.
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Comment #4 posted by FoM on January 16, 2007 at 10:13:02 PT
ekim
I am looking forward to reading how the debate goes between Nadelmann and Barr.
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Comment #3 posted by ekim on January 16, 2007 at 10:07:46 PT
Debate: Medical Marijuana -Should The Sick Be Able
Debate: Medical Marijuana - Should The Sick Be Able http://www.drugpolicy.org/homepage.cfm
DPA's executive director Ethan Nadelmann will debate former Congressman, and drug policy reform opponent, Bob Barr about whether marijuana should be allowed as a medicine. If you're going to be in the New York City area on January 18th you won't want to miss this.January 18, 2007
New York, NY 
http://blogs.salon.com/0002762/
Tuesday, January 16, 2007 Outstanding EditorialIn the Colorado Springs Gazette: Editorial: It's Time for New Strategy in the Drug War 
[...] After decades of an even worse failure in the drug war, it's time for the government to rethink that war as well. [...] Besides failing to keep drugs off the street, the drug war is detrimental to our national security. Many officials note that the illicit drug trade finances terrorism. That's a fair point, but it's 180 degrees off course. It blames drug users for all the money in the illegal drug trade, when prohibition is responsible for the huge amounts of money to be made selling drugs. [...] The way to get terrorists out of the drug trade is to take away the profit incentive. The drug trade doesn't finance terrorism, the drug war does. If the U.S. and other nations stop treating personal choices such as drug use as crimes, many problems would disappear. [...] We often hear about drug-related crime. It should more accurately be called drug war-related crime. [...] After four decades of a failed drug war, isn't it time to take a fresh look at what's not working on that front? 
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Comment #2 posted by Toker00 on January 16, 2007 at 09:25:56 PT
OT, but important.
Seems to be a smidgen of hope for a congressional vote to halt the escalation in Iraq. Want to help?Council for a Livable World
 	Dear     ,The pressure we have been putting on Congress to oppose President Bush’s plan to escalate the war in Iraq is working. Senator Kennedy's office personally contacted us to thank us and our supporters for our help. We must help Senator Kennedy lead this fight by increasing the pressure on other Senators.You can call your Senators by calling the Capitol Switchboard toll-free at 866-340-9281. They will redirect you to your Senators’ offices. Tell them that you want them to co-sponsor Senator Kennedy’s bill (S.233) opposing an escalation of the war in Iraq.More than 30,000 people have signed our petition urging Congress to reject the President’s plan. Many Senators and Representatives have already spoken out against escalating the war.After President Bush’s speech announcing the escalation last week, Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA) sponsored legislation which would require a Congressional vote on whether more troops should be sent to Iraq.Help Senator Kennedy lead this fight by calling your Senators and asking them to co-sponsor this legislation.Please call your Senators today toll-free at 866-340-9281 and ask them to co-sponsor S.233. Tell them that you want them to co-sponsor Senator Kennedy’s bill (S.233) opposing an escalation of the war in Iraq.After you talk with your Senators, please let us know what they tell you by filling out this short form on our website. Your information will give us valuable intelligence on where each Senator stands on the war. We will use this information in our lobbying in the Capital and pass it along to Senator Kennedy as well.We can stop this senseless war, but time is short. We are expecting a vote within days.Sincerely,John Isaacs and Guy StevensP.S. You can help build pressure on Congress to by spreading the word to your friends and family. Please help by forwarding this e-mail to five more people! Toke.
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Comment #1 posted by goneposthole on January 16, 2007 at 09:00:59 PT
from 4 to 98
I wonder how many complaints there would be if the number of sexual predators increased 2,340 percent?The increase in the number of dispensaries is only a reflection on the increase in demand for medical cannabis.There is no demand for an increase in the number of sexual predators invading neighborhoods throughout the land. None.Leave cannabis users alone.How many cannabis users live in your neighborhood? Do you feel threatened by thirty million cannabis users or do you feel threatened by thirty million sexual predators?Which group gives you the feeling of even just a modicum of security?
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