seems the feds think our state laws don’t mean a thing anymore.

Oct 6, 7:52 PM (ET)

By LISA LEFF
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Federal prosecutors have launched a crackdown on some pot dispensaries in California, warning the stores that they must shut down in 45 days or face criminal charges and confiscation of their property even if they are operating legally under the state's 15-year-old medical marijuana law.
In an escalation of the ongoing conflict between the U.S. government and the nation's burgeoning medical marijuana industry, at least 16 pot shops or their landlords received letters this week stating they are violating federal drug laws, even though medical marijuana is legal in California. The state's four U.S. attorneys were scheduled Friday to announce a broader coordinated crackdown.
Their offices refused Thursday to confirm the closure orders. The Associated Press obtained copies of the letters that a prosecutor sent to at least 12 San Diego dispensaries. They state that federal law "takes precedence over state law and applies regardless of the particular uses for which a dispensary is selling and distributing marijuana."
"Under United States law, a dispensary's operations involving sales and distribution of marijuana are illegal and subject to criminal prosecution and civil enforcement actions," according to the letters signed by U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy in San Diego. "Real and personal property involved in such operations are subject to seizure by and forfeiture to the United States ... regardless of the purported purpose of the dispensary."
The move comes a little more than two months after the Obama administration toughened its stand on medical marijuana. For two years before that, federal officials had indicated they would not move aggressively against dispensaries in compliance with laws in the 16 states where pot is legal for people with doctors' recommendations.
The Department of Justice issued a policy memo to federal prosecutors in late June stating that marijuana dispensaries and licensed growers in states with medical marijuana laws could face prosecution for violating federal drug and money-laundering laws. The effort to shutter California dispensaries appeared to be the most far-reaching effort so far to put that guidance into action.
"This really shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone. The administration is simply making good on multiple threats issued since President Obama took office," said Kevin Sabet, a former adviser to the president's drug czar and a fellow at the University of Pennsylvania's Center for Substance Abuse Solutions. "The challenge is to balance the scarcity of law enforcement resources and the sanctity of this country's medication approval process. It seems like the administration is simply making good on multiple statements made previously to appropriately strike that balance."
Greg Anton, a lawyer who represents dispensary Marin Alliance for Medical Marijuana, said its landlord received an "extremely threatening" letter Wednesday invoking a federal law that imposes additional penalties for selling drugs within 1,000 feet of schools, parks and playgrounds.
The landlord was ordered to evict the 14-year-old pot club or risk imprisonment, plus forfeiture of the property and all the rent he has collected while the dispensary has been in business, Anton said.
Marin Alliance's founder "has been paying state and federal taxes for 14 years, and they have cashed all the checks," he said. "All I hear from Obama is whining about his budget, but he has money to do this which will actually reduce revenues."
Kris Hermes, a spokesman for the medical marijuana advocacy group Americans for Safe Access, said the warnings are part of what appears to be an attempt by the Obama administration to curb medical marijuana on multiple fronts and through multiple agencies. A series of dispensary raids in Montana, for example, involved agents from not only the FBI and U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency, but the Internal Revenue Service and Environmental Protection Agency.
Going after property owners is not a new tactic though, Hermes said. Five years ago, the Department of Justice under President George W. Bush made similar threats to about 300 Los Angeles-area landlords who were renting space to medical marijuana outlets, some of whom were eventually evicted or closed their doors voluntarily, he said.
"It did have an impact. However, the federal government never acted on its threats, never prosecuted anybody, never even went to court to begin prosecutions," Hermes said. "By and large, they were empty threats, but they relied on them and the cost of postage to shut down as many facilities as they could without having to engage in criminal enforcement activity."
Besides the dozen dispensaries in San Diego and the one in Marin County, at least three shops in San Francisco already have received closure notices, said Dale Gieringer, director of the California chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.
The San Diego medical marijuana outlets put on notice were the same 12 that city officials sued last month for operating illegally, after activists there threatened to force an election on a zoning plan adopted to regulate the city's fast-growing medical marijuana industry, City Attorney Jan Goldsmith said. A judge on Wednesday ordered nine of the targeted shops to close, while the other three shut down voluntarily, Goldsmith said.
Duffy, the U.S. attorney for far Southern California, planned to issue warning letters to property owners and all of the 180 or so dispensaries that have proliferated in San Diego in the absence of compromise regulations, according to Goldsmith.
"The real power is with the federal government," he said. "They have the asset forfeiture, and that means either the federal government will own a lot of property or these landlords will evict a lot of dispensaries."


http://apnews.excite.com/ar...11006/D9Q73U7O1.html


Steve

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Technology is great when it works,
and one big pain in the ass when it doesn't.

Detroit iron rules all the rest are just toys.

The President said that he doesn't want this to be a priority.
Maybe the troops the field in need of a reminder of who is ultimately in charge.
Hello senator? Representative?
Can't we find a better way to spend this money and manpower?
Have YOU made that phone call?
Sent that email?

[This message has been edited by NEPTUNE (edited 10-06-2011).]

Oh No, what will become of all those people who need it for their health!?

What will become of that great American company NABISCO- the maker of Oreos?

Can't clame Bush for this one. The big O takes all the blame for this one. I wonder how Jeff is going to get his now?

So I guess they changed their minds?

quote U.S. eases stance on medical marijuana Video Feds to stop medical marijuana prosecution Federal drug agents won't pursue pot-smoking patients or their sanctioned suppliers in states that allow medical marijuana, under new legal guidelines to be issued Monday by the Obama administration. By Carrie Johnson Washington Post Staff Writer Tuesday, October 20, 2009 Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. directed federal prosecutors Monday to back away from pursuing cases against medical marijuana patients, signaling a broad policy shift that drug reform advocates interpret as the first step toward legalization of the drug. The government's top lawyer said that in 14 states with some provisions for medical marijuana use, federal prosecutors should focus only on cases involving higher-level drug traffickers, money launderers or people who use the state laws as a cover. The Justice Department's action came days after the Senate's second-highest-ranking Democrat introduced a bill that would eradicate a two-decade-old sentencing disparity for people caught with cocaine in rock form instead of powder form. Taken together, experts say, the moves represent an approach favored by President Obama and Vice President Biden to put new emphasis on violent crime and the sale of illicit drugs to children. Legislation that would cover a third administration commitment, to support federal funding of needle exchanges, is moving through the House. The announcement set off waves of support from advocacy groups that have long sought to relax the enforcement of marijuana laws. But some local police and Republican lawmakers criticized the change, saying it could exacerbate the flow of drug money to Mexican cartels, whose violence has spilled over the Southwestern border. In a statement, Holder asserted that drug traffickers and people who use firearms will continue to be direct targets of federal prosecutors, but that, on his watch, "it will not be a priority to use federal resources to prosecute patients with serious illnesses or their caregivers who are complying with state laws on medical marijuana." The turnaround could pave the way for Rhode Island, New Mexico and Michigan to put together marijuana-distribution systems for residents of those states, according to Graham Boyd, director of the Drug Law Reform Project at the American Civil Liberties Union. Advocates say marijuana use can help alleviate pain and stimulate appetite in patients suffering from cancer, HIV-AIDS and other ailments. But the American Medical Association since 2001 has held firm to a policy opposing marijuana for medical purposes. Under the Controlled Substances Act, which is more than three decades old, marijuana remains within the category of drugs most tightly restricted by the government. Donna Lambert, who is awaiting criminal trial in San Diego County Superior Court for allegedly providing medical marijuana to another patient, injected a note of skepticism into Holder's announcement. In an interview, Lambert noted that senior administration officials had made public comments this year in line with the Justice Department policy, only to have law enforcement agents, including the Drug Enforcement Administration, take part in raids soon afterward. Ethan Nadelmann, executive director of the Drug Policy Alliance, said he and other advocates will watch closely whether federal agents refuse to participate in raids or send other signals to district attorneys in the states that allow some medical use of marijuana. Americans for Safe Access, which supports medical marijuana programs nationwide, estimated that during the Bush administration federal authorities conducted 200 raids in California alone. A 2005 U.S. Supreme Court case made clear that the federal government has the discretion to enforce federal drug laws even in states that had approved some relaxation of marijuana statutes for sick patients. White House press secretary Robert Gibbs, at a daily briefing in Washington, declined to address "what states should do" in response to the Justice Department guidance. But Gibbs said that the president since January had outlined his medical marijuana policy and that the Justice Department memo, signed by Deputy Attorney General David W. Ogden, helped to fill in the details. The administration stopped far short Monday of endorsing wholesale marijuana legalization, frustrating some activists. At the libertarian Cato Institute, official Tim Lynch described the war on drugs as a "grand failure." He exhorted the White House to take "much bolder steps to stop the criminalization of drug use more generally." In the three-page memo, Ogden made clear that the department is not creating a new legal defense for people who may have violated the Controlled Substances Act. Instead, the memo is intended to guide prosecutors on where to train their scarce investigative resources. The International Association of Chiefs of Police "strongly believes that the federal government must continue to play a central role in the investigation and prosecution of . . . traffickers, dispensary operators, and growers," said Meredith Mays, a spokeswoman for the group. Rep. Lamar Smith (Tex.), the top Republican on the House Judiciary Committee, said the Justice Department guidelines "fly in the face of Supreme Court precedent and undermine federal laws that prohibit the distribution and use of marijuana." He added: "We cannot hope to eradicate the drug trade if we do not first address the cash cow for most drug-trafficking organizations -- marijuana." The cocaine bill is still pending in the Senate, although advocates say its prospects are stronger now than over the past decade. The sponsor, Sen. Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.), said in an interview last week that he was working to enlist GOP co-sponsors to ease the bill's passage.

Brad

quote Originally posted by twofatguys: So I guess they changed their minds? Brad

Seems they didn't, they are going after the dispensaries.

Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. directed federal prosecutors Monday to back away from pursuing cases against medical marijuana patients, signaling a broad policy shift that drug reform advocates interpret as the first step toward legalization of the drug.


The government's top lawyer said that in 14 states with some provisions for medical marijuana use, federal prosecutors should focus only on cases involving higher-level drug traffickers, money launderers or people who use the state laws as a cover.

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Technology is great when it works,
and one big pain in the ass when it doesn't.

Detroit iron rules all the rest are just toys.

quote Originally posted by twofatguys: From article: He added: "We cannot hope to eradicate the drug trade if we do not first address the cash cow for most drug-trafficking organizations -- marijuana Brad

Really? He [Rep. Lamar] thinks that WEED is the cash cow for drug-trafficking organizations? And he is the "top Republican in the House Judiciary Committee?" (Not exactly sure if that title means anything... hope not)

Honestly though, how can people that are so ignorant of the situation be allowed to make decisions? Why doesn't someone go up to him and let him know that a pound of meth or heroin goes for nearly 10 times what the same amount of marijuana would. Not to mention that a pound of marijuana would fill a shopping bag, while the hard stuff might take up a quarter of the space. Making crystal or crack much easier to transport and conceal. I mean cartels might be less-than-intelligent, but they know how to make money, and it isn't in grass.

quote Originally posted by Toddster: Oh No, what will become of all those people who need it for their health!?

More like what will become of all of the people that were employed by that booming business out in California? Oh well, I'm sure you could use a few more people in the unemployment line...

[This message has been edited by 1988holleyformula (edited 10-07-2011).]

quote Originally posted by NEPTUNE: The President said that he doesn't want this to be a priority. Maybe the troops the field in need of a reminder of who is ultimately in charge. Hello senator? Representative? Can't we find a better way to spend this money and manpower? Have YOU made that phone call? Sent that email?

From this article:

http://news.yahoo.com/feds-...osure-214928760.html

"The move comes a little more than two months after the Obama administration toughened its stand on medical marijuana."

...

"This really shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone. The administration is simply making good on multiple threats issued since President Obama took office," said Kevin Sabet, a former adviser to the president's drug czar and a fellow at the University of Pennsylvania's Center for Substance Abuse Solutions. "The challenge is to balance the scarcity of law enforcement resources and the sanctity of this country's medication approval process. It seems like the administration is simply making good on multiple statements made previously to appropriately strike that balance."

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So, Neptune, are you going to criticize Obama for this?

[This message has been edited by fierobear (edited 10-07-2011).]

I've often wondered when this would happen.

Curious, if California legalized Darvacet, which the FDA has banned, would the opinion be different if the Feds took this kind of action? How about if Colorado decided they would make a law tha allowed twice the FDA's approved amout on rat feces in food, would people be up in arms if the Feds took action?

[This message has been edited by Khw (edited 10-07-2011).]

To many millionaires and billionaires running pot dispensaries.

quote Originally posted by Khw: I've often wondered when this will happen. Curious, if California legalized Darvacet, which the FDA has banned, would the opinion be different if the Feds took this kind of action? How about if Colorado decided they would make a law tha allowed twice the FDA's approved amout on rat feces in food, would people be up in arms if the Feds took action?

The reality is, Federal law supersedes State law.

quote Originally posted by fierobear: The reality is, Federal law supersedes State law.

Yeah, I know. Which is why when Medical Marijuana passed in California, I wondered how long until the Feds did something about it.

What about Nobama's promise that if you liked your health care provider, that you could keep him, .

[This message has been edited by cliffw (edited 10-07-2011).]

I for one think that the goverment really over steps there bounds by dictating what one can and cannot do to there body as far as pot goes... Pot was here before all of us and it will be here after all of us.. Its a a plant.. and also lets not forget out own founding fathers George Washington Abe Lincoln ETC all grew marijuana It was not used as an inhalant until later on when the Hispanics introduced it as a smokeable substance but it was used to make paper and such.

$ per oz. is going to go ^ ...........
Where is my fertilizer?


H-E-L-L-O-O-O-O ZIMMER!

quote Originally posted by fierobear: So, Neptune, are you going to criticize Obama for this?

I have to admit, Bear is spot on with this question.

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Ron
"While you cannot control the length of your life, you can control the width and depth." Live life to it's fullest, you may not see tomorrow.

quote Originally posted by fierobear: So, Neptune, are you going to criticize Obama for this?

Gee.
I thought I already did.
Wait.
I ALREADY DID.

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Drive safely!

quote Originally posted by NEPTUNE: Gee. I thought I already did. Wait. I ALREADY DID.

OK, I'll move over. The following appears to be more of a defense.

quote Originally posted by NEPTUNE: The President said that he doesn't want this to be a priority. Maybe the troops the field in need of a reminder of who is ultimately in charge. Hello senator? Representative? Can't we find a better way to spend this money and manpower? Have YOU made that phone call? Sent that email?

I'm probably all wrong though.
Senator? Representative? Eric Holder maybe but, I doubt he'll respond to emails from constitutents since they didnt't put him there.

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Ron
"While you cannot control the length of your life, you can control the width and depth." Live life to it's fullest, you may not see tomorrow.

quote Originally posted by blackrams: I'm probably all wrong though. Senator? Representative? Eric Holder maybe but, I doubt he'll respond to emails from constitutents since they didnt't put him there.

I actually read Neptune's post as: "The government needs to be reminded who put them in charge. So a good way to do that would be to petition your local governments first."

I took the "The President said that he doesn't want this to be a priority." as a bit of a chastising. As in Obama "promised" (not sure if was actually one of his "promises") at the beginning of his term that he wouldn't make dispensaries a priority, and now Neptune can see like me that his priorities have shifted.

(Now if only Nep would acknowledge all the other empty promises... )

Honestly, I really don't care except it's the law. A law that isn't enforced should be abolished. So, either make it legal and tax it or don't and enforce the law.

We have way too many laws on the books that aren't enforced.

As far as President Obama, well I'm on record about him a few times. I'll just say this, I'll be less worried when his lame duck session is over and his replacement has taken office in 2013. Hopefully, we can fix what he's been trying to break.

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Ron
"While you cannot control the length of your life, you can control the width and depth." Live life to it's fullest, you may not see tomorrow.

quote Originally posted by 84fiero123: seems the feds think our state laws don’t mean a thing anymore.

Did they ever? The 10th amendment was just for political show.

quote Originally posted by 84fiero123: seems the feds think our state laws don’t mean a thing anymore.

Not new.... Fed hate all "medical" drug use... Just starting to crackdown now because many states want medical marijuana.

Only surprise is Fed notice to shutdown or else. Fed can just send FBI and BATFE w/o warning...

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Dr. Ian Malcolm: Yeah, but your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn't stop to think if they should.
(Jurassic Park)

The Ogre's Fiero Cave (It's also at the top and bottom of every forum page...)

[This message has been edited by theogre (edited 10-07-2011).]

quote The reality is, Federal law supersedes State law.

What about what the 10th amendment says about this?

"The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people."

quote Originally posted by Toddster: Oh No, what will become of all those people who need it for their health!?

We will continue to be able to purchase it at dispensaries that follow the laws, that aren't abusing the system, and that have their books in order. People who "need" it for their "health", , will go back to buying dope from illegal aliens who grow in our boobytrapped national forests and state parks and cost our society billions of dollars in interdiction costs.

I don't see this as a problem for honest, well intentioned care providers in California, unless they start getting rich. Then they can afford good lawyers.

quote Originally posted by avengador1: What about what the 10th amendment says about this? "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people."

They argue that the Constitution covers this as a federal issue, so the 10th wouldn't actually apply.. And actually, I agree, but it prohibits interference by both federal and state governments in this issue, unlike the current federal interpretation of their power..

[This message has been edited by User00013170 (edited 10-07-2011).]

quote Originally posted by fierobear: The reality is, Federal law supersedes State law.

then why cant i carry a firearm when i please? and i was hoping obama care would cover my pot costs....damn! jk i dont smoke that crap it makes you briefly stupid, hungry, innovative or relaxed.....or a combination of all thee above.

quote Originally posted by Niterrorz: then why cant i carry a firearm when i please? and i was hoping obama care would cover my pot costs....damn! jk i dont smoke that crap it makes you briefly stupid, hungry, innovative or relaxed.....or a combination of all thee above.

You don’t have to smoke it, my doctor recommends brownies, I love brownies.

Feds vow crackdown on Calif. pot operations
Oct 8, 7:39 AM (ET)

By DON THOMPSON
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - Federal authorities in California vowed to shut down dozens of pot growing and sales operations in a major crackdown, saying the worst offenders are using the cover of medical marijuana to act as storefront drug dealers.
The aggressive crackdown comes a little more than two months after the Obama administration toughened its stand on medical marijuana.
Prosecutors Friday described it as the first coordinated statewide offensive against marijuana dealers and suppliers who use California's 15-year-old medical marijuana law as legal cover for running sophisticated drug trafficking ventures in plain sight.
U.S. Attorney Benjamin Wagner cited a 2009 federal study that 72 percent of marijuana plants eradicated nationwide were grown in California.
"California's marijuana industry supplies the nation," he said.
The actions were geared toward stopping a proliferation that has led to thousands of pot shops opening their doors across the state. The spread was fueled partly by the Obama administration's assurance two years ago that it did not plan to devote federal resources to countering marijuana outlets operating in compliance with state laws.
One example cited by the prosecutors Friday: In one Orange County strip mall, eight of the 11 second-floor suites are occupied by dispensaries and doctors' offices for doctors where healthy individuals obtain "sham" recommendations to use medical marijuana.
It is "a Costco, Walmart-type model that we see across California," said Andre Birotte Jr., U.S. attorney in the Los Angeles-area. Some people making money from medical marijuana openly revel in what some have called "the new California gold rush," he said.
Landlords leasing property to dozens of warehouses and agricultural parcels where marijuana is being grown and retail spaces where pot is sold over the counter are receiving written warnings to evict their tenants or face criminal charges or seizure of their assets, the state's four U.S. attorneys said.
"The intention regarding medical marijuana under California state law was to allow marijuana to be supplied to seriously ill people on a nonprofit basis," said U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag, the top federal law enforcement officer for the San Francisco Bay area. "What we are finding, however, is that California's laws have been hijacked by people who are in this to get rich and don't care at all about sick people."
For two years before the federal government's toughened stand, officials had indicated they would not move aggressively against dispensaries in compliance with laws in the 16 states where pot is legal for people with doctors' recommendations.
The Department of Justice issued a policy memo to federal prosecutors in late June stating that marijuana dispensaries and licensed growers in states with medical marijuana laws could face prosecution for violating federal drug and money-laundering laws. The effort to shutter California dispensaries appeared to be the most far-reaching effort so far to put that guidance into action.
Increased federal intervention will likely unify marijuana growers and sellers in a drive to change federal policy, National Cannabis Industry Association spokeswoman Melissa Milam said.
"We're not going anywhere. We're mothers, we're patients, we're family members of patients," she said. "We want to pay taxes, we want to be able to make deposits at our bank, we want to be a business."
Not all of the thousands of storefront pot dispensaries thought to be operating in the state are being targeted in the crackdown, which also involves new indictments and arrests of marijuana growers and vendors throughout the state over the past two weeks, said Wagner, who represents the state's Central Valley.
The strategies federal authorities are using vary somewhat, with warning letters issued by the U.S. attorney in San Diego giving recipients 45 days to comply and property owners in Los Angeles, Orange County and the Central Coast given just two weeks to evict pot dispensaries or growers.
Haag said she is initially going after pot shops located close to schools, parks, sports fields and other places where there are a lot of children.
Wagner, who represents the state's Central Valley, also is targeting what he termed "significant commercial operations," including farmland where marijuana is being grown. Birotte is prioritizing dispensaries in communities where local officials have been trying unsuccessfully to shut down marijuana businesses.
Moreover, the four said their warnings were aimed at cities and counties that have started licensing and taxing marijuana shops.

more here

http://apnews.excite.com/ar...11008/D9Q83CMO1.html

Steve

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Technology is great when it works,
and one big pain in the ass when it doesn't.

Detroit iron rules all the rest are just toys.

quote Originally posted by 1988holleyformula: Really? He [Rep. Lamar] thinks that WEED is the cash cow for drug-trafficking organizations? And he is the "top Republican in the House Judiciary Committee?" (Not exactly sure if that title means anything... hope not) Honestly though, how can people that are so ignorant of the situation be allowed to make decisions? Why doesn't someone go up to him and let him know that a pound of meth or heroin goes for nearly 10 times what the same amount of marijuana would. Not to mention that a pound of marijuana would fill a shopping bag, while the hard stuff might take up a quarter of the space. Making crystal or crack much easier to transport and conceal. I mean cartels might be less-than-intelligent, but they know how to make money, and it isn't in grass.

I know a few guys who'd be perfectly willing for him to keep thinking that.

It takes all the pressure off of them.

"Yeah, Lamar.....go get those big bad POT cartels!"

quote Originally posted by avengador1: What about what the 10th amendment says about this? "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people."

Because of the Supremacy Clause