Wednesday, January 24, 2007

Last Friday, the city of Claremont served an injunction order on the medical marijuana dispensary in an effort to force it to cease business operations. At the same time, the city continues to fine Darrell Kruse, the owner of the dispensary, $500 a day for operating his business without a city-issued license. The fines began last Tuesday and have increased incrementally in price each day, eventually capping at $500.

When Mr. Kruse was initially refused a business license over the summer, he began operating his dispensary without the knowledge of the city. City officials have stated that they refused to issue him the license due to a lack of city code on how to regulate a marijuana dispensary.

The city later instated a 45-day moratorium on the operation of marijuana dispensaries with the hopes they could come up with a plan to either regulate dispensaries, allowing them to operate in certain areas and under controlled conditions, or bar them altogether in Claremont. The moratorium was later extended to one year, however city council has thus far failed to develop an ordinance to deal with the dispensary.

Councilwoman Ellen Taylor stated that city council does not yet know which direction it will take on the issue until more information comes to light.

“The federal government says one thing and the state says another, meanwhile the city is the one stuck dealing with them,” she said.

City manager Jeffrey Parker believes that the city will have an ordinance in place to deal with the dispensary within the coming year. 

“My guess would be sometime in summer or fall of this year,” said Mr. Parker.

The papers served to Mr. Kruse require him to appear in court Tuesday morning for a preliminary hearing on the injunction.

 

Mr. Kruse Speaks Out

At his trial on January 9, Mr. Kruse was found guilty of operating a business without a license and fined $121. At the same time, he was found not guilty of a violation on a zoning issue; a ruling which he believes will allow his business to continue to run.

“What I lost was a business license law. I wasn’t even concerned about that law. That law hasn’t bothered any dispensary yet,” he explained. “The law that has bothered every dispensary, like the one in Corona, is the zoning issue law. If you look at every dispensary that was forced to shut down, they always lost on the zoning issue.  And I won on the zoning issue.

“The other one is just a revenue generating tax for business license laws. They will never get an injunction for a revenue act,” he went on to say.

Mr. Kruse also spoke about the daily fine that is being levied against him. He believes that such a steep amount constitutes a violation of the Compassionate Use Act, otherwise known as Proposition 215. According to section C of the law, governments are encouraged to “implement a plan to provide for the safe and affordable distribution of marijuana to all patients in medical need of marijuana.”

“As soon as they send me those bills, they are defeating the purpose of the Compassionate Use Act, which has a stated objective to provide safe and affordable access,” he said. “Now if I am fined $500 a day, how does that advance the law to provide affordable access?”

Mr. Kruse insists that he is not just trying to pick a fight with the city, despite some belief to the contrary. He stated that he would be willing to play by their rules and accommodate the city if he is given a license.

“I will move to any location where they will allow me to go. I will pay any fee that they tell me to pay as long as they give me a business license,” he said. “I would love to live under their rules, whatever rules they have.”

As the battle over the dispensary continues to escalate, Mr. Kruse appears confident that he will remain in business.

“I can’t see any reason to leave. I know that the fine won’t stick, so why would I leave?” he said. “I know that their injunction won’t stick so I won’t have to leave.”

 

Protests

Last Wednesday, federal agents from the Drug Enforcement Administration raided a total of 11 medical marijuana dispensaries throughout Los Angeles County. In the process, the agents collected an estimated $200,000 in cash and several thousands of pounds of marijuana. The backlash to this brazen move by the federal government came the following day when roughly 100 protesters gathered outside of West Hollywood city hall to announce their opposition to the actions of the previous day.

The protests highlight the ongoing struggle between the federal government, which prohibits the use and sale of marijuana, and the state, whose voters approved the use of marijuana for medical purposes in 1996 under Proposition 215.

As a self-proclaimed marijuana activist, Mr. Kruse has organized a similar protest to take place at Tuesday night’s city council meeting, in an effort to raise awareness about his cause. Asked if he expected a large turnout Tuesday night for the protest, he responded that the size doesn’t matter as long as a statement is made.

“Small numbers are big. If you get a few people to go out and rattle a cage and you have to be heard, that’s what politics is all about,” said Mr. Kruse.

He also plans to speak in person to the city council during the meeting but said that he will need to adjust what he says based on what transpires in court that day.

 

— Tony Krickl