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Pot Shop is Nipped in the Bud: Highway 49 Marijuana Store Lacked Permit.
By admin | November 17, 2004
By George Boardman,
theunion.com
November 17, 2004.
Just as it was getting ready to open for business Monday, a medicinal marijuana store at the old Cherry Creek mini-mart on Highway 49 was closed down by the Nevada County Sheriffs Office.
Sheriff Keith Royal said his officers notified the couple operating the store that they didnt have the proper use permit, and the officers persuaded them to consult an attorney.
The store came to the attention of neighbors when they received fliers telling them the store would be selling what Royal called starter plants and marijuana buds. The flier also advertised a smoking room at the business.
The neighbors were very concerned and called my office, Royal said.
The building, which has been vacant for several years and is now surrounded by a chain-link fence, has a highway commercial business permit. Royal told the couple, whose names he did not release, that medical marijuana sales didnt fit the definition.
The sheriff had other problems with the store at Cherry Creek Road and Highway 49. It is a bus stop for kids, he said. Im also concerned about people smoking and then driving.
Randy Wilson, county planning director, said a woman named Keely Johnson had phoned to inquire about a business permit for the location.
The inquiry was about selling art, books and herbs, he said. They never told us the herb was marijuana.
But no one ever formerly applied for a permit, he said. They would need a permit from this office to open.
Ferguson said Tuesday no one connected with the store approached his office about opening for business. What I know about it, Im getting third-hand, he said.
But the prosecutor made it clear the business owners would have a difficult time convincing him that they meet the statutory definition for a primary caregiver.
The general policy boils down to whether or not they meet the definition of a primary caregiver, Ferguson said. Theres no real published appellate opinion that defines what a primary caregiver is.
He said the definition established by the passage of state Proposition 215, the medical marijuana initiative, is ambiguous.
In my opinion, they twisted the definition of primary caregiver beyond the definition of what the voters understood it to be when they passed this proposition, Ferguson said.
Royal made it clear the operators wouldnt receive a friendly welcome if they try again to open the store.
Im against having a store in the community, he said. We dont support these types of establishments. … Im going to take action to close them.
Whats the law?
Californias Proposition 215 allows marijuana to be grown and possessed but not sold if the marijuana is recommended by a doctor.
Nevada County permits medicinal growers a maximum of two pounds a year. Medicinal growers cant sell excess amounts to others, or purchase marijuana for their medical needs.
Some counties, such as nearby Placer, have allowed medicinal marijuana shops, but they can still be targeted by federal agents.
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