The Los Angeles City Council's unanimous vote Tuesday to ban all pot dispensaries was met with a mixture of anger and support.
Medical marijuana activists erupted in jeers after the decision, and police officers were called into the council chambers to quell them. Some activists threatened to sue. Others vowed to draft a ballot initiative to overturn the ban.
"We're not going to make this easy for the city of Los Angeles," said Don Duncan, California director of Americans for Safe Access.
But the ban is supported by some neighborhood activists as well as Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck, who criticized most pot shops in the city as "for-profit businesses engaged in the sale of recreational marijuana to healthy young adults."
Under the ban, all of the 762 dispensaries registered in the city will be sent letters ordering them to shut down immediately. Those that don't comply may face legal action from the city.
The new ordinance allows patients and their caregivers to grow and share marijuana in groups of three people or fewer. But activists complain that few patients have the time or skills for that, with one dispensary owner saying it costs at least $5,000 to grow the plant at home.
Councilman Jose Huizar said the ban, which received a last-minute show of support from MayorAntonio Villaraigosa and Beck on Tuesday, will help bring peace to neighborhoods that he says have been tormented by problem dispensaries.
"Relief is on its way," he said, noting that the ban would allow the city to close shops without having to prove that they are violating nuisance or land-use laws, as is the case now.
Subscribe to our newsletter and always be the first to hear about what is happening.
© 2024 Ganja Vibes. This website is for 18+ and contains adult content.
