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L.A. to Tell More than 400 Medical Marijuana Stores to Close
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Los Angeles' medical marijuana ordinance was signed by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa last Friday, meaning city workers today began the process of informing unauthorized storefronts to close. "The letters will start going out Tuesday to more than 400 marijuana retailers in the city that are alleged to be in violation of the law, which prohibits the outlets from being within 1,000 feet of schools, churches, parks and other 'sensitive use' sites," explained the LA Weekly. The ordinance, which is being challenged with a lawsuit, becomes law next month and if shops are not closed by then, the city can take legal action. Of the 540 or so medical marijuana dispensaries within Los Angeles city limits, only 137 will allowed to stay put -- that's based on which stores were around before a 2007 moratorium on new facilities went into affect.
Meanwhile, two Orange County cities can keep medical marijuana store bans in place, a federal judge ruled today, according to the LA Times. Plaintiffs argued that bans in Costa Mesa and Lake Forest violated the Americans with Disabilities Act. U.S. District Judge Andrew Guilford ruled that access to marijuana was not covered by the act.
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