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Proposed LA pot law may confict with judge's opinion
In this Oct. 22, 2009 file photo, a bud of legally grown marijuana is held by a cancer patient, in Portland, Maine. It's not easy to tell the difference between legal medical marijuana and illegal recreational pot.
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Proposed LA pot law may confict with judge's opinion
Proposed LA pot law may confict with judge's opinion
The Los Angeles City Council plans to move forward with a medical marijuana ordinance that would allow people to exchange cash for pot, despite a judge’s opinion that suggests such transactions are illegal.
Los Angeles City Councilman Ed Reyes said that the opinion is one interpretation of a vague state law - and that it’s likely to be appealed.
In comments during a hearing involving an Eagle Rock pot shop, L.A. Superior Court Judge James Chalfant said he doesn’t believe that a storefront dispensary that sells marijuana is legal.
The council’s considering whether to allow “cash contributions, reimbursements and compensations for the actual expenses” of growing and providing medical marijuana.
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But the judge said a pot shop owner could pay himself a large sum of money, call it an expense, and – in the judge’s words – “any way you slice that banana, that is the sale of marijuana for profit.”
The City Council’s debated the issue for weeks. It’s expected to vote on a new ordinance next week.
[KPCC wire services contributed to this report]
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