[420 Girl]

With a hard-line stance against marijuana crumbling at almost every level of government, advocates of the drug are pushing beyond legality for societal acceptance.

There are about 30 medical marijuana dispensaries in Sacramento that distribute cannabis to patients with conditions ranging from cancer to anorexia who have a letter from their doctor. According to those in the business, half have opened in the last six months, a result of the Obama administration vowing not to prosecute dispensaries if they're abiding by state laws.

The rapid growth has prompted dispensary operators and local activists to call city officials, asking for more oversight, even if it results in extra taxes or regulations. For some, it's an effort to curb skyrocketing competition. Many hope oversight will unmask a business they say should be as normal as a Rite-Aid.

"It would legitimize us in a big way," said Cody Bass, co-director of Capitol Wellness Collective in midtown. "And it would keep out a lot of different elements we don't want involved – we don't want any Joe Schmoe selling marijuana to a 16-year-old kid just to make rent that month."

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said in May that it's time for California to study whether to legalize and tax marijuana for recreational use.

A national marijuana advocacy group launched an ad campaign Wednesday in California's major television markets proposing that as a solution to the state's budget crisis. Some stations have said they will not air the 30-second ad, in which Fair Oaks resident Nadene Herndon contends that taxes could help offset cuts faced by schools, health care and police.

"We have a major problem in California with our budget," said Herndon, 58, a former state analyst who started eating marijuana-infused treats after a series of strokes three years ago left her with shoulder spasms. "We need to explore other alternatives."

Less than three years ago, Sacramento had five medicinal pot establishments. City leaders acknowledge they haven't tracked how many operate today, or even when they opened, because most are described in city paperwork with vague terms such as "holistic medicine" or "wellness center."

Sacramento city codes don't mention medical marijuana dispensaries. And the Sacramento Police Department has left their oversight up to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, said Sgt. Norm Leong. Local police contact the businesses only when crimes are reported at them, which has been minimal, Leong said.

The City Council is considering a temporary ban on new dispensaries so it can study the industry and decide whether to incorporate medical marijuana stores into zoning codes.

"The goal here is to look at the medical marijuana businesses, look at the zoning laws and work to regulate them so they don't proliferate," said Councilwoman Sandy Sheedy, who likened the effort to the recent regulation of cash- advance businesses.

The West Sacramento City Council was expected to vote late Wednesday night on a 45-day moratorium on dispensaries there. There aren't any operating yet in the city, but planning officials say they have received several inquiries. The moratorium would give them time to update codes and regulations to govern the businesses.

"I want safe medicines to get to patients in a safe manner," said Ryan Landers, a medical marijuana activist.

Landers has pushed for oversight on where dispensaries are located in Sacramento, their procedures and quality, addressing the City Council during public comments at a meeting about two and a half years ago, he said.

In the meantime, Landers spearheads self-regulation.

An operator a half block from child-friendly McKinley Park recently moved to a new location. Another selected a spot outside tourist-heavy Old Sacramento. And Landers has questioned delivery-only services, not associated with actual storefronts, about quality issues such as storage, he said.

Landers, 37, discovered he had AIDS in 1995, likely a result of a back-alley tattoo he got at 16, he said. The pills he takes make him nauseous, and pot helps. Regular use means he doesn't get buzzed or stoned from the copious amount he smokes, he said.

"It allows me to take my other medications, it allows me to keep them down, and it allows me to withstand the side effects," Landers said. "And it helps me eat once a day even though I haven't been hungry in 15 years."

Security is a priority

The only hints of what lies beyond the sleek lobby of the El Camino Wellness Center – through the secured door – are the lilting flow of reggae music and the unmistakable scent of dried marijuana buds.

The 10-month-old dispensary is next to a landscaping company off El Camino Avenue and Business 80. There are modern black leather couches, a wall of bamboo, paintings by local artists, and a piece of paper on the wall that declares, "There is absolutely no medicating on the premises."

First-time visitors must prove California residency, show a doctor's letter covering the use of medical cannabis and sign a membership agreement. They are buzzed through a locked door into a room where glass jars of weed with names such as "Trainwreck" and "Blueberry X" line a granite countertop and sell for $45 to $60 for an eighth of an ounce.

Two flat-screen televisions show close-up photos of the different strains as well as inventory of what is in stock. Clerks explain varying effects of the different types and the ailments they can help.

The center also sells a line of treats – seven-layer or mint bars, marshmallow brownies, truffles and cookies – all infused with marijuana – for those who don't like to smoke.

Despite its legality, there remains a stigma. Many customers are hesitant to identify themselves but shared accounts of medical marijuana helping with multiple sclerosis twitches or herniated disk pain and providing an alternative to mental-health drugs.

The cooperative director wouldn't comment on the record because he doesn't want his grandmother to know what kind of business he runs.

Jason Allie, a 25-year-old union painter from Sacramento, walked out recently with $100 worth of pot in two orange plastic medicine bottles and a white paper bag.

Allie suffers from anxiety, depression and recurring pain from a car accident. He turned to cannabis after six months of taking a handful of Vicodin pills every day that didn't curb the pain but left him so nauseous he couldn't eat.

Carrie Harmon, 37, drives from Pine Grove every month and spends close to $700 for two ounces of green buds.

It's an alternative to the pills doctors prescribed for her migraines, back pain and mental health issues, which left the grocery manager agitated.

Tax charged on transactions

The medicinal use of marijuana has been legal in California since voters approved Proposition 215 in 1996. Legislation went into effect in 2004 to clarify and broaden the initiative, allowing patients to grow the herb collectively for personal medical use and establishing a statewide ID card system.

Last summer, California Attorney General Jerry Brown outlined guidelines for distributors. Although still illegal under federal law, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said earlier this year that the Justice Department no longer would prosecute dispensaries operating under the state laws of California and the dozen other states that allow the drug for medical purposes.

In California, dispensaries are formed as not-for-profit collectives in which all marijuana is grown by members. Members sell to the collective, which then sells to individuals, and charges sales tax.

Oakland is considering an additional tax of 1.8 percent on marijuana sales that would go directly to the city, said medical cannabis land use attorney James Anthony. The city heavily regulates medical pot enterprises and has a cap of just four dispensaries.

The Capitol Wellness Collective welcomes an extra tax. The 5-year-old collective, one of the oldest in Sacramento, now has locations in midtown and South Lake Tahoe, has about 4,000 active members and maintains a "compassion list" of 500 people who receive free marijuana because they are on disability and make less than $1,500 a month.

While the El Camino Wellness Center feels like a modern apothecary, Capitol Wellness seems more like a YMCA. It holds classes on budget traveling, art therapy, tai chi, cooking with marijuana and growing the plants. There's a chess club, clothing exchange and weekly raffle for members who bring back empty pot containers.

A handwritten list details the cannabis available – buds like Grape Ape and Sour Diesel cost $30 to $45 per one-eighth ounce; topicals have a shea butter base; edibles include lollipops, cheese crackers and ice cream. Concentrated drops are applied under the tongue; infused olive oil can be used for cooking. There's even a line of tea bags with names like Sleepy, Clarity and Berry Blast.

Official regulation could mean more acceptance for dispensaries. And now seems to be the time to push for it, said Aundre Speciale, co-director and founder of Capitol Wellness. About 56 percent of Californians favored legalizing recreational marijuana according to a Field Poll in May. Some 80 percent of Americans believe it should be legal for medical purposes. And the president admitted inhaling.

"There's no other unregulated business," Speciale said. "We just want to be treated like any other business."


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