[420 Girl]

Before Thursday the medical marijuana cooperative in Tipton — Earth Meds — operated without regulation by Tulare County.

It is one of four medical marijuana distribution outlets in the unincorporated areas of the county that must comply, for the first time, with a new law that stipulates where the marijuana can be smoked, how many plants can be grown and caps the number of distribution outlets to three.

Co-operator Melanie Mendes says that since Earth Meds opened two years ago, it has functioned under the same premise of the new law that takes effect Thursday: Marijuana is distributed in exchange for monetary donations, or for soil, nutrients, or time, edibles and drinkables are not provided and the buds are not smoked, or even grown, inside the building.

Mendes, however, is concerned that if Earth Meds is shut down, it will be hard on medical marijuana users in the South County.

“I’m absolutely paranoid, I’m petrified,” she said. “I would hope that some preference would be given to people that are already operating and do it correctly.”

The Tulare County Sheriff’s Department did not release details on how it will enforce the new regulations.

“The department will not be identifying the specifics on the checks at this time,” Sgt. Chris Douglass said. “Checks will be done, we just will not be giving the specifics in advance.”

The ordinance was approved by the Tulare County Board of Supervisors in November.

According to the federal government, smoking marijuana for medical purposes is illegal. A California law enacted by voters in 1996, however, prevents law enforcement from punishing marijuana users when a physician has recommended its use to treat serious medical conditions. Local law enforcement agencies throughout the state have struggled with the conflict in the law.

In the past, federally led criminal raids were led to halt the drug’s distribution, but the Obama administration recently declared it would stop cracking down on the 14 states that allow medical marijuana.

“I’ve always been involved in the [medical marijuana] movement,” Mendes said. “It’s something I really believe in.”

Although the Board of Supervisors approved an ordinance to guide the Tulare County Sheriff's Department in regulation, County Counsel Kathleen Bales-Lange told supervisors in November that the law hasn’t changed.

“The fact that this is in place does not mean that your board has authorized the activity, it does not change the state law regulation and all of this is still illegal under federal law,” Bales-Lange said.

The only distribution sites currently permitted in California are collectives and cooperatives, where transactions of medical marijuana between cardholders are facilitated without incurring a profit. Dispensaries, or other for-profit shops, are illegal.

Mendes said she looks forward to a visit from deputies, because she wants to obtain more information about the new ordinance.

The new county ordinance mandates that:

- Smoke cannot encroach upon adjacent properties or public areas.

- Collectives and cooperatives must obtain business licenses which expire and must be renewed annually.

- Smoking medical marijuana within the cooperatives is not permitted.

- The maximum number of plants allowed in a collective is 99.

“We have always had an open door policy with city politicians and the sheriff’s department,” Mendes said. “They will always be welcome to knock on our door and check us out.”

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