[420 Girl]

A medical marijuana shop just opened in the heart of downtown Manteca, but the city has apprehensions, and now the battle is headed to court.

From the street, a run-down store front looks empty, but the sign on the door reads "Q and E Co-Op Members Only."

Customers say it's a medical marijuana dispensary, and the city wants to shut it down.

"They applied for a license that isn't appropriate for the business they are conducting, so we told them to stop and go to court and license it," says Officer Rex Osborn, Manteca Police Department.

Filing papers to operate as a pharmacy, officials say the owner is technically selling medical marijuana illegally.

But, the controversy didn't stop patients from buying Friday.

"Every dispensary that opened up, every local government shut it down," says Randy Villata.

Villata drove an hour and a half from Sonora to pick up some medical marijuana for his wife, but if this shop closes, his trip will double.

"My wife is in a wheel chair with MS, this is one of the few places that help her. Now, I have to drive all the way to the Bay Area to get it," Villata explains.

Nearby businesses can't believe the opening flew under the radar until now.

"Something like this is only going to bring chaos to the downtown area," says Robin Knab.

Even though California is the largest state to allow medical marijuana use, city leaders banned shops in Manteca because of federal rules.

City attorneys are currently working to get a court order to put the shop out of business, but as of now it remains open.

City leaders also say that they have turned down applications for medical marijuana shops, but they say this is the first one to open secretly.

http://www.420magazine.com/forums/in...e-manteca.html