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| Marijuana Co-op Closes After Warning by Police |
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Posted by FoM on August 01, 2001 at 09:07:17 PT By Lewis Kamb, Seattle Post-Intelligencer Reporter Source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer 
The co-founder of a local co-operative that supplies marijuana to scores of patients suffering from AIDS and other health conditions closed down operations this week after receiving a letter from Seattle police saying her actions may violate state law.JoAnna McKee of Green Cross Co-operative said yesterday that she received a letter from the commander of the Police Department's narcotics division requesting that Green Cross "cease and desist" delivery of marijuana in the manner it currently does. "We got the letter late Friday, and we didn't open our doors on Monday," McKee said. Green Cross, which McKee said delivers marijuana to about 20 doctor-approved patients per day, four days a week, has suspended operations while the co-operative's lawyers work with police and prosecutors to resolve the matter. At issue is a difference in views of state law over the way medical marijuana can be legally distributed to patients who have received permission from doctors to use it. The department's letter, sent to McKee by Narcotics Division Capt. Jim Pryor, says state law requires that a person delivering marijuana for medical use "be the primary caregiver to only one patient at any one time." In the view of police and prosecutors, the letter says, that means that each patient may have only one caregiver, and each caregiver only one patient. But McKee sees things differently, saying that because she deals with patients individually -- one at a time -- she is within legal guidelines. Seattle police Sgt. John Hayes said yesterday that the letter was prompted in light of recent citizens complaints and a Supreme Court ruling that cast doubt on legal medical marijuana use. In May, the top court ruled that marijuana grown and sold for medical purposes is not protected from prosecutions under federal anti-drug laws. The decision involved a California case, but did not overturn California's medical-marijuana law or similar laws in eight other states, including Washington. Initiative 692, which allows marijuana use for medical purposes in Washington, went into effect in December 1998. Since then, no county prosecutor has filed charges over medical marijuana. Source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer (WA) Green Cross Patients Co-op Medicinal Cannabis Research Links CannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archives Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help |
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