Instead, U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer issued a summary judgment in favor of the U.S. Justice Department in a four-year-old civil lawsuit against the Oakland club and four other Northern California marijuana clubs.

Breyer said in a written ruling "there is no genuine material dispute that defendants violated'' a federal drug law "several times in 1997 by distributing marijuana.''

The judge held off on granting the government's request for a permanent injunction against the five clubs. He said he will accept further briefs on whether a permanent injunction is necessary.

Meanwhile, a preliminary injunction is still in effect against the Oakland club. A spokeswoman said the club is continuing to abide by that injunction.

She said club director Jeff Jones was out of town today and not immediately available for comment.

The ruling comes in the wake of a U.S. Supreme Court decision last year that said federal law does not allow a "medical necessity'' defense exception for providing marijuana to seriously ill patients.

The Oakland club then sought unsuccessfully to raise other constitutional arguments in its defense.

A 1996 voter-approved California law authorized the use of medical marijuana upon a doctor's recommendation, but the federal courts have said U.S. drug laws trump the state law.

Source: Associated Press
Published: Friday, May 3, 2002
Copyright: 2002 Associated Press

Related Articles & Web Sites:

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http://www.rxcbc.org/

OCBC Vs US Government News
http://freedomtoexhale.com/mj.htm

Are Pot Clubs About to Go up in Smoke?
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http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread12590.shtml

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