cannabisnews.com: Advocates Anticipate Reopening of Facility!





Advocates Anticipate Reopening of Facility!
Posted by FoM on January 21, 1999 at 12:16:25 PT

Advocates Anticipate Reopening San Francisco Medical Marijuana Facility! San Francisco, CA: Proponents are in final planning stages to open what would be California's largest operating Medical Marijuana dispensary. Advocates are encouraged by statements made by new Attorney General Bill Lockyer who announced that he would not raid state Cannabis Clubs. 
   "I watched my mother and sister die of leukemia and I know they could have used [marijuana] to ease their pain," he said. Lockyer added that he supports the existence of well-regulated statewide medical marijuana dispensaries, and said that his office would not raid such a facility if one were to re-open in San Francisco.   Jane Weirick, executive director of the San Francisco Patients Resource Center, intends to do just that. "We plan to run a very tight ship," she said, adding that she envisions opening an outlet comparable in size to the former San Francisco Cannabis Cultivators Club. She said that the city's existing clubs are too small to meet demand and hopes that a new facility could serve thousands of patients.   Weirick said her group is searching for a building to house the dispensary, which she intends to open by the end of February.   San Francisco District Attorney Terence Hallinan voiced support for the facility. "I've always said that it is more of a health issue than a legal issue," he told The San Francisco Chronicle. "Locally, this should strictly be a matter for the city Department of Health."   California NORML Coordinator Dale Gieringer agrees. "Medical marijuana dispensaries are an asset to the community," he said. "They provide medicine to the truly ill, divert traffic from street dealers, generate gainful employment and taxes, and keep pot out of the hands of kids. That's better than our federal policy has done."   Although approximately 30 medical marijuana facilities began operating after the passage of Proposition 215, most closed their doors because of raids by former Attorney General Dan Lungren and a civil lawsuit filed by the U.S. Justice Department.   For more information, please contact either Dale Gieringer of California NORML   (415) 563-5858 or Allen St. Pierre of The NORML Foundation   (202) 483-8751.
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