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12-30-2009, 10:52 PM
Share Judge bars Centennial from closing pot shop
By John Ingold
The Denver Post
Posted: 12/30/2009 12:52:11 PM MST
Updated: 12/30/2009 02:37:38 PM MST
CENTENNIAL â?? An Arapahoe County judge today barred the city of Centennial from shutting down a medical marijuana dispensary, saying that the city had no right to use federal law as a pretext for doing so.
"The city of Centennial cannot use the potential violation of a federal law to order a business legally operating under our state constitution to cease and desist its business," Arapahoe County District Court Judge Christopher Cross said.
The ruling could have broad implications for medical marijuana regulation in Colorado. The rationale Centennial used in forcing the dispensary to shut down -- that, because the business distributed marijuana contrary to federal law, it was in violation of the city's land use code -- is one also adopted by a number of other local governments to block dispensaries from opening in their communities, including Aurora, Castle Rock and Greenwood Village. The attorney for a dispensary in Castle Rock that had its business license pulled on similar grounds has said she would file a suit in that case if the ruling in the Centennial case was favorable to dispensaries.
Cross' ruling resulted in a preliminary injunction against Centennial from enforcing its cease and desist order to the dispensary, CannaMart. The broader issue is still yet to be decided at trial, a process that could take years to resolve.
And Cross acknowledged in his ruling -- announced from the bench this afternoon -- that the legal issues surrounding medical marijuana and the operation of dispensaries in Colorado are still very much in flux. Cross called the case one of "first impression," with very few prior cases in Colorado or around the country providing much guidance on how to reach a decision.
"This is a very complex puzzle as everyone knows," Cross said. "There are many interrelated and contradictory pieces to that puzzle."
"No one knows what the law is," Cross added later.
Attorneys for the dispensary â?? CannaMart, which was kicked out of Greenwood Village before being closed down in Centennial â?? argued during two days of court hearings earlier this month that cities can't use federal law as an excuse to deny medical marijuana patients their state constitutional rights. Colorado voters in 2000 approved Amendment 20, which allows for medical use of cannabis for qualified patients.
"No city gets to decide if Amendment 20 is right or wrong," attorney Robert Hoban said. "You can't prevent an entire industry from operating within a community."
Centennial attorneys, meanwhile, argued that operating contrary to federal law makes a business illegal and said the dispensary was located in a zoning area that doesn't allow for retail sales.
The city's attorneys said Centennial allows for patients to use medical marijuana and to grow marijuana in residential areas.
The case â?? already being closely watched by medical marijuana advocates and local governments â?? got an added jolt of intrigue when Arapahoe County District Attorney Carol Chambers sent Cross an e-mail advising him that she would be reviewing the testimony of admitted medical marijuana users called as witnesses to determine whether they should be prosecuted. Two witnesses decided to testify about their medical marijuana use anyway.
John Ingold: 303-954-1068 or [email protected].
Read more: Judge bars Centennial from closing pot shop - The Denver Post (http://www.denverpost.com/ci_14094504#ixzz0bDPKBs1O)
Courtesy of Buy Insurance for Medical Marijuana Dispensaries MMJ; marijuanadispensaryinsurance.com (http://www.marijuanadispensaryinsurance.com)
By John Ingold
The Denver Post
Posted: 12/30/2009 12:52:11 PM MST
Updated: 12/30/2009 02:37:38 PM MST
CENTENNIAL â?? An Arapahoe County judge today barred the city of Centennial from shutting down a medical marijuana dispensary, saying that the city had no right to use federal law as a pretext for doing so.
"The city of Centennial cannot use the potential violation of a federal law to order a business legally operating under our state constitution to cease and desist its business," Arapahoe County District Court Judge Christopher Cross said.
The ruling could have broad implications for medical marijuana regulation in Colorado. The rationale Centennial used in forcing the dispensary to shut down -- that, because the business distributed marijuana contrary to federal law, it was in violation of the city's land use code -- is one also adopted by a number of other local governments to block dispensaries from opening in their communities, including Aurora, Castle Rock and Greenwood Village. The attorney for a dispensary in Castle Rock that had its business license pulled on similar grounds has said she would file a suit in that case if the ruling in the Centennial case was favorable to dispensaries.
Cross' ruling resulted in a preliminary injunction against Centennial from enforcing its cease and desist order to the dispensary, CannaMart. The broader issue is still yet to be decided at trial, a process that could take years to resolve.
And Cross acknowledged in his ruling -- announced from the bench this afternoon -- that the legal issues surrounding medical marijuana and the operation of dispensaries in Colorado are still very much in flux. Cross called the case one of "first impression," with very few prior cases in Colorado or around the country providing much guidance on how to reach a decision.
"This is a very complex puzzle as everyone knows," Cross said. "There are many interrelated and contradictory pieces to that puzzle."
"No one knows what the law is," Cross added later.
Attorneys for the dispensary â?? CannaMart, which was kicked out of Greenwood Village before being closed down in Centennial â?? argued during two days of court hearings earlier this month that cities can't use federal law as an excuse to deny medical marijuana patients their state constitutional rights. Colorado voters in 2000 approved Amendment 20, which allows for medical use of cannabis for qualified patients.
"No city gets to decide if Amendment 20 is right or wrong," attorney Robert Hoban said. "You can't prevent an entire industry from operating within a community."
Centennial attorneys, meanwhile, argued that operating contrary to federal law makes a business illegal and said the dispensary was located in a zoning area that doesn't allow for retail sales.
The city's attorneys said Centennial allows for patients to use medical marijuana and to grow marijuana in residential areas.
The case â?? already being closely watched by medical marijuana advocates and local governments â?? got an added jolt of intrigue when Arapahoe County District Attorney Carol Chambers sent Cross an e-mail advising him that she would be reviewing the testimony of admitted medical marijuana users called as witnesses to determine whether they should be prosecuted. Two witnesses decided to testify about their medical marijuana use anyway.
John Ingold: 303-954-1068 or [email protected].
Read more: Judge bars Centennial from closing pot shop - The Denver Post (http://www.denverpost.com/ci_14094504#ixzz0bDPKBs1O)
Courtesy of Buy Insurance for Medical Marijuana Dispensaries MMJ; marijuanadispensaryinsurance.com (http://www.marijuanadispensaryinsurance.com)