Zedleppelin
05-08-2010, 02:15 AM
DENVER - When the Colorado House of Representatives rubber-stamps the Senate's changes to House Bill 1284, aimed at regulating the state's booming medical marijuana industry, the controversial measure will be on its way to Gov. Bill Ritter's desk for one quick signature that will make it law.
And, as soon as the governor puts pen to paper, a group of medical marijuana attorneys will file an injunction against specific provisions of the new law on behalf of patients and dispensary owners -- patients, who may be disenfranchised as a result of caregiver limits and the ability of communities to ban dispensaries; and dispensary owners, at least half of whom could be out of business as a result of the new regulatory framework.
"The ultimate goal here is to ensure that suffering patients have access to their medicine," said attorney Rob Corry, who along with his wife, Jessica, and Sensible Colorado's Brian Vicente, is leading the push against HB 1284. "And there's nothing wrong with making money off of your Constitutional rights."
Specifically, the attorneys take issue with five provisions: the five-patient limit on caregivers who operate outside the state-sanctioned "center" model; the licensing fees levied on those dispensaries who do reorganize under the state-guided "wellness center" model; requirements mandating that owners or wellness centers have been Colorado residents for at least two years; the ban on granting licenses to anyone accused or convicted of felony crimes; and allowing cities and towns to ban dispensaries altogether.
In Corry's view, the argument is as much a timely economic argument as it is grounded in constitutional law.
"I have a major problem with preventing people from moving to Colorado, bringing money, hiring employees, renting out space and opening up a business in our state," Corry said. "If we said, you can't move to our state and open a dry cleaning shop, that would be unconstitutional."
But Sen. Chris Romer, the bill's prime senate sponsor, thinks Corry is just blowing smoke.
"Rob's a smart guy, but that sounds more like his Christmas list, his Santa list, as opposed to real objections on Constitutional merits," Romer said. "The constitution does protect the patients' right to have access to medical marijuana. The constitution does not protect the business model or the approach or that people with felonies have the right to be running dispensaries. Rob's just out to lunch on that."
Romer readily admits that the final bill tips the balance in favor of law enforcement over the dispensary owners -- because marijuana, while approved for medicinal use in Colorado, remains an illegal substance.
"Maybe if it becomes legal, we can soften up the regulations," Romer said. "But this is still a controlled substance. It's illegal to cross state lines with it. I'm not interested in the out-of-staters who want to rush to Colorado to make money off of medical marijuana."
Lawsuit will target Medical Marijuana dispensary regulations - KDVR (http://www.kdvr.com/news/kdvr-lawsuit-050710,0,4247946.story)
And, as soon as the governor puts pen to paper, a group of medical marijuana attorneys will file an injunction against specific provisions of the new law on behalf of patients and dispensary owners -- patients, who may be disenfranchised as a result of caregiver limits and the ability of communities to ban dispensaries; and dispensary owners, at least half of whom could be out of business as a result of the new regulatory framework.
"The ultimate goal here is to ensure that suffering patients have access to their medicine," said attorney Rob Corry, who along with his wife, Jessica, and Sensible Colorado's Brian Vicente, is leading the push against HB 1284. "And there's nothing wrong with making money off of your Constitutional rights."
Specifically, the attorneys take issue with five provisions: the five-patient limit on caregivers who operate outside the state-sanctioned "center" model; the licensing fees levied on those dispensaries who do reorganize under the state-guided "wellness center" model; requirements mandating that owners or wellness centers have been Colorado residents for at least two years; the ban on granting licenses to anyone accused or convicted of felony crimes; and allowing cities and towns to ban dispensaries altogether.
In Corry's view, the argument is as much a timely economic argument as it is grounded in constitutional law.
"I have a major problem with preventing people from moving to Colorado, bringing money, hiring employees, renting out space and opening up a business in our state," Corry said. "If we said, you can't move to our state and open a dry cleaning shop, that would be unconstitutional."
But Sen. Chris Romer, the bill's prime senate sponsor, thinks Corry is just blowing smoke.
"Rob's a smart guy, but that sounds more like his Christmas list, his Santa list, as opposed to real objections on Constitutional merits," Romer said. "The constitution does protect the patients' right to have access to medical marijuana. The constitution does not protect the business model or the approach or that people with felonies have the right to be running dispensaries. Rob's just out to lunch on that."
Romer readily admits that the final bill tips the balance in favor of law enforcement over the dispensary owners -- because marijuana, while approved for medicinal use in Colorado, remains an illegal substance.
"Maybe if it becomes legal, we can soften up the regulations," Romer said. "But this is still a controlled substance. It's illegal to cross state lines with it. I'm not interested in the out-of-staters who want to rush to Colorado to make money off of medical marijuana."
Lawsuit will target Medical Marijuana dispensary regulations - KDVR (http://www.kdvr.com/news/kdvr-lawsuit-050710,0,4247946.story)