December, 19 2012, 01:07pm EDT
For Immediate Release
Contact:
ASA Chief Counsel Joe Elford 415-573-7842 or ASA Media Spokesperson Kris Hermes 510-681-6361
City of Oakland and Feds Go Toe-to-Toe in Medical Marijuana Dispensary Forfeiture Case
Hearing at 10am Thursday may decide whether Oakland's challenge to federal authority can proceed
WASHINGTON
The Obama Administration will be going toe-to-toe in federal court Thursday at 10am with the City of Oakland and California's largest medical marijuana dispensary, Harborside Health Center. U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag filed forfeiture proceedings in July against Harborside's landlords to force the dispensary to close its two locations in Oakland and San Jose. Then, in October, the City of Oakland filed its own legal action against Haag and her boss, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder. Harborside serves thousands of patients, pays local, state and federal taxes, and has been legally operating in Oakland since 2006.
In an unprecedented move by a municipal government, the City of Oakland has legally challenged the Obama Administration's attack on medical marijuana. In its most recent brief filed last week, the city argues the federal government "exceeded its authority" by trying to shut down Harborside, "thereby jeopardizing the public welfare of Oakland and its residents." The brief further states that shuttering Harborside will not only "injure patients by denying them the medical benefits of cannabis," but it will also "cause economic harm from lost tax revenue, and increased costs of police enforcement, in addition to untold costs associated with channeling thousands of patients into an unregulated [illicit] market."
During Thursday's hearing at San Francisco's federal courthouse, Chief Magistrate Judge Maria-Elena James will address two motions for preliminary injunction filed by both of Harborside's landlords in an effort to evict the dispensary and avoid seizure of their property by the federal government. The hearing will also address the related case filed by the City of Oakland, which the city says should be heard before the Justice Department is allowed to proceed with its forfeiture action against Harborside.
"The federal government has picked the wrong fight here," said Joe Elford, Chief Counsel with Americans for Safe Access (ASA), the country's leading medical marijuana advocacy group. "By so blatantly threatening access to medical marijuana for thousands of patients, the Obama Administration has drawn even greater attention to its misguided strategy on this issue." ASA is representing a group of patients and their particular interests in this forfeiture proceeding. Harborside, which is defending its own interests in avoiding closure, is being represented by Henry Wykowski.
Thursday's hearing comes less than a month after a state court rejected a similar attempt by one of Harborside's landlords, Real Property and Improvements (RPI), to evict the longstanding dispensary. RPI alleged in this separate lawsuit filed in August that the dispensary violated its lease by conducting illegal activity, which constituted a nuisance. However, Alameda County Superior Court Judge Evelio Grillo ruled on November 30th that state court could not deem Harborside or any other dispensary a "nuisance" based on a violation of federal law.
The federal forfeiture action against Harborside is one of a handful of similar lawsuits the Obama Justice Department has filed in recent months. However, since October 2011, when all four U.S. Attorneys in California announced a campaign to shut down medical marijuana dispensaries, letters were sent to hundreds of landlords threatening asset forfeiture and criminal prosecution if they continued to lease to their dispensary tenants. Although they have filed fewer than 20 such lawsuits, the specter of litigation has caused the unnecessary closure of at least 500 legally-compliant dispensaries across the state.
Further information:
Oakland reply brief: https://AmericansForSafeAccess.org/downloads/Harborside_Oakland_Reply.pdf
Oakland complaint: https://AmericansForSafeAccess.org/downloads/OaklandVHolderAndHaagOct10...
Justice Department's asset forfeiture complaint: https://AmericansForSafeAccess.org/downloads/Forfeiture_Complaint_Harbor...
Americans for Safe Access is the nation's largest organization of patients, medical professionals, scientists and concerned citizens promoting safe and legal access to cannabis for therapeutic use and research.
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