Under Pressure from Feds, Mendocino County eliminates pot-growing permits
Mendocino County eliminates pot-growing permits
The Board of Supervisors voted to cancel its novel medical marijuana permit program on Tuesday, saying federal prosecutors had threatened to sue the county if the program stayed on the books.
Under the 2-year-old program, the most comprehensive in the state, Mendocino County issued permits to cannabis collectives, allowing them to grow as many as 99 plants at a time, and the sheriff performed monthly inspections on their zip-tied bundles of pot.
Sheriff Tom Allman's office collected $663,230 last year in fees for the inspections, which certified that the marijuana was grown for medicinal purposes only. County law now reverts to a limit of 12 cannabis plants per individual.
U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag in San Francisco, whose office's jurisdiction includes the North Coast, declined to comment. She and other federal prosecutors in California have been cracking down on medical marijuana operators and overseers since October, threatening scores with lawsuits or jail if they don't shut down.
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Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/01/28/MNQN1MUQUV.DTL#ixzz1kus5J5Zt
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