Court says cities can ban pot stores
May 22, 2012
A federal appeals court known for its liberal leanings has affirmed a city’s ability to ban medical marijuana dispensaries without violating disability mandates. [San Francisco Chronicle]
The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco issued its ruling Monday, saying it sympathized with a group of severely ill individuals seeking to preserve “their basic human dignity” with medical pot use. But the court ruled there are no legitimate exemptions to federal law even though disabled persons might be adversely affected. The Obama Administration supported the appeals court decision.
Part of the court’s decision was based on a finding that users of illegal drugs cannot be considered disabled.
The case in question involved two Orange County communities, Irvine and Lake Forest, both of which shut down medical marijuana dispensaries. A decision is pending by California’s Supreme Court on whether the state’s medical marijuana laws permit banning of dispensaries within city or county borders.
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