The next monthly meeting of the San Luis Obispo Chapter of Americans for Safe Access will be:
Tuesday, January 18th, 7:00 pm
Studio 23 Salon
570 Higuera St. (in The Creamery)
San Luis Obispo
Studio 23 is in the back of the Creamery, along the creek. The door to the salon upstairs is between the sushi restaurant and Open Studios offices. Sorry, no elevator access to the 2nd floor.
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Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Thank you Protestors!
A big thank you to all who attended yesterday's protest at the San Luis Obispo County Courthouse. We received good coverage on all the local tv stations and newspapers and could clearly hear the support of the honking cars (and some big trucks!) that drove by.
Here are videos of three speakers from the event. They all made great points. Please share these with your friends and neighbors and keep educating!
Here are videos of three speakers from the event. They all made great points. Please share these with your friends and neighbors and keep educating!
Monday, January 10, 2011
Media Advisory: Patients, Advocates to Protest Aggressive Police Actions Against Medical Marijuana Delivery Services
MEDIA ADVISORY
San Luis Obispo Americans for Safe Access
For Immediate Release: January 10, 2011
Contact: National ASA Media Liaison Kris Hermes 510-681-6361
San Luis Obispo Chapter Media Representative Linda Hill 805-528-0808
Patients, Advocates to Protest Aggressive Police Actions Against Medical Marijuana Delivery Services
Felonies, including child endangerment charges, being used to intimidate state law-compliant providers
San Luis Obispo County, CA -- Patients and medical marijuana advocates are planning a lively protest outside of the San Luis Obispo (SLO) County Courthouse to draw attention to the aggressive raids and arrests that took place the week of December 27th. A Narcotics Task Force (NTF) made up of local and state law enforcement agencies raided at least 7 collectively-run medical marijuana collectives which provide delivery services, arresting at least 15 people on felony charges and holding them on bails as high as $100,000. Several of those arrested were charged with child endangerment, after Child Protective Services (CPS) removed at least 6 children from the homes of 3 different families. The protest scheduled for Tuesday, January 11th beginning at 7:30am will be followed by arraignments for some of the arrested delivery service operators.
What: Patients and advocates protest aggressive police actions against medical marijuana collectives providing home delivery services in SLO
When: Press Conference Tuesday, January 11th, approximately 8:00 or 8:15 am
Where: In front of San Luis Obispo County Superior Court, 1050 Monterey St., San Luis Obispo
Press Info Table expected to be set up on the landing at the top of the steps
Speakers include: collective members; affected patients; citizen supporters; Charles C. Lynch, a Morro Bay dispensary operator who was raided by the DEA in 2007; and Matthew Witemyre, United Food & Commercial Workers Union Local #5, Cannabis Industry Coordinator
Those arrested in the raids reported that the police kept some people handcuffed face-down on the ground, including a grandmother and two children, who were later hauled off by CPS after their parents were taken to jail. In addition to seizing medical marijuana, money, and other property, police have also frozen some bank accounts. Undercover police also reportedly used legitimate and verifiable physician recommendations to deceptively obtain medical marijuana from these targeted collectives.
"It's wasteful to spend taxpayer dollars to conduct SWAT-style raids on state law-compliant collectives," said Kris Hermes, media spokesperson with Americans for Safe Access, the country's leading medical marijuana advocacy organization. "But, it's a greater tragedy that local officials would resort to such aggressive tactics like taking people's children away because they don't agree with the state's medical marijuana law."
Added Linda Hill of the San Luis Obispo Chapter of ASA, “Patients and providers of medicinal cannabis here on the Central Coast who are being compliant with state law have been targeted for years by our criminal justice system. These recent local raids, however, reached new levels in their aggressiveness and the resulting traumas. It is imperative that our local agencies and governmental bodies finally adopt a more reasonable policy towards those people who are involved in our state’s 14-year-old medical cannabis program. Patients who use and are helped by medical marijuana already have pain and suffering from their conditions; the ongoing threat of arrest only generates further stress to these many members of our community.”
Coordinated police raids on medical marijuana collectives with home delivery services occurred earlier in the year in the San Jose area, based on an interpretation of state law similarly held by local SLO law enforcement agencies, namely that everyone in a collective must participate in the cultivation and no money can exchange hands in the procurement of medical marijuana. "Now that we have stopped police from hiding behind federal law, hostile officials are stooping to flawed interpretations of state law and heavy-handed tactics to further undermine the effort of getting medicine to sick people," continued Hermes.
# # #
With over 50,000 active members in all 50 states, Americans for Safe Access (ASA) is the largest national member-based organization of patients, medical professionals, scientists and concerned citizens promoting safe and legal access to cannabis for therapeutic use and research. ASA works to overcome political and legal barriers by creating policies that improve access to medical cannabis for patients and researchers through legislation, education, litigation, grassroots actions, advocacy and services for patients and the caregivers.
Linda Hill
Media Representative
San Luis Obispo Americans for Safe Access
Phone: 805-528-0808
Email: ASAProp215@gmail.com
Kris Hermes
Media Specialist
Americans for Safe Access
www.AmericansForSafeAccess.org
1322 Webster Street, Suite 402
Oakland, CA 94612
Phone: 510-251-1856
Email: kris@SafeAccessNow.org
Americans for Safe Access (ASA) is the largest national member-based organization of patients, medical professionals, scientists and concerned citizens promoting safe and legal access to cannabis for therapeutic use and research.
San Luis Obispo Americans for Safe Access
For Immediate Release: January 10, 2011
Contact: National ASA Media Liaison Kris Hermes 510-681-6361
San Luis Obispo Chapter Media Representative Linda Hill 805-528-0808
Patients, Advocates to Protest Aggressive Police Actions Against Medical Marijuana Delivery Services
Felonies, including child endangerment charges, being used to intimidate state law-compliant providers
San Luis Obispo County, CA -- Patients and medical marijuana advocates are planning a lively protest outside of the San Luis Obispo (SLO) County Courthouse to draw attention to the aggressive raids and arrests that took place the week of December 27th. A Narcotics Task Force (NTF) made up of local and state law enforcement agencies raided at least 7 collectively-run medical marijuana collectives which provide delivery services, arresting at least 15 people on felony charges and holding them on bails as high as $100,000. Several of those arrested were charged with child endangerment, after Child Protective Services (CPS) removed at least 6 children from the homes of 3 different families. The protest scheduled for Tuesday, January 11th beginning at 7:30am will be followed by arraignments for some of the arrested delivery service operators.
What: Patients and advocates protest aggressive police actions against medical marijuana collectives providing home delivery services in SLO
When: Press Conference Tuesday, January 11th, approximately 8:00 or 8:15 am
Where: In front of San Luis Obispo County Superior Court, 1050 Monterey St., San Luis Obispo
Press Info Table expected to be set up on the landing at the top of the steps
Speakers include: collective members; affected patients; citizen supporters; Charles C. Lynch, a Morro Bay dispensary operator who was raided by the DEA in 2007; and Matthew Witemyre, United Food & Commercial Workers Union Local #5, Cannabis Industry Coordinator
Those arrested in the raids reported that the police kept some people handcuffed face-down on the ground, including a grandmother and two children, who were later hauled off by CPS after their parents were taken to jail. In addition to seizing medical marijuana, money, and other property, police have also frozen some bank accounts. Undercover police also reportedly used legitimate and verifiable physician recommendations to deceptively obtain medical marijuana from these targeted collectives.
"It's wasteful to spend taxpayer dollars to conduct SWAT-style raids on state law-compliant collectives," said Kris Hermes, media spokesperson with Americans for Safe Access, the country's leading medical marijuana advocacy organization. "But, it's a greater tragedy that local officials would resort to such aggressive tactics like taking people's children away because they don't agree with the state's medical marijuana law."
Added Linda Hill of the San Luis Obispo Chapter of ASA, “Patients and providers of medicinal cannabis here on the Central Coast who are being compliant with state law have been targeted for years by our criminal justice system. These recent local raids, however, reached new levels in their aggressiveness and the resulting traumas. It is imperative that our local agencies and governmental bodies finally adopt a more reasonable policy towards those people who are involved in our state’s 14-year-old medical cannabis program. Patients who use and are helped by medical marijuana already have pain and suffering from their conditions; the ongoing threat of arrest only generates further stress to these many members of our community.”
Coordinated police raids on medical marijuana collectives with home delivery services occurred earlier in the year in the San Jose area, based on an interpretation of state law similarly held by local SLO law enforcement agencies, namely that everyone in a collective must participate in the cultivation and no money can exchange hands in the procurement of medical marijuana. "Now that we have stopped police from hiding behind federal law, hostile officials are stooping to flawed interpretations of state law and heavy-handed tactics to further undermine the effort of getting medicine to sick people," continued Hermes.
# # #
With over 50,000 active members in all 50 states, Americans for Safe Access (ASA) is the largest national member-based organization of patients, medical professionals, scientists and concerned citizens promoting safe and legal access to cannabis for therapeutic use and research. ASA works to overcome political and legal barriers by creating policies that improve access to medical cannabis for patients and researchers through legislation, education, litigation, grassroots actions, advocacy and services for patients and the caregivers.
Linda Hill
Media Representative
San Luis Obispo Americans for Safe Access
Phone: 805-528-0808
Email: ASAProp215@gmail.com
Kris Hermes
Media Specialist
Americans for Safe Access
www.AmericansForSafeAccess.org
1322 Webster Street, Suite 402
Oakland, CA 94612
Phone: 510-251-1856
Email: kris@SafeAccessNow.org
Americans for Safe Access (ASA) is the largest national member-based organization of patients, medical professionals, scientists and concerned citizens promoting safe and legal access to cannabis for therapeutic use and research.
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Protest Medical Marijuana Law Enforcement Raids
Regarding the recent law enforcement raids of several area medicinal marijuana delivery services, a public protest rally, including ASA participation, will take place on TUESDAY, JANUARY 11th, starting at 7:30 am in front of the San Luis Obispo County Courthouse on Monterey Street at Santa Rosa Street (across from the Fremont Theater).
Please help get the word out to everyone you know who shares our disapproval of the heavy-handed actions of law enforcement against providers who are fully compliant with California's medical marijuana program. Many patients have also been victimized unfairly; and our SLOASA Chapter urges everyone who supports patients' rights to speak out, write letters to the media and to your local government officials here in SLO County decrying the continued expenditure of our taxpayer dollars on this war on medical marijuana.
We hope to see you at the rally! Make and bring signs! Bring a friend or relative! Please remember, however, that this rally is specifically directed at the medical marijuana issue, and it will not be addressing recreational use of marijuana.
Thanks for your support.
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