75A - PH - MEDICAL MARIJUANA - PROHIBIT

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Of teens admitted for treatment for marijuana dependence, 56 percent had first used the drug by 14 years of age, and 26 percent had begun by 12 years of age (Kids and iYlariju.ana). According to a National I-Iousehold Survey on Drug Abuse (NHSDA}, marijuana was the most frequently used drug of choice by teens...... This "slippery slope" is what concerns me. Those truly in need and eligible. for medical. marijuana in our community are a very small group compared with the large number of teens who may "slip through the system" and be able to obtain marijuana from a dispensary. White ,you might say that "kids will get it anyway," 1 say, let's not be our kids drug dealer! ......If you are interested in learning more about the Blue Ribbon Task Force or becoming a member, contact the city at (661) 255-4965. We welcome your support. Frank Ferry is a member of the Santa Clarita Ciiy Council. His column reflects the city's views, and not necessarily those of The Signal. Source: http://www.fhe- si.gnal. com/?modul e=displaystory&story_id=45924&foimat=html Medicinal pot dispensaries under scrutiny By Sandy Mazza Staff Writer WHITTIER -Some arrived wearing hippie clothes and facial piercings; some wore suits; others were dressed in jeans and sweat shirts. The diverse group of people filled out paperwork as they sat silently inside a waiting room at the Holistic Clinic on Whittier Boulevard. All of them had come for one reason - to receive a physician's recommendation for medical marijuana. For just two hours every Thursday evening, a doctor opens shop at the clinic, evaluating people seeking marijuana. They come with $150 for the doctor's fee and an assortment of ailments -from cancer to AIDS to migraines, menstrual cramps and even sore muscles. ...ambiguity has spawned a booming cottage industry of medical marijuana providers.....Same police officials say abuse of medical marijuana is widespread and growing, and includes recreational users easily getting marijuana recommendations from profit-motivated physicians; dispensaries turning to illegal growers for supplies; and people selling their medical pot on the streets. Surveying this new landscape, Proposition 215 co-author the Rev. Scott Imler laments this is not what he envisioned when he helped write the measure on behalf of severely ill patients, he said. "When we wrote 215, we were selling it to the public as something for seriously ill people," said Imler, who opened the state's first marijuana dispensary, in West Hollywood. "It's turned into a joke. I think a lot of people have medicalized their recreational use."..... Although some local police officials report seeing the state's marijuana laws being abused, they complain they are powerless to stop it. "What's happening is that every pothead out there is pulling the wool over the public's eyes, paying a doctor for a recommendation," said. Lt. Jim Bitetto of the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department. "The majority of people who go into those places are younger and don't appear to be ill at all. It's making a joke of the whole system." Imler, too, believes that many dispensaries now buy marijuana illegally from drug dealers. While medical marijuana patients are allowed to grow up to 12 plants each under Proposition 215, most dispensaries have found it is cheaper and less labor-intensive to buy it, Irnler said. 18 75A-113