---

 [ ARCHIVE ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&id=16)

#  LA Pot Politics Spread Statewide

***![](https://mail.citywatchla.com/images/stories/May-2014/12042t.png)CAL WATCHDOG***-Thanks to Los Angeles, the politics of marijuana is lighting up in California this election season.

Not only are LA laws, attitudes and consumption habits influencing neighboring counties, they’re impacting the statewide debate.

The situation is that [Proposition 215](http://vote96.sos.ca.gov/bp/215text.htm), which voters approved in 1996, legalized medical marijuana, but left regulation largely up to counties, not the state.

Written by James Poulos.

May 22 2014

In Orange County, for instance, the availability of reliable dispensaries has put renewed pressure on lawmakers and voters. In the wake of high-profile pot [raids](http://blogs.ocweekly.com/navelgazing/a-clockwork-orange/medical-marijuana-protest-cost/) four years ago, the Orange County Cannabis Alliance nearly collected enough signatures for a ballot initiative that would have [legalized](http://articles.dailypilot.com/2012-08-01/news/tn-dpt-0802-marijuana-20120801_1_ban-on-marijuana-dispensaries-nonprofit-collectives-marijuana-storefronts) nonprofit collectives in the city of Costa Mesa.

Although that effort fell short, medical marijuana activists are at it again this year, holding up Los Angeles as both an example and an inconvenience. One medical marijuana patient, profiled by the Orange County Register, [complained](http://www.ocregister.com/articles/costa-613187-mesa-city.html) that he couldn’t trust Orange County’s “unlicensed and unregulated storefronts,” so he journeys regularly to downtown LA instead.

He and others are pushing for a new Costa Mesa initiative through Americans for Safe Access, a medical pot organization. Their proposed Act to Restrict and Regulate the Operation of Medical Marijuana Businesses is billed as a “conservative” approach, the Register reports. According to proponents, it’s respectful of pot’s medicinal value without condoning a culture of recreational use.

**Recovery**

Medical pot success stories are gaining exposure on the local news. ABC 7, for instance, recently [interviewed](http://abc7.com/archive/9522438/) a single Orange County mom who attributes her son’s recovery from near death to medical marijuana.

Credentialed experts are using such claims to challenge strict federal drug laws. ABC 7 spoke with Dr. Daniele Piomelli, a professor of Neurobiology, Pharmacology and Biological Chemistry at U.C. Irvine. “We are subjected to a control that is, quite frankly, a little ridiculous,” she said. “If I want to buy marijuana, I can go to the corner and buy it.” Reducing bureaucracy, she claimed, “would accelerate the work” of cannabis research, delivering “effective” medication “much more quickly.”

On the other hand, legal crackdowns continue. O.C. sheriffs recently [busted](http://blogs.ocweekly.com/navelgazing/2014/05/jason_andrews_outspoken_pot_ac.php) Jason Andrews, one of the county’s best-known pot activists and cultivators. Still, area pot entrepreneurs have wasted no time in [forging ahead](http://www.thechronicbox.com/faq-1/) while Southern California lawmakers navigate the costs and benefits of regulatory change.

Legally and culturally, Los Angeles has set the tone for those changes. That’s especially true as elections approach. For instance, the contending candidates for the Riverside County Board of Supervisors, V. Manuel Perez and incumbent Supervisor John Benoit, both [favor](http://www.desertsun.com/story/news/politics/elections/2014/05/19/riverside-county-supervisor-benoit-perez/9271075/) a relatively cautious, incremental approach, driven by the uncertainty of California law and the ongoing experiments with legalization and enforcement playing out in LA.

**Challenging Sacramento

But LA is influential at the state level as well. Northern California politicians, including Democrats, often take a tougher approach than the one unfolding in the southland. Assemblyman Jim Frazier, D-Oakley, put forward [Assembly Bill 2500](http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201320140AB2500), which would effectively make all marijuana smokers guilty of driving under the influence.

That bill [failed](http://www.laweekly.com/informer/2014/05/08/proposed-marijuana-dui-law-fails-in-california) to advance through committee. Nevertheless, statewide pot policy is up for debate as candidates look for an edge in the race for attorney general. Incumbent Kamala Harris has the benefit of millions in funding and strong name recognition. Although a liberal Democrat, she has worked over the course of her term to crack down on pot growers.

The LA-area hopefuls seeking to unseat her take a different view. Not surprisingly, the Libertarian candidate, attorney Jonathan Jeach, [advocates](https://www.facebook.com/jjaech) the full legalization of marijuana and hemp products alike. But Republican Ronald Gold of Woodland Hills [supports](http://www.kcra.com/politics/marijuana-legalization-center-stage-in-ags-race/26024078) decriminalization as well.

Although Harris pleased pot advocates with a relatively [favorable](http://blog.sfgate.com/nov05election/2013/12/26/ag-harris-legal-pot-would-reap-hundreds-of-millions/) writeup of one of the state’s legalization schemes, that initiative [failed](http://www.laweekly.com/informer/2014/03/17/california-marijuana-legalization-initiative-fails) to gather enough signatures to make this year’s ballot.

Marijuana laws and enforcement are in flux across the United States, with pro-pot states like Colorado and Washington running up against national restrictions ([including](http://www.denverpost.com/marijuana/ci_25799421/marijuana-growers-colorado-and-washington-cant-use-federal) federal water use).

That gives California pot advocates a gray area to work with — risky business, but advantageous to those seeking to build on the momentum created so far in the Los Angeles area.

***(James Poulos writes for [CalWatchdog.com ](http://CalWatchdog.com%20)… where this column was first posted.)***

***-cw***

**CityWatch**

**Vol 12 Issue 42**

**Pub: May 23, 2014**

 [ ![LA DWP #2 (Pay Your Bill Help)](https://mail.citywatchla.com/images/LADWP/dwp%20level%20pay%205-7-25.jpg) ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/component/banners/click/82 "LA DWP #2 (Pay Your Bill Help)")

 ![](https://mail.citywatchla.com/images/banners/signup-for-cw.png)

## Get The News In Your Email Inbox Mondays & Thursdays

 Message

 [ ![Home - HHR Rent is too High - SB-2](https://mail.citywatchla.com/images/HHR/AHF-rent-too-high.jpg) ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/component/banners/click/104 "Home - HHR Rent is too High - SB-2")

 ---

##  Featured CityWatch Stories

 [ ![](https://mail.citywatchla.com/media/yootheme/cache/e3/067m-e39a930e.jpg) ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33250:missing-middle-la-city-plannings-new-approach-to-attainable-housing&catid=429)

### [Missing Middle. LA City Planning’s New Approach to “Attainable” Housing](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33250:missing-middle-la-city-plannings-new-approach-to-attainable-housing&catid=429)

MY TAKE - As if Sacramento’s relentless parade of housing-streamlining legislation hasn’t disrupted Los Angeles neighbo…

 [ ![](https://mail.citywatchla.com/media/yootheme/cache/91/067i-910ee2d7.jpg) ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33244:free-metro-who-pays-the-billion-dollar-bill&catid=312)

### [Free Metro? Who Pays the Billion-Dollar Bill?](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33244:free-metro-who-pays-the-billion-dollar-bill&catid=312)

MY THOUGHTS - There is something strange happening at Los Angeles Metro. On one hand, Metro is spending millions of dol…

 [ ![](https://mail.citywatchla.com/media/yootheme/cache/de/067g-dee382a9.jpg) ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33248:west-la-democrats-endorse-roy-and-reitano-decline-to-back-a-candidate-in-senate-district-24&catid=401)

### [West LA Democrats Endorse Roy and Reitano, Decline to Back a Candidate in Senate District 24](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33248:west-la-democrats-endorse-roy-and-reitano-decline-to-back-a-candidate-in-senate-district-24&catid=401)

WESTSIDE - The West Los Angeles Democrats (www.westlademclub.org) met Saturday afternoon at Saint Bede's Episcopal Chur…

 [ ![](https://mail.citywatchla.com/media/yootheme/cache/a2/067c-a222052b.jpg) ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33241:exclusive-john-mckinney-warns-city-hall-enforce-the-law-demand-accountability&catid=401)

### [EXCLUSIVE: John McKinney Warns City Hall. Enforce the Law. Demand Accountability.](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33241:exclusive-john-mckinney-warns-city-hall-enforce-the-law-demand-accountability&catid=401)

THE BOTTOM LINE - Los Angeles has laws. It has prosecutors. It has billions of dollars flowing through City Hall. What…

 [ ![](https://mail.citywatchla.com/media/yootheme/cache/cf/067l-cfbc5ae0.jpg) ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33242:an-ugly-reality-faces-a-hail-mary-hope-bass-does-a-garcetti-change-in-reverse&catid=312)

### [An Ugly Reality Faces a “Hail Mary” Hope: Bass Does a Garcetti Change…In Reverse](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33242:an-ugly-reality-faces-a-hail-mary-hope-bass-does-a-garcetti-change-in-reverse&catid=312)

ALPERN AT LARGE - In my most recent piece, I gave a two-pronged approach to a second Karen Bass mayoral term: Four m…

---

##  [ ARCHIVE ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&id=16)

 [ ![](https://mail.citywatchla.com/images/stories/Apr-2018/034e.png) ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=15339:early-intervention-and-jobs-are-key-to-stemming-chronic-homelessness-in-los-angeles&catid=16)### [Early Intervention and Jobs are Key to Stemming Chronic Homelessness in Los Angeles](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=15339:early-intervention-and-jobs-are-key-to-stemming-chronic-homelessness-in-los-angeles&catid=16)

### [Tucker Carlson and Gay Rightwinger Blame California Wildfires On Hiring LGBTQ People](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=18755:tucker-carlson-and-gay-rightwinger-blame-california-wildfires-on-hiring-lgbtq-people&catid=16)

### [Anti-LGBTQ Veep Just Can’t Stop Talking about Mayor Pete](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=17690:anti-lgbtq-veep-just-can-t-stop-talking-about-mayor-pete&catid=16)

 [ ![](https://mail.citywatchla.com/images/stories/Apr-2018/033j.png) ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=15316:news-pulse-corrupt-system-reason-for-not-voting-in-2018-majority-wants-more-than-two-parties&catid=16)### [NEWS PULSE: ‘Corrupt System’ Reason for Not Voting in 2018 … Majority Wants More Than Two Parties](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=15316:news-pulse-corrupt-system-reason-for-not-voting-in-2018-majority-wants-more-than-two-parties&catid=16)

 [ ![](https://mail.citywatchla.com/images/stories/Jan-2016/1404d.png) ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=10245:dead-dog-set-on-fire-sparks-fears-for-strays-in-los-angeles&catid=16)### [Dead Dog Set on Fire … Sparks Fears for Strays in Los Angeles](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=10245:dead-dog-set-on-fire-sparks-fears-for-strays-in-los-angeles&catid=16)
<div data-id="1" 
	class="eb-inst eb-hide eb-emailform eb-1 eboxContentLocker"
	data-options='{"trigger":"onPageLoad","trigger_selector":"","delay":3000,"early_trigger":true,"scroll_depth":"percentage","scroll_depth_value":80,"firing_frequency":1,"reverse_scroll_close":true,"threshold":0,"close_out_viewport":false,"exit_timer":1000,"idle_time":10000,"close_on_esc":false,"animation_open":"slideInDown","animation_close":"fadeOutDown","animation_duration":400,"disable_page_scroll":true,"test_mode":false,"debug":false,"ga_tracking":true,"ga_tracking_id":"G-P16BQ7X1SW","ga_tracking_event_category":"EngageBox","ga_tracking_event_label":"Box #1 - Global Email Signup Form","auto_focus":false}'
	data-type='popup'
	>

	<button type="button" data-ebox-cmd="close" class="eb-close placement-outside" aria-label="Close">
	<img alt="close popup button" />
	<span aria-hidden="true">&times;</span>
</button>
	<div class="eb-dialog eb-formVer" role="dialog" aria-modal="true" id="dialog1" aria-label="dialog1">
		
		<button type="button" data-ebox-cmd="close" class="eb-close placement-inside" aria-label="Close">
	<img alt="close popup button" />
	<span aria-hidden="true">&times;</span>
</button>	
		<div class="eb-container">
						<div class="eb-content">
				
<form action="https://citywatchla.us2.list-manage.com/subscribe/post?u=34d69f33624fd058ee9b56516&amp;id=4bfa422f51&amp;f_id=00d6c2e1f0" class="eb" method="post" id="mcform-1" name="mcform-1" target="_blank">
			<div class="eb-form-header"><p><img src="/images/2023/06/be-a-city-watcher.png" alt="be a city watcher" width="350" height="97" loading="lazy" data-path="local-images:/2023/06/be-a-city-watcher.png"></p>
<p>Sign up to receive our special e-news blasts on Monday and Thursday evenings!</p></div>
	
					<div class="eb-field-row">

			
			
			
			<input class="eb-input" type="email" name="EMAIL"  placeholder="Email address"  id="EMAIL" value="" required>

			
		</div>
										
	<div class="eb-footer">
    	<button class="eb-btn" type="submit" name="subscribe" style="background-color:rgba(93, 183, 93, 1);color:rgba(255, 255, 255, 1)">
    		Sign up    	</button>
    </div>
</form>			</div>
		</div>
	</div>	
</div>
<div data-id="3" 
	class="eb-inst eb-hide eb-yesno eb-3 "
	data-options='{"trigger":"onScrollDepth","trigger_selector":"","delay":0,"early_trigger":false,"scroll_depth":"percentage","scroll_depth_value":80,"firing_frequency":2,"reverse_scroll_close":false,"threshold":0,"close_out_viewport":false,"exit_timer":1000,"idle_time":1000,"close_on_esc":false,"animation_open":"fadeInUp","animation_close":"fadeOut","animation_duration":300,"disable_page_scroll":false,"test_mode":false,"debug":false,"ga_tracking":true,"ga_tracking_id":"G-P16BQ7X1SW","ga_tracking_event_category":"EngageBox","ga_tracking_event_label":"Box #3 - Yes \/ No Donation Popup Box","auto_focus":false}'
	data-type='popup'
	>

	<button type="button" data-ebox-cmd="close" class="eb-close placement-outside" aria-label="Close">
	<img alt="close popup button" />
	<span aria-hidden="true">&times;</span>
</button>
	<div class="eb-dialog " role="dialog" aria-modal="true" id="dialog3" aria-label="dialog3">
		
		<button type="button" data-ebox-cmd="close" class="eb-close placement-inside" aria-label="Close">
	<img alt="close popup button" />
	<span aria-hidden="true">&times;</span>
</button>	
		<div class="eb-container">
						<div class="eb-content">
				
<div class="ebox-yes-no">
	<div class="ebox-yn-text">
		
		
		<div class="ebox-yn-headline" style="font-size:22px;color:#888888">
			<p>If you only give once a month, would you consider giving to CityWatch?</p>
<p>Your support fuels our mission to promote and facilitate civic engagement and neighborhood empowerment, and to hold area government and its politicians accountable.</p>
<p>Would you like to help? Even if you can only give $5, it will make a difference.</p>		</div>
			</div>
	
	<div class="ebox-ys-buttons" style="font-size: 16px;">
		
<a
					data-ebox-prevent="0"
		data-ebox-cmd="close"
				target="_self"
		href="https://www.citywatchla.com/donate"
		rel="noopener"
	
	
	
	
	class="ebox-ys-btn"
	style="background-color:#2ec664;color:#ffffff;min-width:100px">
	Yes
	</a>
<a
	
	
			data-ebox-cmd="close"
		href="#"
	
	
	class="ebox-ys-btn"
	style="background-color:#ef2345;color:#ffffff;min-width:100px">
	Not Right Now
	</a>	</div>

	</div>			</div>
		</div>
	</div>	
</div>