A federal judge has signaled support for a medical marijuana dispensary in Berkeley, California, despite numerous attempts by U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag to shut it down.
Judge Jon S. Tigar of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals issued an order on Friday stating that Berkeley Patients Group, a 15-year-old pot shop that bills itself as California’s oldest, can continue to operate while the court considers pending litigation.
“We’re very pleased with the outcome of this particular ruling, and we’re very eager to continue serving our patients in the Berkeley area,” Victor Pinhoe, BPG’s director of marketing, told The Huffington Post. “This should be viewed as a small victory in a larger fight to secure safe access to medical cannabis for anyone who needs it in California and across the country.”
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Advocates hope that situations like the one facing BPG will force the Obama administration to provide more protections to states that have clearly enacted cannabis laws. A congressional bill sponsored by Lee last month, H.R. 262, would explicitly protect state-legal marijuana businesses from having their property seized by federal authorities.
“We are hopeful that Congress will act quickly to resolve the split between state and federal marijuana laws by passing bills like Congresswoman Lee’s proposed H.R. 262,” BPG President Tim Schick said in a statement Monday. “In the meantime, we look forward to continuing to serve our local patient population.”
