Fort Collins Colorado is known all around the country as one of the finest places to get Medicinal Grade Cannabis, so it isnt surprising that dispensaries are popping up all over town. A quick drive down college avenue will show you just how many new places are welcoming the booming pot business. Where there is need, there is also money to be made. The common goal, that I’ve seen has been to treat this radical business just like an other business. Make patients your priority, act in accordance with the law and there will be enough for everyone, right?  Patient oriented Cannabis Dispensaries are hard to find, but one such shop has settled on to downtown Fort Collins and is making a name for themselves. Medicinal Gardens, located at 420 D. South Howes Street, opened their doors on July 7th 2009 but have already been making waves across the industry. In a quaint building somewhat reminiscient of a cottage nestled into a mountain side, lies an unassuming pot shop with compassionate care unlike any I have seen before. Patients come in with their paperwork and sit in a small waiting room, talking with each other. There is a certain sense of comraderie which likely stems from the recent raids in Fort Collins and the somewhat skeptical policy changes enacted by the Obama administration. But here, there is hope. Medicinal Gardens was first introduced to me through a friend who insisted I check them out. Always up for trying new things and meeting new people, I came to be pleasantly surprised. There is no discrimination and no feeling of sketchy business dealings, an all too common potshop aroma, in fact, most of the time you will find the owners sitting with patients and listening to their concerns. These folks are different in many ways, and have created a real atmosphere of education surrounding their business.  I for one, appreciate that, but it may not bode well with everyone. At Medicinal Gardens, you wont be getting back into the bud bar without proper Identification, so don’t even bother. The receptionist politely reminds even the long standing patients to bring all of their paperwork, every time. Rest assured, Medicinal Gardens isn’t one of those places that’s open one day and closed up tight the next, these guys do everything by the book. The medication is top shelf and with several different strains and flavors, you will find it’s difficult to pick a favorite. If buds aren’t what suits you, try some of the tincture and some of the home-made and utterly intoxicating edibles available. I fully recommend the notoriously yummy Lemon Bars, they have become absolutely critical to my happiness as a person and yes, they are that good. The wide variety of edibles and tinctures are dwarfed only by the bud selection. But dont expect to get out of there without talking about your condition. Medicinal Gardens wants to know what helps you best, and will often sit and talk with you about your condition to determine which medicine is going to help you the most. This is a service you won’t find anywhere else, and what sets this store above the others. #1 on my list, Medicinal Gardens is the best I’ve found so far. With the co-mingling of education and building awareness in the community,they have set themselves above the rest. Professional, honest, clean and with some of the best medication in the state, I give them my stamp of approval. Go see them, and tell them December sent you.

Medicinal Gardens Hours of Operation: M-F 10am-6pm, Sat 11-4

Phone Number: 970-217-0575

Website: http://www.medgardens.com

Email: medicinalgardensofco@gmail.com

© 2009, AntiSoccermom. All rights reserved to the original author unless stated otherwise.

on Investigations and Prosecutions in States Authorizing the Medical Use of MarijuanaOctober 19,2009

MEMORANDUM FOR SELECTED UNITED STATES ATTORNEYS

FROM: David W. Ogden, Deputy Attorney General

SUBJECT: Investigations and Prosecutions in States Authorizing the Medical Use of Marijuana

This memorandum provides clarification and guidance to federal prosecutors in States that have enacted laws authorizing the medical use of marijuana. These laws vary in their substantive provisions and in the extent of state regulatory oversight, both among the enacting States and among local jurisdictions within those States. Rather than developing different guidelines for every possible variant of state and local law, this memorandum provides uniform guidance to focus federal investigations and prosecutions in these States on core federal enforcement priorities.

The Department of Justice is committed to the enforcement of the Controlled Substances Act in all States. Congress has determined that marijuana is a dangerous drug, and the illegal distribution and sale of marijuana is a serious crime and provides a significant source of revenue to large-scale criminal enterprises, gangs, and cartels. One timely example underscores the importance of our efforts to prosecute significant marijuana traffickers: marijuana distribution in the United States remains the single largest source of revenue for the Mexican cartels.

The Department is also committed to making efficient and rational use of its limited investigative and prosecutorial resources. In general, United States Attorneys are vested with “plenary authority with regard to federal criminal matters” within their districts. USAM 9-2.001. In exercising this authority, United States Attorneys are “invested by statute and delegation from the Attorney General with the broadest discretion in the exercise of such authority.” Id. This authority should, of course, be exercised consistent with Department priorities and guidance.

The prosecution of significant traffickers of illegal drugs, including marijuana, and the disruption of illegal drug manufacturing and trafficking networks continues to be a core priority in the Department’s efforts against narcotics and dangerous drugs, and the Department’s investigative and prosecutorial resources should be directed towards these objectives. As a general matter, pursuit of these priorities should not focus federal resources in your States on individuals whose actions are in clear and unambiguous compliance with existing state laws providing for the medical use of marijuana. For example, prosecution of individuals with cancer or other serious illnesses who use marijuana as part of a recommended treatment regimen consistent with applicable state law, or those caregivers in clear and unambiguous compliance with existing state law who provide such individuals with marijuana, is unlikely to be an efficient use of limited federal resources. On the other hand, prosecution of commercial enterprises that unlawfully market and sell marijuana for profit continues to be an enforcement priority of the Department. To be sure, claims of compliance with state or local law may mask operations inconsistent with the terms, conditions, or purposes of those laws, and federal law enforcement should not be deterred by such assertions when otherwise pursuing the Department’s core enforcement priorities.

Typically, when any of the following characteristics is present, the conduct will not be in clear and unambiguous compliance with applicable state law and may indicate illegal drug trafficking activity of potential federal interest:

• unlawful possession or unlawful use of firearms;
• violence;
• sales to minors;
• financial and marketing activities inconsistent with the terms, conditions, or purposes of state law, including evidence of money laundering activity and/or financial gains or excessive amounts of cash inconsistent with purported compliance with state or local law;
• amounts of marijuana inconsistent with purported compliance with state or local law;
• illegal possession or sale of other controlled substances; or
• ties to other criminal enterprises.

Of course, no State can authorize violations of federal law, and the list of factors above is not intended to describe exhaustively when a federal prosecution may be warranted. Accordingly, in prosecutions under the Controlled Substances Act, federal prosecutors are not expected to charge, prove, or otherwise establish any state law violations. Indeed, this memorandum does not alter in any way the Department’s authority to enforce federal law, including laws prohibiting the manufacture, production, distribution, possession, or use of marijuana on federal property. This guidance regarding resource allocation does not “legalize” marijuana or provide a legal defense to a violation of federal law, nor is it intended to create any privileges, benefits, or rights, substantive or procedural, enforceable by any individual, party or witness in any administrative, civil, or criminal matter. Nor does clear and unambiguous compliance with state law or the absence of one or all of the above factors create a legal defense to a violation of the Controlled Substances Act. Rather, this memorandum is intended solely as a guide to the exercise of investigative and prosecutorial discretion.

Finally, nothing herein precludes investigation or prosecution where there is a reasonable basis to believe that compliance with state law is being invoked as a pretext for the production or distribution of marijuana for purposes not authorized by state law. Nor does this guidance preclude investigation or prosecution, even when there is clear and unambiguous compliance with existing state law, in particular circumstances where investigation or prosecution otherwise serves important federal interests.

Your offices should continue to review marijuana cases for prosecution on a case-by-case basis, consistent with the guidance on resource allocation and federal priorities set forth herein, the consideration of requests for federal assistance from state and local law enforcement authorities, and the Principles of Federal Prosecution.

cc: All United States Attorneys

Lanny A. Breuer Assistant Attorney General Criminal Division

B. Todd Jones United States Attorney District of Minnesota Chair, Attorney General’s Advisory Committee

Michele M. Leonhart Acting Administrator Drug Enforcement Administration

H. Marshall Jarrett Director Executive Office for United States Attorneys

Kevin L. Perkins Assistant Director Criminal Investigative Division Federal Bureau of Investigation

© 2009, AntiSoccermom. All rights reserved to the original author unless stated otherwise.