News » Sheriff, DEA Raid LA-area Dispensaries Over Fruit Loops?





The LA County Sheriff’s Department, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the State Board of Equalization, and the State Franchise Tax Board raided several medical marijuana dispensaries and cooperatives in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, and San Diego Counties this past weekend. Why? Because the dispensaries, apparently, were giving away (yes, for FREE) marijuana including breakfast cereals and candies laced with THC.

The officials served warrants on 16 locations and seized 78 pounds of (medicine) marijuana and assorted goodies. Law enforcement claims a street value of $234,000, despite the fact that the cooperatives were literally giving them away to patients in need.

Of the eleven people arrested in conjunction with the raids, all but one are now out of jail. Three were released because the DA had no grounds for conviction, the rest were released on bond. The one being held is being kept on an unrelated arrest warrant.

Erik Andresen, one of those arrested and released, says that nobody has been officially charged with anything connected to the raids. The dispensaries were operating legally, he says, and were providing patients in need with free medical marijuana this Saturday and Sunday. The dispensaries sell product, but the money goes back into the business to provide free medicine to those patients who can’t afford it otherwise.

Meanwhile, in the past six months, LA has seen 17,981 violent crimes and 72,296 property crimes, not including those committed by police when raiding legal businesses and charities.

[source LA Times Blogs]

Tags: California, DEA, medical