City cheers pot shop ruling
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The City of Penticton is welcoming a recent decision from a B.C. Supreme Court judge, who has ruled local governments have the right to regulate marijuana dispensaries.
The court rejected a challenge from Don Briere, who argued the City of Abbotsford was violating the constitution by refusing to grant him a permit to operate. He said the city was restricting access to medical marijuana.
Justice Miriam Gropper ruled the city is within their rights to regulate marijuana, despite it typically falling under federal jurisdiction.
In Penticton, where a pair of pot shops have refused to shut down after being denied licensing, the ruling is being applauded.
“This decision is welcomed as it provides further clarity on our rights and obligations to control dispensaries and gives added strength to our enforcement policy,” Mayor Andrew Jakubeit said in a statement.
“These permits were put in place to allow access to medical marijuana for our residents and also control the proliferation of unregulated, unlicensed, illegal dispensaries which are a problem for many B.C. communities,” he added.
Jakubeit confirmed that Okanagan Cannabis Solutions and Jukka Laurio’s Herbal Greens Apothecary are currently being subjected to $500 a day fines. The city has left the door open to injunctive action should the penalties not work.
A new RCMP commander is also on its way to the region, which could change the way the local police deal with the dispensaries
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