FruityBud
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Was it sheer contempt of the law or a bureaucratic bumble? Whatever happened, the county could be on the hook for nearly $40,000 to replace Kimberley Marshalls pot.
The 46-year old Los Osos resident filed a claim for damages against Sheriff Patrick Hedges and the county alleging the sheriffs department unlawfully seized, and then had destroyed, six pounds of medicinal marijuana. If successful, Marshall could be the first medical marijuana patient in San Luis Obispo County awarded monetary compensation for confiscated cannabis.
Marshall, a survivor of liver cancer, suffers daily chronic pain after two surgeries for lumbar and other injuries, among multiple afflictions, according to the claim filed Dec. 23. She is seeking $36,000$6,000 per pound of marijuana destroyedplus attorney fees and damages.
On March 31, sheriffs deputies entered Marshalls home in a warrantless search involving her son, who was on probation. Somehow during the course of the search, deputies discovered her 18-month supply of marijuana, which the claim states was secured in a locked closet in her bedroom.
The deputies were reportedly told by Marshalls son the marijuana was medicinal and she was contacted; over the phone, she explained her condition and demanded the pot be left at the home. The claim also states that Marshalls documentation was visible to the deputies during the search, but when she returned, she allegedly found it behind some furniture in her bedroom.
Marshall was told by deputies that once she showed proper paperwork, her property would be returned. Four months later, when finally interviewed by a deputy, she presented her physicians letter of recommendation and told deputies further documentation of her medical condition was in the possession of her lawyer at the time, Harold Mesick, who said he was in contact with the district attorneys office regarding the pending criminal charges. On September 1, the district attorney rejected the criminal case based on her medical defense.
Then something strange happened. The very next day the sheriffs department notified the D.A.s office that the cannabis in lockup was no longer neededthat they had not received a request for a return of property nor deemed the marijuana for medicinal purposesand requested the D.A. obtain a court order for its destruction.
On Oct. 5, the D.A. filed the request, and four days later, Judge Dodie Harmon ordered the property destroyed. Unaware of this, Mesick filed a request for the return of the property on Oct. 22 and was later told by the county counsel that it had already been destroyed and that the sheriffs department had no record of Marshalls physicians recommendation.
Asked why the return request was not made until a month after the D.A. rejected Marshalls case, Mesick could not comment.
Basically, due process wasnt followed in this case, said Louis Koory, Marshalls civil attorney. Every citizen has a right to retain their property. There is a procedure that needs to be followed, and in this case,
it wasnt.
According to Koory, because there were no pending criminal charges, and because Mesick had already established Marshall was a qualified medical cannabis patient, the sheriffs department violated her due process rights and deprived her of the use and value of her property by having the cannabis destroyed. Koory told New Times he has no indication that the destruction of Marshalls property was contemptuous and that it may have been as simple as a lack of communication between two agencies.
Were not saying it was intentional, but it doesnt have to be intentional, Koory said. It could very well be negligent. Bottom line is, shes owed money.
The sheriffs department could not comment on the case either, except to say that its a publicity stunt by medical marijuana activists.
Cases like these are brought on by the medical marijuana lobby as a way to garner publicity, sheriffs department spokesman Rob Bryn said. And in this case, the sheriffs department is not willing to play along.
All I can tell you is that this case is much more complicated than originally reported, he added.
According to Bryn, department protocol for the destruction of property deemed either illegal or no longer related to a criminal case varies depending on the type of property. When it comes to marijuana, he said, it is taken to an undisclosed location out of the county in an armed caravan and incinerated with state and federal oversight.
Should Marshall succeed in her claim, she would be the first medical marijuana patient in the county to be reimbursed for seized marijuana.
In July, a landmark ruling in Butte County determined a qualified medical marijuana patient may continue an action for damages against the county for the alleged unlawful seizure of medical marijuana plants. While the Marshall case does not involve plants per se, Koory maintained that the Butte case provides a legal precedent for their claim.
The SLO County Sheriffs Department has earned a reputation as particularly aggressive when it comes to medical marijuana. In 2008, Sheriff Pat Hedges refused to return a small bag of pot to Arroyo Grande resident D. Craig Steffens, even after Steffens established he had a physicians recommendation and criminal charges against him were dropped. A judge ordered Hedges to return the cannabis, but Hedges refused until threatened with a contempt-of-court order.
Under county medicinal marijuana law, a qualified patient can possess up to eight ounces of pot, unless a licensed physician recommends a larger quantity.
According to Koory, Marshalls claim is in review and the county counsel has six months to accept or reject it. He expects the latter. At that point, Marshall could choose to file a civil lawsuit against Hedges and the county.
hxxp://tinyurl.com/y9m8jp2
The 46-year old Los Osos resident filed a claim for damages against Sheriff Patrick Hedges and the county alleging the sheriffs department unlawfully seized, and then had destroyed, six pounds of medicinal marijuana. If successful, Marshall could be the first medical marijuana patient in San Luis Obispo County awarded monetary compensation for confiscated cannabis.
Marshall, a survivor of liver cancer, suffers daily chronic pain after two surgeries for lumbar and other injuries, among multiple afflictions, according to the claim filed Dec. 23. She is seeking $36,000$6,000 per pound of marijuana destroyedplus attorney fees and damages.
On March 31, sheriffs deputies entered Marshalls home in a warrantless search involving her son, who was on probation. Somehow during the course of the search, deputies discovered her 18-month supply of marijuana, which the claim states was secured in a locked closet in her bedroom.
The deputies were reportedly told by Marshalls son the marijuana was medicinal and she was contacted; over the phone, she explained her condition and demanded the pot be left at the home. The claim also states that Marshalls documentation was visible to the deputies during the search, but when she returned, she allegedly found it behind some furniture in her bedroom.
Marshall was told by deputies that once she showed proper paperwork, her property would be returned. Four months later, when finally interviewed by a deputy, she presented her physicians letter of recommendation and told deputies further documentation of her medical condition was in the possession of her lawyer at the time, Harold Mesick, who said he was in contact with the district attorneys office regarding the pending criminal charges. On September 1, the district attorney rejected the criminal case based on her medical defense.
Then something strange happened. The very next day the sheriffs department notified the D.A.s office that the cannabis in lockup was no longer neededthat they had not received a request for a return of property nor deemed the marijuana for medicinal purposesand requested the D.A. obtain a court order for its destruction.
On Oct. 5, the D.A. filed the request, and four days later, Judge Dodie Harmon ordered the property destroyed. Unaware of this, Mesick filed a request for the return of the property on Oct. 22 and was later told by the county counsel that it had already been destroyed and that the sheriffs department had no record of Marshalls physicians recommendation.
Asked why the return request was not made until a month after the D.A. rejected Marshalls case, Mesick could not comment.
Basically, due process wasnt followed in this case, said Louis Koory, Marshalls civil attorney. Every citizen has a right to retain their property. There is a procedure that needs to be followed, and in this case,
it wasnt.
According to Koory, because there were no pending criminal charges, and because Mesick had already established Marshall was a qualified medical cannabis patient, the sheriffs department violated her due process rights and deprived her of the use and value of her property by having the cannabis destroyed. Koory told New Times he has no indication that the destruction of Marshalls property was contemptuous and that it may have been as simple as a lack of communication between two agencies.
Were not saying it was intentional, but it doesnt have to be intentional, Koory said. It could very well be negligent. Bottom line is, shes owed money.
The sheriffs department could not comment on the case either, except to say that its a publicity stunt by medical marijuana activists.
Cases like these are brought on by the medical marijuana lobby as a way to garner publicity, sheriffs department spokesman Rob Bryn said. And in this case, the sheriffs department is not willing to play along.
All I can tell you is that this case is much more complicated than originally reported, he added.
According to Bryn, department protocol for the destruction of property deemed either illegal or no longer related to a criminal case varies depending on the type of property. When it comes to marijuana, he said, it is taken to an undisclosed location out of the county in an armed caravan and incinerated with state and federal oversight.
Should Marshall succeed in her claim, she would be the first medical marijuana patient in the county to be reimbursed for seized marijuana.
In July, a landmark ruling in Butte County determined a qualified medical marijuana patient may continue an action for damages against the county for the alleged unlawful seizure of medical marijuana plants. While the Marshall case does not involve plants per se, Koory maintained that the Butte case provides a legal precedent for their claim.
The SLO County Sheriffs Department has earned a reputation as particularly aggressive when it comes to medical marijuana. In 2008, Sheriff Pat Hedges refused to return a small bag of pot to Arroyo Grande resident D. Craig Steffens, even after Steffens established he had a physicians recommendation and criminal charges against him were dropped. A judge ordered Hedges to return the cannabis, but Hedges refused until threatened with a contempt-of-court order.
Under county medicinal marijuana law, a qualified patient can possess up to eight ounces of pot, unless a licensed physician recommends a larger quantity.
According to Koory, Marshalls claim is in review and the county counsel has six months to accept or reject it. He expects the latter. At that point, Marshall could choose to file a civil lawsuit against Hedges and the county.
hxxp://tinyurl.com/y9m8jp2
