By Michael Armijo Diamond Bar – After a Supreme Court ruling determined that cities can ban medical marijuana dispensaries, many dispensaries were forced to close. But Diamond Bar’s 2006 ordinance allows one in the city, so one will remain for now. The ordinance allows a single medical marijuana dispensary to operate within city limits. The sole dispensary, Farm Assist Caregivers, was the fortunate one. This move, back in 2006 when many dispensaries fought cities to remain open, was a novel idea when laws were unclear and lawsuits were filed. Considering the laws have changed, the city may readdress the seven-year-old ordinance. California’s Proposition 215 and Senate Bill SB420 allowed individuals to use marijuana for medicinal purposes and issued patient identification cards to differentiate themselves from drug users and patients. The lingering question had asked: “do cities have the right to ban the facilities?” This was answered when the Supreme Court unanimously agreed on Monday that cities can prohibit dispensaries while state law allows medical marijuana patients the right to use the controlled substance. Confusing, but the end result is that many cities have closed down the facilities. According to online reports, there hasn’t been any problems with the sole dispensary in Diamond Bar and the Mayor is considering a revamp of the ordinance. As of early May, there were no plans to revamp the current ordinance. Local cities that have banned dispensaries and have been closing them down include Ontario, Riverside, and Upland.
