U.S. drug agents raid medical marijuana sites

Sign on San Diego

By Jeff McDonald

SAN DIEGO – Federal drug agents fanned out across San Diego on Monday, clamping down on medical marijuana dispensaries that had been doling out marijuana to sick and dying patients.

At least two teams of agents removed pot and equipment from about a half-dozen businesses, which are permitted by state and local law but illegal under federal drug laws.

The move came as San Diego County supervisors have refused to abide by state medical-marijuana laws by issuing ID cards to qualified patients. It also means thousands of patients across the county now have nowhere to go to buy marijuana, which they say alleviates a variety of acute symptoms stemming from chronic health conditions.
The federal raids also were the latest high-profile move by U.S. Attorney Carol Lam, who in the past two weeks has won a plea agreement to bribery charges from disgraced Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham and challenged a federal judge's order tossing out corruption convictions of San Diego Councilman Michael Zucchet.