Hemp Club stops Giving Donations Away

By Rochelle R. Samilin

The Hemp Center, the Richmond District's medical marijuana club, located at 2533 Balboa St., shut down for about two weeks in late April and early May because staffers at the center had the overwhelming task of having to explain to 300 to 500 people that medical marijuana donations were no longer being dispersed.

The closure in part was due to the state Board of Equalization's policy of taxing the Hemp Center's monthly donations to customers.

Owner Kathleen Lemons and her staff gave away two grams of mid-grade and one gram of high-grade pot to those who were destitute and had a medical marijuana prescription. The three grams totaled a value of $30 per donation and was calculated to be valued between $12,000 to $16,000 a month.

Overall, the Board of Equalization's forced tax on the donations proved to be an expensive gift.

"We can't afford to give a donation to the entire Bay Area," Lemons said. "We can't give the donations and pay the sales tax. At one point we gave away $1,500 (in marijuana) in two hours."

Earlier this year, Lemons filed a sales tax return exempting the donations. Since there was no prescription or recommendation regarding the donation, the state declared the donation policy taxable.

A result of the state's forced donation tax included Lemons' decision to terminate the Hemp Center's monthly donation. The state also seized the center's bank account information. Overall, the state demanded 8.5 percent of the Hemp Center's total receipts since the club's official grand opening three years ago, in July 1999.

Most of Lemons' customers sympathize with the state's medical marijuana clubs.

"Most understand, but there are a few who think we're all filthy profiteers," Lemons said. "They don't realize we're fighting for legalization. If we were legal, it would be cheaper. If growing and cultivation were legal, then the price would go down."

Amid the financial and medical difficulty regarding the elimination of the monthly donations, Lemons said the biggest challenge is the strong possibility of facing a criminal raid or civil injunction by the federal government.

"The least of my problems is the state," Lemons said. "They don't want to lock me up, they just want my money. I'm worried that the feds might shut us down."

According to Don Duncan, co-director of Berkeley Patients Group, a criminal raid is defined as the police showing up unannounced with a search warrant. A civil injunction is a "polite" notice to close down a club with the threat of a lawsuit.

With federal Judge Charles Breyer's April summary judgment against the Oakland Cannabis Buyer's Club, most cannabis club owners and supporters are taking action into their own hands.

Flyers made by S.A.N. (Safe Access Now) are promoting peaceful, non-violent emergency response plans in case of a Drug Enforcement Agency crackdown or injunction, if that day arrives. Protesters will be asked to bring signs, banners, flowers and music to the attacked dispensary on the day of the crackdown. The day after the raid, S.A.N. is requesting protesters to show up in front of the Oakland and San Francisco federal court buildings at noon.

Although Californians voted to legalize medical marijuana, its status does not matter according to federal law, because federal law always takes precedence over state law.

Richard Meyer, public information officer with the San Francisco D.E.A. unit, adamantly claims marijuana is a substance that has no recognized medical value according to the Controlled Substance Act.

"Marijuana is illegal under the federal law and will be enforced under the federal law," Meyer said.

Lemons, who sees her share of terminally ill patients at the Hemp Center, sees a different side to the use of medical marijuana.

She became immersed in the medical marijuana issue when her son was diagnosed with schizophrenia. The medical staff advocated that he be permanently institutionalized, but by smoking marijuana, Lemons says, her son is psychologically stable and able to live in the community.

"When (raids) happen, people die," Lemons said. "This is what people need to understand. When patients can't get their medicine, they get depressed and die."