LA County authorities not doing enough to shut down illegal dispensaries: LAT

Los Angeles County officials are struggling to permanently shut down illegal dispensaries, the Los Angeles Times reported.

A Pew Research Center study found that Los Angeles County accounts for a tenth of all dispensaries expected to operate nationwide, with 1,500.

However, data from the California State Department of Cannabis Control for the year ending in 2022 shows there were only 384 dispensaries in the county with licenses.

Law enforcement agencies in Los Angeles County and across the state have made hundreds of arrests and seized thousands of pounds of illegal cannabis and other illicit drugs this year, including a seizure at one location in San Bernardino County in April that revealed more than 50 pounds of illegal drugs. .

The LA Times described a recent raid on a former used car dealership turned illegal dispensary in Whittier that took place on May 10; As a result of the search, one employee was arrested and charged with possession of psilocybin mushrooms and the others were released with a warning.

The site was open again a few weeks later, the Times said.

Further south, in San Diego County, the story is quite different, according to the Times; San Diego County authorities have “virtually eradicated” black market pot shops that bring in millions of dollars in untaxed sales.

The reason for their success, according to the LA Times, is due to local authorities putting pressure on “networks of limited liability companies and fictitious names” that can operate illegal dispensaries. The county spent nearly $3 million cracking down on illegal dispensaries in 2021, rather than relying on overtime pay from the sheriff's department as is the case in Los Angeles County.

In San Diego County, California Department of Fish and Wildlife scientists inspect property for improper water discharge, and if unpaid taxes cannot be paid on site, tax-related criminal charges are filed.

Code inspectors who find violations can have the building's water and electricity services shut off, and sometimes the building itself is foreclosed, the LA Times reported.

Additionally, San Diego County Sheriff’s Department Sgt. Nick Backouris told the Times that legal dispensary owners have also been proactive, even going so far as to file lawsuits against their illegal competitors.

Meanwhile, up north, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department officials say the best thing to do against illegal dispensaries is for the district attorney to charge an employee or two, and sometimes the business, of selling narcotics or other violations, the LA Times said.

According to Lt. Richard White of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Narcotics Bureau, that's simply not enough, and the lack of organization and questions over who can enforce the law make it virtually impossible to prevent outlaw pottery shops to return immediately.

“It’s certainly profitable enough for them to move or reopen,” he told the LA Times shortly after the May 10 raid in Whittier. “Why shouldn’t these companies continue to bend the rules? »

“You have a big shadow organization running these dispensaries, and it's very profitable,” Lt. White added. “And on our side, there is a limit to our manpower and funds to solve this problem.”