Hazy pot policy prompts renewed talk about enforcement

Written by Ashley Archibald, The Union Democrat June 28, 2010 05:23 am

Local law enforcement officials and county leaders may finally be forced to clear up hazy policies related to medical marijuana use and distribution in Calaveras County.

The need for a coherent policy, according to medical marijuana advocates and authorities, comes as officials investigate a sting its officers performed on a medical-pot cooperative, a dispensary opens in Valley Springs, and a new sheriff prepares to take office.
Helping spur current debate was the January arrest of a medical-marijuana collective member Jay Smith, 36, of San Andreas, in the parking lot of a San Andreas Subway restaurant.
Medical-marijuana proponents claim Calaveras County Sheriff’s Department deputies crossed legal boundaries in setting up Smith for arrest.
According to testimony from Smith’s preliminary hearing, Deputy Steve Avila used a medical marijuana prescription — called a “recommendation” — taken from another man in an unrelated arrest to join Smith’s collective and buy marijuana.
A second Calaveras County deputy, Robert Huffman, then posed as the patient during a sting operation which resulted in Smith’s arrest.
The recommendation belonged to Robert Shaffer, of Ione. Deputies used Shaffer’s name and medical recommendation with one small change — Avila altered Shaffer’s date of birth by one digit.
He then called Smith at the K Care Alternative Collective, a medical marijuana collective based in San Andreas.
According to Avila’s testimony, he sent Shaffer’s medical information to Smith via the collective’s Web site in December 2009 and asked to join the collective.
Smith demurred until Shaffer’s identity could be verified through his doctor.
Two weeks later, Avila recontacted Smith to check on the status of his request. Smith, having verified Shaffer’s identity, agreed to sell the undercover deputy an ounce of “White Widow” marijuana for $270.
The sale occurred in the Subway parking lot. Deputy Huffman posed as Shaffer and initialed documents Smith brought that made him a member of the collective.
It wasn’t until money exchanged hands that Huffman executed what Avila referred to in his testimony as “the takedown signal.”
Undercover officers swarmed Smith, and arrested him on drug sales charges.
Since the arrest, the real Robert Shaffer has filed complaints with the Calaveras Grand Jury and California Attorney General’s Office.


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