Middletown Area Town Hall hosts discussion on marijuana legislation, fire area thefts

MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – The county's sheriff and two members of the Board of Supervisors were on hand at the Middletown Area Town Hall to discuss new state marijuana legislation and respond to residents' concerns about crime in the Valley fire area.

The meeting took place on Thursday evening at the Middletown Senior Center.

The group, at the behest of Board Secretary Margaret Greenley, requested Supervisor Anthony Farrington come and discuss new state medical marijuana regulations signed into law by the governor in the fall.

In addition to Farrington, Supervisor Jim Comstock and Sheriff Brian Martin also were in attendance.

Before the marijuana legislation update took place, however, an impromptu discussion occurred regarding reports of a rash of thefts in the Middletown and Cobb areas.

Middletown resident Sharon Dawson began posting on Facebook earlier this week about thefts of bricks, tools, firewood, lumber and other items on private property in the Valley fire area.

She came to the meeting Thursday to ask the sheriff for help in stopping the thefts.

“This is only going to get worse,” she said.

While she supported having a Neighborhood Watch, she added, “We are a volatile group right now.”

Martin acknowledged that it's a difficult situation, and there are a lot of opportunistic people taking advantage. “I'll tell you my deputies are out and working very hard and tirelessly.”

He explained that he is currently experiencing a severe staffing shortage. He budgeted 43 deputies and 10 sergeants spots, and currently has nine vacant deputy spots and one vacant sergeant job.

This week he received resignation letters from two other deputies who are going to go to work in Napa County for more money.

A third deputy received a conditional offer to go to a Bay Area police department and work for $71 per hour. “We're never going to compete with that,” Martin said.

“I'm working on the things I can control,” he said, explaining he has hired three county residents who are going through the law enforcement academy and have agreed to sign contracts to work for the county for three years.

Martin said it's also difficult to keep dispatchers, who have an extremely stressful job. Two deputy sheriffs are being used to help cover dispatch openings.

Dawson said she knows the sheriff's office is underpaid and understaffed, but she questioned what they could do.

“I'm open to suggestions,” said Martin.

Dawson said she didn't have any suggestions, but asked what the community can do.

Martin said there has been success with Neighborhood Watch on the Northshore, particularly in Lucerne, where there has been a noticeable reduction in crime. “If you're looking for community solutions, that's a good one,” he said.

MATH Board member Linda Diehl-Darms said that on Wednesday she found that someone broke into a car on her property and rummaged through it. A vehicle on another nearby parcel also was burglarized. They also found someone camping in their land. Those issues were reported to the sheriff's office.

“This is tough,” said MATH Chair Fletcher Thornton, adding the county is stretched thin “beyond belief.”

He said community members need to watch out for each other.

Martin said he would be happy to come to another meeting to discuss the matter further. “I'm interested in seeing what the community has to say. I'm doing what I can.”

Comstock said he was in favor of forming a Neighborhood Watch. “Let's figure out when to do it.”

Thornton said he would put the public safety discussion on the March agenda.

New marijuana rules

Farrington gave a general overview of the three-bill package known as the Medical Marijuana Regulation and Safety Act, signed by Gov. Jerry Brown Oct. 9.

He said the bills allow state agencies to become more involved in marijuana regulation, creating the Bureau of Medical Marijuana Regulation as well as different types of licensing.

Cooperatives and collectives are no longer required, and to be a farmer or grower one no longer needs a script. People in the supply chain can legitimately make money, he said.

However, those applying for the necessary licenses are subject to disqualifiers, such as having a history of environmental degradation and prior felony convictions that relate to transportation, sales or manufacturing of cannabis, he said. Physicians who provide scripts to patients also can't qualify.

Patients with recommendations are exempt from licensing if they grow in a space that's less than 100 square feet. Primary caregivers with five or fewer patients can grow in spaces up to 500 square feet without a license, he explained.

He said it comes down to what is the best policy, local control and protecting the watershed.

Farrington said it's also a chance to legitimize the process, tax and regulate marijuana, and get funds for local governments, law enforcement, infrastructure, the lake and investment in youth.

He said a county ad hoc committee has formed and is meeting. It includes representatives from sheriff's and district attorney's offices, the Board of Supervisors, Lake County Public Health, Community Development Department and more.

The group is going through the law and plans to make recommendations to the Board of Supervisors and get related local governance in place sometime this year – possibly before the grow season starts, he said.

“I feel pretty optimistic that we're going to support as a community taxing this crop and regulating,” Farrington said.

Comstock said it's no secret that he's no fan of marijuana, “but I'm a realist,” adding Prohibition didn't work.

“It's here and it's not going to leave,” Comstock said of marijuana, adding that it needs to be regulated and taxed.

Martin said he never thought in his law enforcement career he would be talking about regulating or taxing marijuana, “and I never thought it would be a good idea.”

However, he said he now finds himself thinking it's a good idea for Lake County.

Taxpayer dollars are already going to pay to deal with marijuana, and this is a chance to have the industry pay for it instead, he said.

He said a large legal marijuana grow is located at Rancho de la Fuente in Lakeport. “The ones that are doing it right are not the ones that are causing us problems.”

He added, “We're missing out on the tax opportunity that goes along with that.”

Martin said the licensing procedure is not an easy process. “Nobody can get a state license until they come and pass local muster,” he said, so the county has the ability to control what is happening here.

He said he believed that growers in compliance will report on those who are not abiding by the rules.

“The ad hoc committee has been working very hard,” Martin said, explaining that the group met earlier in the day and had a presentation of its first ordinance that deals with permitting and fees, with the group next to look at taxes.

Referencing the nearly $1 billion in recreational marijuana sales in Colorado last year, Martin said the new legislation offers Lake County the tools it needs to benefit economically.

Farrington and Martin also fielded questions from audience members about penalties and licensing, impacts on violence, and dispensaries – which still aren't allowed in the unincorporated county.

Diehl-Darms asked where people would get permits. Farrington said that still hasn't been decided, although it could be a function of the Community Development or agriculture departments.

Martin explained that the county will limit the number of permits it will issue.

“It's not going to be a free for all,” he said, and not everyone who wants a permit will get one.

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