A group of prominent East Bay political leaders spoke out Wednesday against a federal attempt to close the Berkeley Patients Group, one of California's oldest medical marijuana dispensaries.
Mayor Tom Bates, several members of the Berkeley City Council and a representative of Congresswoman Barbara Lee defended the dispensary against a forfeiture lawsuit that was filed on May 2 by U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag.
"It's just incomprehensible why they would waste their time attacking law-abiding, taxpaying business, rather than going after the serious crime problems,” City Council member Kriss Worthington said.
“I think this is a horrible waste of money and a distraction,” he added.
Worthington said forcing patients to get their medicine underground “is taking us back 20 years.”