In July 2012, US Attorney Melinda Haag filed civil forfeiture actions against the landlords of Harborside Health Center’s Oakland and San Jose dispensaries, seeking to seize the properties over marijuana sales that were legal under California law but illegal under the federal Controlled Substances Act.[1] Staff arrived at work to find forfeiture notices taped to the doors of both dispensaries.[1] The case file names the Oakland property at 1840 Embarcadero, where the dispensary had operated under city licence since 2006.[2]
City sues, dispensary stays open
The City of Oakland sued Attorney General Eric Holder and Haag that October, arguing the forfeiture threatened the city’s own regulatory framework for medical cannabis dispensaries.[1][2] A court let the dispensary stay open while the city’s appeal proceeded.[1] Harborside, described as the world’s largest pot dispensary, drew public backing from elected officials including Barbara Lee and former San Francisco mayor Willie Brown, as well as councilmember Rebecca Kaplan.[1][3]
Case dropped
On 3 May 2016 the federal government announced it would drop the case, ending a four-year court fight that was part of the wider federal crackdown on California medical marijuana businesses that began in 2011.[1][3] Co-founder Andrew DeAngelo said hundreds of dispensaries nationwide had been brought down by similar actions in 2012 and that Harborside had refused to back down.[1]
