In 1996, California voters passed Proposition 215, which allowed the use, transportation and cultivation of marijuana for medical purposes for patients and care givers [medical marijuana]. This is commonly known as the Compassionate Use Act. In 2003 Senate Bill 420 was passed to expand and to shed light on the Compassionate Use Act. It has been codified in the California Health and Safety Code Sections 11362.7 et. al. It specifically states that medical marijuana patients may have in their possession up to 8 ounces of dried usable marijuana and up to 6 mature or 12 immature or juvenile plants. Moreover, if the treating physician feels that the patient requires additional dozes of medicine, over and above the 8 ounces allowed, it is now legal for the treating physician to prescribe more. Although SB 420 is a great step forward in making the use of marijuana legal for medical purposes, it still leaves many areas vague and open to interpretation by the police and by the court system. Many patients are still getting arrested for possession, possession for sale, transportation, and for cultivation even after presenting copies of their medical marijuana prescriptions to the police.

Recently, the City of Los Angeles has passed an ordinance that shut down hundreds of medical marijuana dispensaries and imposed very strict rules on the others.  The ordinance was welcomed by some and shunned by others.  Many of the restrictions are so severe as to make life for the existing dispensaries very difficult.  One of the restrictions is that the dispensaries must grow their own marijuana on the premises of the dispensary.