Indopedia All Things Marijuana
SAN FRANCISCO — A California county auditor is accusing a sheriff of improperly spending some of the $1 million his department received in fees from legal pot growers to go after illegal operators.
It’s the latest skirmish over pot in a rural county confronting a massive influx of marijuana growers in the run up to Jan. 1 when recreational cannabis sales becomes legal in California.
Calaveras County sheriff Rick DiBasilio denies the auditor’s charge that he can only use the money for background checks and other permit-related activity. He says busting illegal pot operations is necessary to regulate marijuana in the county, and is working with county officials on resolving the issue. The sheriff declined further comment.
California counties and cities have been wrangling with whether to allow recreational pot operations within their borders since voters passed Proposition 64 in November. Some have already enacted outright bans while others embrace marijuana as a financial…
