Americans for Safe Access File Complaint Against Anti-Marijuana Group

A pro-cannabis group in Southern California has filed complaints against an anti-cannabis group. The San Diego chapter of Americans for Safe Access has turned in a 70 page document to the Fair Political Practices Commission, the District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis Integrity Unit, and the San Diego Ethics Commission that allege numerous violations by Scott Chipman, William Lowe and other Principal members of a group calling themselves “Citizens Against Legalizing Marijuana” The complaints include a failure of the organization to disclose payments for mass campaign literature and also failure to register as lobbyists.

Citizens Against Legalizing Marijuana, or CALM, was founded in 2010 by Chipman and Lowe for the purpose of defeating proposition 19 in California, the initiative that would have legalized marijuana for all adults in the state. Another group that is named in the complaint is Safe Beaches for San Diego, a group that is not only against marijuana decriminalization, but also campaigned and won a measure to ban alcohol from all San Diego Beaches three years ago. Scott Chipman is also involved with the Safe Beaches group. Safe Beaches is now being transformed into “Safe Neighborhoods”, a group dedicated to ban dispensaries of marijuana for medical purposes in the area.

Eugene Davidovich, the chair of the San Diego Chapter of Americans for Safe Access says that Mr. Chipman has a lengthy and significant history in San Diego politics throughout which he has failed to disclose campaign activities and appears to have created an illegal political slush fund. The ASA has brought the complaints regarding illegal use of funds as San Diegans for Safe Neighborhoods and Chipman individually have begun backing the mayoral campaign of Bonnie Dumanis. Chipman has also donated money to other anti-marijuana candidates, according to the group. We will keep you posted on any developments in this interesting case from San Diego.