Federal prosecutors looking to take out California's medical marijuana shops have now set their sights on Los Angeles, where city officials have struggled to stop a blooming of dispensaries.
The U.S. attorney's office sued three property owners that house pot collectives and sent warning letters to 68 others as they enforce a federal law that doesn't recognize a California initiative that legalized pot for medicinal use.
The move Tuesday came nearly a year after federal authorities began targeting the state's pot shops. The city's own ban on dispensaries also is being challenged and could be overturned by voters if a referendum is placed on an upcoming ballot.
"As today's operations make clear, the sale and distribution of marijuana violates federal law, and we intend to enforce the law," U.S. Attorney Andre Birotte Jr. said.
