Since 2007, Tulare County has enforced a medical marijuana ordinance, amending it over the years to make it more strict. Now, though, supervisors have decided to instead prohibit all medical marijuana -- however it's grown or distributed.
"Right now they're allowed to grow inside of a building, inside of certain types of zones, they're limited to the number of plants, there has to be a roof, there has to be a lock, there has to be security. So far, we've seen nobody comply with those regulations," said Tulare County Supervisors Chairman Phil Cox.
Cox says illegal pot grows are taking over. With more than 600 discovered last year and 800 the year before, sheriff's deputies and code enforcement don't even have the resources to get to them all.
"Fresno did a complete ban. We've seen an influx of people from Fresno coming in and renting parcels of land here in Tulare County and putting up their marijuana grows. They're all illegal," said Cox.
Some people who are against the complete ban showed up to the supervisors' meeting, hoping they would vote a different way. Sandra Lambert says she grows marijuana to make a cream and oil that allows her to live a normal life. She's upset that criminals are the reason behind the medical marijuana ban.
"They are a problem, I realize this, but people like me we fall through the cracks," said Lambert.
Suffering from Crohn's disease, several shattered discs in her back and other health issues, Lambert says the morphine doctors were giving her was slowly killing her and left her in a wheelchair.
The Planning Commission will take up the amended ordinance next, and after a series of public hearings if the medical marijuana ban is approved it could go into effect by the end of this year.