Brother of marijuana activist placed on supervised release

The brother of former marijuana activist Pierre Werner was placed on three years of supervised release Monday for his participation in a family-run marijuana dispensary.

U.S. District Judge Philip Pro also sentenced Clyde Barnett, 22, to 120 hours of community service and ordered him to stay away from businesses that sell medical marijuana.

Barnett, 22, apologized at his sentencing to Pro, who called his involvement in a dispensary once known as Dr. Reefer an "unfortunate mistake."

Defense lawyer James Oronoz told Pro that Barnett has his life back on track. He recently graduated from the College of Southern Nevada and is attending UNLV, while also working, Oronoz said.

"He's a young man with a bright future, and this experience has certainly been traumatic for him," Oronoz added.

Barnett, Werner and their mother, Reynalda Barnett, each pleaded guilty June 30 to one count of conspiracy to distribute less than 50 kilograms of marijuana.

Werner, a 39-year-old felon, also pleaded guilty to one count of failure to disclose information affecting Social Security benefits.

Werner is to be sentenced in Nov. 21, and Reynalda Barnett, 60, will go before Pro on Nov. 17.

The three family members were among 14 people arrested Jan. 6 in a federal investigation into marijuana sales at local dispensaries.

The arrests followed the September 2010 raids of several dispensaries, including Dr. Reefer, once operated by the Barnetts at 8975 S. Pecos Road.

Clark County suspended Dr. Reefer's business license last November.

Storefront marijuana dispensaries are not recognized under Nevada's Medical Marijuana Act, the U.S. attorney's office has said, and it is illegal to sell medical marijuana in Nevada.

Medical marijuana patients and caregivers in the state must grow their own.

Werner has served two stints in prison for possession of marijuana with intent to sell.

After he finished his second sentence in 2008, he launched a medical marijuana dispensary in Colorado, where it is legal to sell the drug to patients with chronic ailments.

But after Colorado passed a law forbidding felons from owning a dispensary, Werner returned to Las Vegas, where his involvement with marijuana has made headlines since 2004.

Werner testified about medical marijuana in March 2009 during a legislative hearing in Carson City.

"It is ridiculous to expect people on chemotherapy to grow their own medicine," he said at the hearing.

"We need a system where they can buy it."