A key argument in the battle over medical marijuana dispensaries has been that they’re illegal under federal law and that cities should ban them. At least that’s the argument by Whittier Council members Cathy Warner and Joe Vinatieri. That argument is going to get tested in a U.S. federal appellate court at 1 p.m. today in the US. Fourth Appellate District Court in Santa Ana.

The court will hold a hearing in the case of Qualified Patients Association v. City of Anaheim. Anaheim placed a ban on such dispensaries in July 2007. Qualified Patients Associate sued short after the ban. In September 2007, Orange County Superior Court ruled in favor of Anaheim. The case was then appealed.

The Anaheim case is the first lawsuit of its kind to reach the appellate courts in California, and stands to shape the issue of access to medical marijuana for the state,” said Kris Hermes, media liaison for Americans for Safe Access, a group that supports safe and legal access to marijuana for therapeutic use and research.

This case could have an enormous effect on many cities including some in the Whittier. More 40 localities have adopted ordinances regulating medical marijuana dispensaries, but at least 120 localities (La Mirada and Santa Fe Springs) have banned them.