A local San Francisco dispensary owner was shot multiple times outside of his store on Monday night and is now in the intensive care unit. His shooter, who rolled up on an e-bike, was killed following a lengthy standoff with a local SWAT team afterwards. His motive for the attack is uncertain at this point.
Martin Olive, founder and owner of the city’s oldest dispensary, will hopefully be returning to his post at the Vapor Room in the near future. He is a well-known figure in the local marijuana scene and is renowned for his cannabis access advocacy.
“He’s one of our early pioneers, he has one of the earliest brick-and-mortar cannabis dispensaries,” a bystander said in an interview with Fox KTVU following the unfortunate occurrence.
One of his close friends, Jason Grace, has organized a GoFundMe to assist with his hopeful recovery process.
“While he’s expected to survive, the road to recovery will be long and challenging,” Grace said.
He is in “bad shape, but not terrible shape,” according to his father Diego Olive.
The San Francisco Police Department will provide further updates in the coming days.
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Olive was fighting to stay open, now he’s fighting for his life
The man was already having a rough go before this horrific incident.
In an interview with SFGATE last month, Olive explained that he was struggling to stay afloat in California’s highly competitive market. He currently owes the state a quarter million in tax debt.
Olive says his difficulties are primarily attributable to California’s high taxes and a lack of business due to local neighbourhood problems. The state’s plan to up its excise tax on weed merchandise by 4 per cent this July may be the “final nail in the coffin,” Olive explained.
“I’ve operated Vapor Room for 25 years and while we’ve weathered some tough storms [and sailed some amazing, beautiful waters], this current storm may well sink us permanently,” he said in a LinkedIn post in November.
“As a legacy activist/operator from the early medical cannabis days, this is a tough pill to swallow,” Olive added. “I’ve been doing my best and well, it just might not be good enough.”
He is not the only Golden State marijuana business to struggle or even throw in the towel recently. Large-scale operators like MedMen, HERBL and StateHouse have kicked the bucket within the past couple of years. Several smaller West Coast operations have given up as well.
Weed companies in California currently owe more than US$1.3 billion in unpaid taxes.
rowan@mugglehead.com
