Judge Rules Against Tobacco Ban at Walgreen's

You damn well ought to be able to buy your smokes at Walgreen's if you can buy them at Safeway, says Justice William McGuiness of the First Appelate District Court. The court ruled 3-0 yesterday that San Francisco's citywide ban on cigarette sales at drugstores was "flimsy on its face" given that they do not extend the ban to grocery stores that have pharmacies.

The Justices left open for a Superior Court judge to decide whether the city should just extend the ban to places like Safeway and Costco, or if it must be repealed altogether. Score one for the freedom to buy tobacco in the same place you buy your stain-fighting toothpaste and blood pressure meds. [Chron]