City Hall is starting to make its move against the majority of marijuana dispensaries in town that were made illegal when voters passed Measure D, a May ballot initiative that only allows 135 or fewer older pot shops in L.A. to survive.

See also: 1,000 Medical Marijuana Shops to Close in L.A. after Prop. D Wins in a Landslide.

Some counts put the number of cannabis retailers in Los Angeles at more than 1,000, though the City Attorney's office says it's more like 800. For now, the office said today that 38 locations are being prosecuted:

Another 40 shut down voluntarily after being warned that it was time to go, a City Attorney's spokesman said.

The other operators now in the sights of the City Attorney's office can either lock up for good or face penalties of $1,000 or as many as six month in jail under the new law.

In cases where both the operators of the stores and the landowners could be located, both were being targeted with criminal filings from City Hall, according to the City Attorney's office.

The 38 were targeted as a result of community complaints and “nuisance” issues, according to the office.

City Attorney Mike Feuer took office July 1, only a few weeks before the July 20 law took effect.

More than 800 pot shops have received letters warning that they aren't legal under Measure D, the City Attorney's office said.

Some of those dispensaries have banded together to challenge the law in court.

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