Articles Posted in Medical Marijuana in California

Four U.S. Attorneys announced Friday the feds are cracking down on medical marijuana in California — a move that has made national news.

The U.S. Attorneys Office for the Central District of California announced the enforcement actions are being directed at commercial marijuana operations and include criminal drug trafficking enforcement, property forfeiture lawsuits and warning letters to landlords.

Our Orange County dispensary defense lawyers encourage you to get qualified legal help and prepare to stand and fight. Bullying and scare tactics from the feds are just that. As we reported recently on our Marijuana Lawyer Blog, medical marijuana was legal in the United States until a power play by the feds in the 1930s. California was the first state to reassert its rights with the passage of the Compassionate Use Act of 1996. Since then, 15 other states have legalized marijuana for medical purposes.

California’s four U.S. Attorneys announced the crackdown in a joint release on Friday. Already, raids of eight Orange County marijuana stores have been conducted. The feds announced the operate targeted “commercial grow operations, intricate distribution systems and hundreds of marijuana stores across the state.”

Mmm. Yeah. That’s because medical marijuana is LEGAL in California guys. The feds are conducting the crackdown under the authority of the federal Controlled Substances Act, which prohibits the sale and distribution of marijuana.

“It is important to note that for-profit, commercial marijuana operations are illegal not only under federal law, but also under California law,” said United States Attorney André Birotte Jr. “While California law permits collective cultivation of marijuana in limited circumstances, it does not allow commercial distribution through the store-front model we see across California.”

Initial enforcement actions include:

-A criminal indictment that charges six people with marijuana trafficking. The feds allege they generated $15 million in profits in 8 months.

-The filing of civil forfeiture lawsuits against three properties and a related seizure of more than $135,000 from the bank account of one property owner.

-Warning letters sent to the operators and landlords of 38 marijuana stores.

It’s time to stand and fight. Medical marijuana dispensaries need to understand that operating without a law firm on retainer is a poor choice. There are many moves an experienced dispensary defense lawyer can make on your behalf. Protecting bank accounts and non-profit status is just one issue that should be addressed.

Medical marijuana collectives have rights under state law. The government can charge you with whatever it wants. All that matters is what you are convicted of in a court of law. Having experienced legal help on the front end can often save you time and money in the long run and may even prevent charges or government harassment.
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Airport police in Indianapolis seized medical marijuana from a 36-year-old California breast cancer patient, according to the Indianapolis Star.

Our Costa Mesa medical marijuana attorneys are closely following the issue of legal problems that arise when a California medical marijuana patient crosses state lines. Even when crossing from California to Nevada (both states have medical marijuana laws), a patient can find himself in legal trouble. Either because of differences in state laws or because the patient’s medical marijuana card is only good in one state.

Driving under the influence of drugs is another area of the law where a medical marijuana patient may be subjected to unfair arrest or detention.

In this case, the Transportation Security Administration reports that a screener found the marijuana in luggage passed through an x-ray machine at Indianapolis International Airport. Marijuana and a pipe were found inside a pink case. Screeners claim an alarm prompted them to search the bag.

The 36-year-old Van Nuys woman told police she had breast cancer and showed them her medical marijuana card. Authorities told her possession was still illegal in the state of Indiana. While she was not charged, the pipe, case and marijuana were confiscated and authorities indicated they planned to destroy the items.

As we reported recently on our Marijuana Lawyer Blog, law enforcement has apparently run out of real crime because authorities have begun targeting drivers they think are operating under the influence of marijuana.

Make no mistake about it: Whether authorities like it or not, California medical marijuana patients have rights. There is nothing saying they must stop driving. There is nothing saying they should be exposed to harassment from every bored cop in Southern California. Marijuana can remain in a person’s system for up to 30 days — long after its effects have dissipated. Just because someone tests positive for the presence of marijuana does not mean that he or she is driving under the influence of drugs.

The charge is nearly impossible to prove, in other words. And a driver should always consult an experienced Los Angeles criminal defense lawyer.
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Authorities busy cracking down on medical marijuana use by sick patients want you to believe they are just enforcing the law as it’s always been. They don’t want to listen to voters. And they don’t want to abide by the Compassionate Use Act of 1996.

But the truth of the matter is that marijuana was grown on large plantations in the United States until the 1920s. Not until after prohibition, when the nation banned alcohol, did marijuana become illegal. Alcohol was re-legalized a decade later — medical marijuana remained illegal until California became the first state to legalize it shortly before the turn of the century.

Our Southern California medical marijuana attorneys want you to have the truth. And the truth is that marijuana has been used legally by residents of nations the world over for thousands of years. It was illegal for about 50.

Time Magazine reports marijuana was used in China as early as 2737 B.C. for the treatment of a number of ailments, including gout and malaria. There is even some evidence that marijuana was the first crop grown using the founding techniques of modern agriculture. Agriculture, in term, gave birth to modern society.

Not until the end of the 1800s, when as much as 5 percent of the population became unwittingly addicted to morphine used in medicines, did the tide begin to turn. In 1906, the Pure Food and Drug Act was created. The act brought the distribution of opium and morphine under the control of doctors — it was this regulation of chemical substances that was a major shift in U.S. drug policy.

In 1914, drug use was defined as a crime under the Harrison Act. To bypass the rights of states, the feds used a tax of non-medicinal use of drugs and punished those who used drugs without paying the tax. By 1937, 23 states had outlawed marijuana and the federal government passed the Marihuana Tax Act. Even if they couldn’t spell, the act made nonmedical use of marijuana illegal.

In World War II, the government grew huge hemp crops to supply the Navy with rope. Not until the 1950s, when Congress passed the Boggs Act and the Narcotics Control Act, were criminal penalties for marijuana defined.

Less than 50 years later, California became the first state to take back its rights — legalizing marijuana use for medical purposes. Since then, 16 states have legalized medical marijuana: Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Washington.
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A Las Vegas judge is the latest to dismiss criminal charges involving medical marijuana, the Review-Journal reported.

Our Los Angeles medical marijuana defense attorneys continue to monitor the issue. As we reported recently on our Marijuana Lawyer Blog, the court here has sided with patients and collectives when it comes to criminal charges — despite the fact that the California Assembly and local legislatures have passed measures permitting criminal charges in connection with medical marijuana, which has been legal under state law for 15 years.

The judge found in this case that the prosecutor was selective about the evidence shown to the grand jury. This is incredibly dangerous, and unfortunately happens with alarming regularity. Grand juries are made up of citizens from the community. The standard of proof is fairly low in order to get criminal charges. And many believe the juries are predisposed to side with the prosecutors. Nor is there typically any defense evidence presented. Despite the incredible home field advantage, too many prosecutors can’t resist further stacking the deck. The fact that people are wrongly charged should come as no real surprise.

The judge ruled the grand jury should have been shown paperwork filled out by the undercover officers, which indicated the marijuana was not for sale and that a co-op donation was not necessary to obtain the herb under the state’s medical marijuana law.

In Nevada, law enforcement has virtually shut down the industry by claiming co-ops were accepting compensation in the form of donations, which violates state law. Like so many other states, law enforcement in Nevada is having a difficult time understanding they no longer run the show when it comes to marijuana laws — the people have spoken. The VOTERS have spoken. Like medical marijuana in Los Angeles, it will be those who stand and fight for their legal rights who have the best chance of standing in victory at the end.

The defendant in this case was one of 13 defendants. He argued Nevada law is nonsensical because it permits patients to possess marijuana but makes it illegal to obtain it! They were indicted on 11 counts of sale of a controlled substance for providing medical marijuana to a Las Vegas police officer who had a medical marijuana card.

Lawmakers there have made such a mess of things that even the judge is confused.

“Well why don’t they (the Legislature) make up their mind if they want to make it legal or not,” the judge said. “I’m looking at it thinking I can’t make any sense out of this law.”

In Nevada, one law makes it legal for a medical marijuana patient (cardholder) to produce, deliver or possess marijuana. However, other state and federal laws make it illegal to buy or sell marijuana. Again, elected politicians are thwarting the will of the voters.

The judge dismissed the charges without prejudice — meaning the state could choose to recharge. The defendants could also face charges under federal law.
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