Voting for Proposition 19 today will not put marijuana at your local convenience store tomorrow

The Oakland Tribune is reporting that hundreds of doctors have turned to specializing in marijuana, making medical marijuana in Los Angeles and throughout California far easier to get than in the other 13 states where it is legal.

Should voters pass Proposition 19, California’s legalization effort, at the polls today, the newspaper contends that could change. Our Los Angeles marijuana defense lawyers are not so sure. With state and federal challenges a virtual certainty, and with the legal marijuana dispensary industry already under attack, we think prescription marijuana is going to be the safest bet for many users, at least in the immediate future.

While the paper contends the state’s 1996, medical marijuana law has become legal cover to smoke cannabis, we would point out that it remains under attack nearly 15 years after its passage. To think Proposition 19 is going to pass today, and that you are then going to be able to buy marijuana at your local neighborhood convenience store anytime soon, is absurd.

California’s medical marijuana law permits prescription for any illness for which marijuana provides relief. In many other states, the medical marijuana law is much more specific and mentions diseases by name, including AIDS and cancer. Of California’s 100,000 licensed doctors, advocates estimate just over 1 percent, or about 1,500, have prescribed marijuana to at least one patient. About 400 to 500 physicians account for the vast majority of recommendations.

The CANNABIS LAW GROUP offers experienced and aggressive representation to the medical marijuana industry in Southern California– including growers, dispensaries and collectives, patients and those facing marijuana charges. Call 949-375-4734 for a confidential consultation to discuss your rights.