Chronic City: California Counties Lose Fight Against Medical Marijuana, But Grower Gets 10 Years
Monday, May. 18 2009 @ 12:59PM
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| stopthedrugwar.org |
According to Bruce Mirken of the Medical Marijuana Policy Project (MPP), today's Supreme Court decision removes the last obstacle to medical marijuana ID cards being issued to qualified patients throughout California. Nine counties have refused to issue the state-mandated cards, often citing the San Diego/San Bernardino lawsuit as a reason.
"We expect all nine counties that have delayed issuing cards to start following the law immediately and stop putting patients at needless risk," said MPP California policy director Aaron Smith.
This decision leaves intact the rulings of California's state courts, which held that state medical marijuana laws are entirely valid despite the federal prohibition of marijuana.
San Diego's claim -- that Proposition 215, passed by the
voters in 1996, was preempted by federal anti-marijuana statutes -- had
never even been pushed by the federal government, despite the feds' opposition
to medical marijuana, noted the MPP. San Bernardino County,
which also balked at issuing medical marijuana ID cards, had joined the
litigation.
The preemption claim was rejected
by every court that reviewed the case. After the California Supreme
Court refused to hear San Diego's appeal, the counties went to the U.S.
Supreme Court, which today refused to hear their case.
"It's
time for San Diego and San Bernardino counties to end their war on the
sick and obey the law," the MPP's Smith said. "And taxpayers should
hold to account the irresponsible officials who wasted their tax
dollars on frivolous litigation."
"It is clear
that state medical marijuana laws are fully valid," said Graham Boyd,
director of the American Civil Liberties Union's Drug Law Reform
Project. "Coupled with the Department of Justice's recent
pronouncements that the agency will respect state medical marijuana
laws, the Court's order leaves ample room for states to move forward
with enacting and implementing independent medical marijuana policies."
The ACLU represented California medical marijuana patients in the proceedings.
The
big shifts in medical marijuana policy at the state and federal levels
seem to have come too late for Lake County's Charles "Eddy" Lepp, 56,
who was sentenced today to 10 years in prison for growing more than
25,000 pot plants in plain view. His conviction resulted from a 2004
raid.
U.S. District Court Judge Marilyn Patel
ordered Lepp to turn himself in to federal authorities July 6,
according to U.S. Attorney Dave Hall. Lepp also faces five years of
supervised release following his prison sentence, according to Hall.
Lepp's
attorneys say he should not go to prison because he's in poor health.
Lepp, who says he uses marijuana for both medical and religious
reasons, said he will appeal last year's conviction.
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