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On Mar. 19, Attorney General Eric Holder announced for the second time that federal agents would only target medical-marijuana distributors that violate state and federal law.
 Four days later, Federal Judge George Wu postponed sentencing for dispensary owner Charles Lynch (at left). Wu asked for more time in order to elicit a memorandum from the Justice Department regarding its “new policy” with respect to these facilities.
The U.S. Attorney heading the Lynch case told the court that the U.S. Attorney’s office has not changed its policy due to Holder’s statements.
On Mar. 25, the U.S. Attorney’s statements echoed loudly in San Francisco, where the DEA raided Emmalyn's California Cannabis Clinic, claiming they suspected that the dispensary was violating state law.
Unfortunately, Holder’s statements are too tentative to create the change he wants in federal prosecutions. The U.S. Attorney’s office must simply stop prosecuting medical-marijuana cases in California.
Furthermore, when the U.S. Attorney’s office does investigate cultivation or distribution of marijuana in the 13 states that have permitted its use for medical purposes, the government must give defendants an opportunity to speak without risking the lives of their exculpatory witnesses. For example, if the U.S. Attorney suspects that marijuana is being grown or distributed in violation of state law, the Office must allow defendants to provide witnesses who could support their contention, without subjecting these witnesses to prosecution and dozens of years in federal prison.
The U.S. Attorney’s office is the only entity that can really effect the change Holder is talking about.
Clearly, getting out of the medical-marijuana business is contrary to the DEA’s bureaucratic interests. Until the Attorney General and Obama administration send a directive to the DEA to not enforce the Schedule I status of marijuana in medical-marijuana states, the U. S. Attorney and DEA will continue to investigate and raid clubs they believe are “violating the state law.”
California law regarding collectives is so vague that any dispensary can be “suspected” of violating the law. At the same time, due to the grayness of the law, these same dispensaries are also easily defendable under California law.
As long as the smell of marijuana is probable cause for the Feds, they will thwart the social experiment that constitutes statewide medical-marijuana legalization.
While Judge Wu’s continuance is a good sign for defendants already in the system, one judge’s contemplation of the Justice Department’s change in policy will not immunize those yet to be prosecuted. And even if Wu sentences Lynch to no time, doing so will not mean much for defendants in other courts or for those to come.
California law enforcement and district attorneys must stop passing cases they cannot prosecute to the Feds in order to justify their anti-drug agendas. Obama can take the DEA and the U.S. Attorney's office out of medical marijuana by ending federal pot prosecutions in medical states. If cultivators and distributors are violating state law, the states can deal with them.
Without this change, everyone in the medical-marijuana universe is at risk. This change is necessary and urgent.
Allison Margolin is a criminal-defense attorney and Adjunct Professor of Law at West L.A Law School
Also see:
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Aw so passe' we. So dwarfed by The Boxer Day Tsunami and the exploitation there.
Then, having touched a raw nerve with "National" ORML, I am slammed and condescended to. Truth Hurt?
When a young actor at Arena Stage I used to hang out in The Senate where I learned to despise those greasy lobbiests. These political scum were on a first name basis with Senators and Lyndon, their success came not from oratory or reasoning but from (not really, wink wink) bribes. Why the species is allowed to continue to exist is so against the ideal of democracy.
In the sixties I was a fly on the wall of a sinister meeting of disdained politico's putting up rubin as a way to harness that wasted stoner energy. yippie!
so i cast a jaded eye on any politico group that funds itself in that manner.
New Orleans was pretty much Amsterdam a century ago, or even more like Kaboul under Zahir Shah, rest his soul. And where Hearst began his campaign to ban cannabis. from a long term view, don't look like much progress here. It is where the stripping of our constitutional right to ingest what we wish, if it does no harm. no, just the opposite.
I don't remember anyone passing out buds to those of us in the rubble after Katrina. Don't tell me, too idealistic.
That said, there is something to be said about NORML's staff working for salaries that range in the mid-five figures and not six. I can't speak for anyone else, but I am currently making 1/3rd the salary in drug law reform as I have made in information technology. I do that because I like this job and NORML's drug test better.
And, as Allen notes, our financial records are open, feel free to take a peek. But if you think anyone's in this to enrich themselves, you're way off base. We're working for NORML because we believe in the same things you believe.
As for Obama... hey, I feel your pain. I campaigned for the man, donated money, and even keynoted at a fundraiser. I don't think we'd be getting better results from a President McCain at this time, though.
Russ Belville
NORML National Outreach Coordinator
Portland, OR
You're invited to reply with detailed examples of what if anything you have ever done in your life to reform cannabis laws/help the victims of prohibition...
Oh, apparently if a 60-70 hour a week professional lobbyist is paid more than expenses you think they're scum or something?
Where do you live? Utopia?
Gee whiz...do you think my friend Steve Bloom is researching, writing and publishing CelebStoner for no money? Do you have a problem with Steve making money from his 'advocacy' too, or are you just saving your misdirected lament at NORML?
How about the good, hard working folks that work at DPA? MPP? SSDP? ACLU? MAPS? Erowid? Mapinc?
In your view, do Steve and these other non-profit organizations also suck and deserve the back of your hand?
The pudding you request is rather easy to point to:
13 states with decriminalized cannabis laws (115 million citizens live in a decrim state because of NORML's efforts since 1970);
13 states have medical marijuana laws/patient protections (75 million citizens positively affected by NORML's numerous constitutional and scheduling challenges to the DEA);
NORML convenes the only public conferences in the US for cannabis law reform, legal seminars that train criminal defense lawyers on how to best defend many of the 872,000 annual cannabis arrests and NORML's 140 chapters convene the largest and most important public 'protestivals' in the US.
NORML maintains one of the largest open archives in the world on all things cannabis, the most popular cannabis-centric webpages on the Internet, the most popular daily cannabis centric podcast, broadcasts TV and radio PSAs in favor of reform and has over 540,000 supporters in Facebook and 65,000 on MySpace.
NORML, unlike most 'reform' groups, has a 'retail' relationship with cannabis consumers, provides free drug testing assistance to thousands annually, provide free legal consultations and referrals to over 550 NORML lawyers, NORML receives and replies to over 800 emails a day from activists, victims of prohibition and the media.
NORML does, on average, over 2,000 media interviews a year.
In short, NORML educates, lobbies and litigates to reform cannabis laws.
>Has your success been in Europe?
Europe? Call me ethnocentric, but as an American, living during cannabis prohibition here in this country, why would NORML's advocacy efforts be directed at Europe (which, has in fact largely decriminalized cannabis; cannabis laws/penalties in the EU countries pale compared to say the ones in AL, UT, ID, GA, IN, etc...)?
Self-evidently, NORML works in AMERICA for reform, not Europe.
There are only about 10,000 pages worth of 'pudding' that you can peruse at www.norml.org that clearly indicate why NORML is a longstanding, committed, real grassroots advocacy non-profit that exists to 1) serve the cannabis community and 2) end cannabis prohibition with alternative policies.
-Allen St. Pierre
NORML
Washington, D.C.
www.norml.org
if you guys are doing it for a living, then not.
i just don't see the pudding.
You must be very ignorant of both US and cannabis history if you believe NORML 'never got dick accomplished thru the years except earn good money for the NORML staffers.'
You must be confusing NORML's grassroots supported and accountable organization with other mj law reform groups who pay six digit salaries for staff, lawyers and consultants.
In fact, NORML's financial records are posted online for the public to peruse.
-Allen St. Pierre
NORML
Washington, D.C.
His choice of Biden for VP should have raised flags on his marijuana stance. Holder has his anti pot history. So now it is clear that The Obamanation Mocks us as the Coke Heads used to do.
Ha Ha Medical Marijuana. I'm baracking my promises. got ya! I think we just elected Big Brother.
Anybody up to putting together the signatures to eject him from the pilot seat? You can bet it won't be NORML, the never got dick accomplished thru the years except earn good money for the NORML staffers.
The fucking Constitution guarentees us the right to ingest whatever the fuck we want. Hasn't been changed. to say nothing of the Bill of Rights speaking of our right to the pursuit of happiness.
Best line in a movie ever. American tugboat captain helping the brits hears that the USA has entered the war. The hero throws away the beautiful line. On what side?, he asks.