19 Aug Judge: Feds Can’t Prosecute those Following State Cannabis Laws

In a very meaningful new case, as discussed in more detail on our law firm’s health care blog at http://bit.ly/2b4m508, a federal appeals judge said the US Government cannot use federal money to prosecute those who are complying with state cannabis laws, even if it violates federal law to do so. Why is this? Because in September 2015 Congress passed a law (actually a little rider to an appropriations bill), which prohibits federal funds from being used to stop states from implementing state laws that “authorize the use, distribution, possession or cultivation of medical marijuana.” It wasn’t totally clear in the law, but the judge said that extends to preventing the use of US federal money to criminally prosecute those complying with state cannabis laws.

So if this becomes the real law of the land, it would, unless the law were changed, formally codify the Obama Administration’s position in the so-called Cole Memorandum making clear prosecutions would not be a priority for those complying with state cannabis laws, but in an even stronger way. One appeals judge, however, does not law of the land make. One can imagine another, possibly more conservative judge, ruling differently.  But the 9th Circuit, which issued the opinion, covers huge chunks of the West Coast including California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington and others, and for now the case is law in those areas.

Add this to the news that the DEA now is set to majorly expand the opportunity for more universities to grow marijuana for medical research and you get a pretty good month for this rapidly growing industry.