Medical marijuana patients can still grow at home, court rules

By: James Keller The Canadian Press, Published on Mon Dec 15 2014

The Federal Court of Appeal on Monday upheld an injunction that exempted patients from a massive overhaul of the medical marijuana system.

VANCOUVER—The Conservative government has lost its latest attempt to prevent medical marijuana users from growing pot at home, with the Federal Court of Appeal upholding an injunction that exempted patients from a massive overhaul of the system.
 

New rules were introduced earlier this year that prohibited home growing and instead shifted production to commercial operations, but a group of patients is challenging that regime in a case expected to be heard in the new year.

A Federal Court judge issued an injunction in the spring that allowed patients who were authorized to grow and possess marijuana under the old system to continue to do so until their case is resolved.

The government appealed, but the Appeal Court released a unanimous decision Monday upholding the injunction.

“It’s very significant,” Kirk Tousaw, a lawyer for the four plaintiffs in the case, said in an interview.

“The big fear was that if the government’s appeal was successful, then all of these people who have been protected by the injunction could very well turn into criminals overnight.”

The previous medical marijuana regime, which was introduced in 2001, allowed patients to either grow their own pot, designate someone to grow it for them, or purchase it directly from Health Canada.

New regulations took effect this last spring that no longer allowed personal production and instead established a system of federally licensed commercial producers. There are now 15 such operations selling medical cannabis.

The plaintiffs filed a constitutional challenge arguing the updated regulations violate their right to access important medicine, because commercial prices are considerably more expensive under the new system.

 They also complained the commercial market wouldn’t give them as much control over which strains of the drug they use.

The Federal Court trial is set to begin in February.

 The injunction preserves patients’ right to grow their own marijuana at least until a decision is issued.

Two of the plaintiffs also filed a cross appeal, arguing the Federal Court injunction was too narrow and left out some patients because of the dates outlined in the injunction.

The Appeal Court ordered the lower court to reconsider the terms of the injunction to clear things up.

As of last year, nearly 38,000 Canadians had received authorizations under the old system, the vast majority of whom chose to grow their own marijuana rather than buy it from the federal government.

Health Canada says it does not know how many patients continue to grow their own marijuana because of the injunction.

More than 13,000 patients have registered with the new licensed producers, which together sold 1,400 kilograms of dried marijuana between Jan. 1 and Oct. 31. Prices range from as low as $2.50 a gram to as high as $15, though most are between $8 and $10.

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U.S. Won't Stop Native Americans From Growing, Selling Marijuana On Their Lands

Source: Hartford Courant

By TIMOTHY M. PHELPS, Los Angeles Times

 

 

WASHINGTON — Opening the door for what could be a lucrative and controversial new industry on some Native American reservations, the Justice Department on Thursday will tell U.S. attorneys to not prevent tribes from growing or selling marijuana on the sovereign lands, even in states that ban the practice.

The new guidance, released in a memorandum, will be implemented on a case-by-case basis and tribes must still follow federal guidelines, said Timothy Purdon, the U.S. attorney for North Dakota and the chairman of the Attorney General's Subcommittee on Native American Issues.

It remains to be seen how many reservations will take advantage of the policy. Many tribes are opposed to legalizing pot on their lands, and federal officials will continue to enforce the law in those areas, if requested.

Representatives from the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan tribes in Connecticut, which run the Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun resort casinos, respectively, could not immediately be reached for comment.

The policy comes on the heels of the 2013 Justice Department decision to stop most federal marijuana prosecutions in states that have legalized the possession or sale of pot. Colorado, Washington, Oregon, Alaska and the District of Columbia have all moved to legalize the drug, though the D.C. law may be scaled back by Congress.

Some tribes see marijuana sales as a potential source of revenue, similar to cigarette sales and casino gambling, which have brought a financial boon to reservations across the country. Others, including the Yakama Reservation in Washington state, remain strongly opposed to the sale or use of marijuana on their lands.

Purdon said in an interview that the majority of Native American tribes, mindful of the painful legacy of alcohol abuse in their communities, appear to be against allowing marijuana use on their territory.

The federal government will continue to legally support those tribes that wish to ban marijuana, even in states that now permit its sale, Purdon said.

But the Justice Department will generally not attempt to enforce federal marijuana laws on federally recognized tribes that choose to allow it, as long as they meet eight federal guidelines, including that marijuana not be sold to minors and not be transported to areas that prohibit it.

"The tribes have the sovereign right to set the code on their reservations," Purdon said.

John Walsh, the U.S. attorney for Colorado, said a primary purpose of the memorandum to be released Thursday is to assure U.S. attorney offices and tribes that despite the changes in Justice Department policy announced last year, federal prosecutors still have the authority to prosecute marijuana felonies on tribal lands.

In many cases, federal prosecutors are the only ones permitted by law to prosecute marijuana felonies on tribal lands.

Walsh said that the new memorandum, like the one issued for states last year, emphasizes that states or reservations must have "robust and effective regulatory systems in place" and that federal prosecutors reserve the right to take broader enforcement actions.

The policy is likely to be criticized in states opposed to marijuana sales, particularly those with Native American reservations.

Kevin A. Sabet, an opponent of marijuana legalization and former adviser on drug issues to President Obama, called the policy an "extremely troubling development."

"It once again sends a message that we really don't care about federal drug laws," he said.

Sabet, director of the Drug Policy Institute at the University of Florida, said, "Native Americans and their families suffer disproportionately from addiction compared to other groups. The last thing they want is another commercialized industry that targets them for greater use."

Times staff writer Hugo Martin in Los Angeles and Courant staff writer Matthew Sturdevant in Hartford contributed to this report.