My coursework and my passions have collided again. From my Criminal Justice textbook regarding Appellate Court Decisions - In May 2001, the U.S. Supreme Court held unanimously that federal drug laws permit no exceptions for medical marijuana use. The justices rejected the argument that marijuana use for medicinal purposes should be permitted under a “medical benefits” exception to the Federal Controlled Substances Act, finding no conclusive evidence of such benefits. The Court did not directly address the legal viability of Proposition 215, but the Court’s decision provides the legal go-ahead to California and federal authorities seeking to shut down marijuana clubs that provide marijuana for medical use by patients (Chiang, 2001). Despite this decision, related legal issues remain, such as whether patients can claim a “necessity” defense if facing prosecution for medicinal use of marijuana. Thus, it is likely that these issues will be part of the appellate docket, whether at the state or federal court level, in the future. -- One case comes to mind - Idaho vs. Hastings --- Lynn Hastings was convicted on growing marijuana for her arthritis in Coeur dAlene, Idaho. She appealed to the State Supreme Court, in which the 5 justices ruled unanimously that she had ground for a necessity defense and overturned her conviction. Instead of pursuing the charges again, the prosecuting attorney dropped them. This was in 1990 and set case precedence for ALL Idahoans who use marijuana as medicine. You can read the article here - news.google/newspapers?nid=1314&dat=19901128&id=qmtXAAAAIBAJ&sjid=lPADAAAAIBAJ&pg=6667,6851962
Posted on: Sun, 20 Apr 2014 07:20:16 +0000
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