cannabisnews.com: Federal Appeals Court OKs Medical Marijuana 





Federal Appeals Court OKs Medical Marijuana 
Posted by CN Staff on December 16, 2003 at 16:49:30 PT
By David Kravets, The Associated Press 
Source: Associated Press 
San Francisco -- A federal appeals court ruled today that a law outlawing marijuana may not apply to sick people with a doctor's recommendation in states that have approved medical marijuana laws.The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, ruling 2-1 in a rare late-afternoon filing, said prosecuting these medical marijuana users under a 1970 federal law is unconstitutional if the marijuana isn't sold, transported across state lines or used for non-medicinal purposes.
``The intrastate, noncommercial cultivation, possession and use of marijuana for personal medical purposes on the advice of a physician is, in fact, different in kind from drug trafficking,'' Judge Harry Pregerson wrote for the majority.The court added that ``this limited use is clearly distinct from the broader illicit drug market, as well as any broader commercial market for medical marijuana, insofar as the medical marijuana at issue in this case is not intended for, nor does it enter, the stream of commerce.''The decision was a blow to the Justice Department, which argued that medical marijuana laws in nine states were trumped by the Controlled Substances Act, which outlawed marijuana, heroin and a host of other drugs nationwide.The case concerned two seriously ill California women who sued Attorney General John Ashcroft. They asked for a court order letting them smoke, grow or obtain marijuana without fear of federal prosecution.The case underscores the conflict between federal law and California's 1996 medical marijuana law, which allows people to grow, smoke or obtain marijuana for medical needs with a doctor's recommendation.A U.S. District judge tossed the case in March, saying the Controlled Substances Act barred him from blocking any potential enforcement action against medical marijuana patients Angel Raich and Diane Monson. Today's ruling sends the case back to the district judge.Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Nevada, Oregon and Washington state have laws similar to California, which has been the focus of federal drug interdiction efforts. Agents have raided and shut down several medical marijuana growing clubs.The appeals court, the nation's largest, does not have jurisdiction over Colorado and Maine.The case is Raich v. Ashcroft, 03-15481. David Kravets has been covering state and federal courts for a decade.Complete Title: Federal Appeals Court OKs Medical Marijuana in Some Cases  Source: Associated Press Author: David Kravets, The Associated Press Published:  December 16, 2003 Copyright: 2003 Associated Press Related Articles & Web Site:Medical Marijuana Information Linkshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/medical.htmSupreme Court Clears Way for Medical Pot http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread17564.shtmlJustices Reject Govt. Medical Marijuana Appealhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread17560.shtmlJudge Says Woman Not Immune from Prosecutionhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15688.shtml
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Comment #18 posted by sukoi on December 17, 2003 at 15:18:18 PT
Max
Clairvoyant? Well I don't know about that but it sure is a coincidence that I bring up this issue right before this decision, as well as Jesse V. calling the feds LIARS (which they obviously are). Maybe those 9th circuit judges read CNews and watch Jesses' show. I seriously doubt it, but you never know!
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Comment #17 posted by WolfgangWylde on December 17, 2003 at 13:57:03 PT
The Commerce Clause...
...is the Supreme Court's baby. They're not going to let it be attacked in this way. You can bank on this ruling being overturned.
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Comment #16 posted by VitaminT on December 16, 2003 at 22:51:25 PT
for the record
The Supreme Court will either let it stand or expand it!
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Comment #15 posted by Max Flowers on December 16, 2003 at 21:35:33 PT
Commonsense
I would submit to you that this issue in actual fact is not as controversial as many might think, in that if the point of law that I believe is the primary one here (that according to the US Constitution, the federal government has no real jurisdiction whatsoever in intRAstate matters) is at the core, I don't see how any supreme court justice with his/her faculties still intact could rule the other way on it.Maybe I'm just an incurable optimist...
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Comment #14 posted by FoM on December 16, 2003 at 19:42:08 PT
Commonsense
Here's the ruling. I uploaded it because the url was very long.http://www.freedomtoexhale.com/ruling.pdf
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Comment #13 posted by Commonsense on December 16, 2003 at 19:32:56 PT
Max
Max:I've not read the opinion so I can't get specific on the legal arguments, but basically all that needs to happen is that the majority of justices on the Supreme Court side with the dissenting judge in the 9th Circuit ruling or find other reasoning to overturn the 9th Circuit's decision. The case will be appealed to the Supreme Court, that's a given. The Supremes probably won't agree with the majority on the 9th Circuit. They rarely do on controversial issues. 
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Comment #12 posted by Virgil on December 16, 2003 at 17:54:40 PT
How could it be better or bigger news?
It really cannot. It is a 2 to 1 ruling and that proves there is doubt about the ruling. This is just the beginning of this story. But this does immediately take away the DEA's power to restrict research. There should be immediate attention to starting as many studies as possible so that decades of blocked research can yield the secrets of the cannabinoids. We can take comfort that no other Court of Appeals has concluded a different opinion. Think of this. Robin Prossere could now be absolutely legal in this country and may well move in order to live.I am already wondering on the splitting of the hairs. Will someone given recommendation and recognition under California or other states' laws, be able to carry MJ to another state. Not likely.Will people be able to visit other states, see a doctor, and find out once and for all if cannabis helps them with their condition. Kind of makes you think so.It may affect where people retire and where they seek treatments. It is of unbelievably huge importance. What happened in Canada with the recognition of absence of cannabis laws was a huge international story. I would say because the USG is Warmonger to the world on anything cannabis that this story, has to be the story of the year on the international level.I await Dr. Russo's comments. I would be interested in what this does to the classification of cannabis as a schedule 1 Narcotic. The boo!!! is gone forever. The USG policy will now and forever be regarded as mythology. It never was true, but now we will openly acknowledge that it was not true. Research and reality are upon us. Oh, happy day. I wonder who cried because of this thread at Cnews.
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Comment #11 posted by Gary Storck on December 16, 2003 at 17:50:50 PT
Thank you Ninth Circuit!!
It's not going to be good election year politics to appeal this to the Supremes, but Bush, Ashcroft, et al will have to.That appeal will not look good to the over 80% of Americans who support mmj.
Is My Medicine Legal YET?
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Comment #10 posted by FoM on December 16, 2003 at 17:33:19 PT
Why It's a Victory
I'm not really sure but I'm happy since the news has been so bad. A victory is a victory! It's one more step in the right direction. 
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Comment #9 posted by Sam Adams on December 16, 2003 at 17:27:22 PT
Score one
This is definitely good - at least someone in the US government still has some integrity and has not succumbed to the Big Lie. Even if it gets overturned, it will at least draw attention to this issue.  The interstate component has always seemed so unbelievably simple. It will be hard for the pols and judges to argue against it.Does this mean people like Todd McMormick and Bryan Epis can file an appeal for release? Or is that too optimistic?
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Comment #8 posted by The GCW on December 16, 2003 at 17:22:59 PT
This is an Interesting development.
Here is another court ruling. (coming soon to MAP)US: Court supports police in drug arrests http://www.thedailycamera.com/bdc/nation_world_news/article/0,1713,BDC_2420_2508846,00.htmlPubdate: December 16, 2003 
Source: Daily Camera (CO)If drugs found in car, all occupants can be arrested By Gina Holland, Associated Press
December 16, 2003 WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court issued a traffic warning Monday: Beware of whom you ride with. If drugs are found in a vehicle, all occupants can be arrested, the justices said in a unanimous decision. It was a victory for Maryland and 20 other states that argued police frequently find drugs in traffic stops but no one in the vehicle claims them. The court gave officers the go-ahead to arrest everyone. In a small space like a car, an officer could reasonably infer "a common enterprise" among a driver and passengers, the justices ruled. The case stemmed from an incident in 1999, when police in the Baltimore suburbs pulled over a speeding car. A search revealed a roll of cash in the glove compartment and cocaine in an armrest in the back seat. The driver and the two passengers denied having anything to do with the contraband, so all three men were arrested. Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, writing for the court, said police had probable cause to suspect that the drugs belonged to any of the three, or all of them. Lisa Kemler, a criminal defense attorney from Alexandria, Va., said the court seems to be saying: "know who your company is." "How many times have you gotten a ride with a friend? Are you going to peer around in their glove compartment?" asked Kemler, who fears the ruling will lead to a police dragnet. "You could find probable cause to arrest everybody." Michael Rushford, president of the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation, a pro-law enforcement group, said police can't be expected to sort out ownership of drugs or guns in the middle of a traffic stop. "You certainly wouldn't let three people with Uzis in their car leave because no one would admit the uzis were theirs," he said. Maryland's highest court had thrown out the conviction of a passenger in the car, Joseph Jermaine Pringle, on grounds that his arrest violated the Constitution's Fourth Amendment ban on unreasonable searches or seizures. The Supreme Court reversed that decision. "Pringle's attempt to characterize this case as a guilt-by-association case is unavailing," Rehnquist wrote in the brief decision. Pringle told police later that the drugs were his and that he had planned to swap them for sex or money at a party. His 10-year prison sentence will be reinstated. The American Civil Liberties Union and National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers filed a brief supporting Pringle. Their attorney said the ruling will sweep innocent passengers into criminal cases. "There's nothing in this opinion to prevent a police officer from arresting a graduate student who is offered a ride home late at night from a party that she has attended with some fellow students," said Tracey Maclin, a Boston University law professor. The court's rationale could be used in other police search cases, involving homes, Maclin said. The ruling dealt with the discovery of drugs and cash, but it could apply to other contraband as well. Supporting Maryland in the case were the Bush administration, along with Alabama, Alaska, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia and Puerto Rico. The case is Maryland v. Pringle, 02-809. -
420And again I want to mntion in case someone is just now joining Us:& haven't heard: Democratic Presidential nominee, Dennis Kucinich, put in writing that as PRESIDENT He WILL: 
"DECRIMINALIZE MARIJUANA" -"in favor of a drug policy that sets reasonable boundaries for marijuana use by establishing guidelines similar to those already in place for alcohol." (POSTED ON His website!)http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread17917.shtml http://www.kucinich.us/issues/marijuana_decrim.php Kucinich ends cannabis prohibition!
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Comment #7 posted by Max Flowers on December 16, 2003 at 17:21:37 PT
Commonsense
On what basis could they overturn it? Describe the scenario please.
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Comment #6 posted by Commonsense on December 16, 2003 at 17:13:44 PT
This will never fly.
This is going play off like just another far left bit of judicial activism from the rogue 9th Circuit.  It will be overturned by the Supreme Court. I hate to be a pessimist, but the 9th doesn't exactly have a good track record when it comes to having their decisions reviewed by the higher court.
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Comment #5 posted by Max Flowers on December 16, 2003 at 17:13:03 PT
Sukoi the clairvoyant?
Sukoi, here it is, a blessed answer to the very question you were asking just 48 hours ago, which I answered so cynically! I have been so beat down by this thing I didn't think something this positive could happen, at least not this soon... but indeed here, FINALLY, is a high court recognizing that the 1970 Controlled Substances Act has been applied wrongly all this time on the medical cannabis issue and FINALLY, telling the heartless bastards at the Justice Department to get out of states' affairs and stop tormenting sick people.
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Comment #4 posted by E_Johnson on December 16, 2003 at 17:10:28 PT
Merry Criscomas, Mr. Ashcroft
What will he smear on his head to get rid of the pain from this decision??
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Comment #3 posted by Virgil on December 16, 2003 at 17:01:58 PT
It is all but unbelievable.
The courts have finally ruled on the federal belief that the Commerce Clause gave them right to enforce their total CP in every state. This is absolutely huge and opens the door to prohibition itself much less the MMJ issues. It has tremendous implications right away to the research that can now be done on those that are using cannabis as a natural remedy.This will be a big test of the media. They will still suck at reporting on the excesses and corruption of government. The question is, will they play secret, when it is too big to be secret. There will be thousands of individual celebrations by patients that now know they might survive because of this ruling. Even more importantly many will now know they will at least live in peace.It is absolutely huge and now the floodgate to state laws will see 80% of the people demand sensible laws. Now if they say there is no research, each datum can step foward and say, "I will give testimony." Freedom and reason have won. The stonewall will now be flooded if they do not open the gates.
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Comment #2 posted by Max Flowers on December 16, 2003 at 16:59:51 PT
Finally, genuine rule of law prevails
There might be hope for this place yet. I had to read the article five times to make sure it was saying what I thought it was saying!It hasn't sunk in yet, I know it's going to later tonight though!Happy holidays all!!  Thanks 9th, you just made my day and maybe my whole next year!MF
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Comment #1 posted by FoM on December 16, 2003 at 16:52:28 PT
A Christmas Victory
I think of this ruling as a gift!
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