cannabisnews.com: Truth In Trials Act, MMJ Protection Bill
function share_this(num) {
 tit=encodeURIComponent('Truth In Trials Act, MMJ Protection Bill');
 url=encodeURIComponent('http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/27/thread27036.shtml');
 site = new Array(5);
 site[0]='http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u='+url+'&title='+tit;
 site[1]='http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit.php?url='+url+'&title='+tit;
 site[2]='http://digg.com/submit?topic=political_opinion&media=video&url='+url+'&title='+tit;
 site[3]='http://reddit.com/submit?url='+url+'&title='+tit;
 site[4]='http://del.icio.us/post?v=4&noui&jump=close&url='+url+'&title='+tit;
 window.open(site[num],'sharer','toolbar=0,status=0,width=620,height=500');
 return false;
}






Truth In Trials Act, MMJ Protection Bill
Posted by CN Staff on July 18, 2012 at 13:10:44 PT
By Nick Wing
Source: Huffington Post
Washington, D.C. -- A bipartisan group of House lawmakers introduced a bill this week designed to create enhanced legal protections for valid medical marijuana patients prosecuted due to conflicting state and federal laws regarding the legality of the substance.Under the Truth In Trials Act, sponsored by California Democratic Rep. Sam Farr and co-sponsored by other representatives such as Barney Frank (D-Mass.) and Ron Paul (R-Texas), state-licensed medical marijuana users would be given the right to provide an "affirmative defense" in the case of a federal prosecution. This effectively allows them to prove that their actions, while illegal at the federal level, were in fact protected under state law.
"Any person facing prosecution or a proceeding for any marijuana-related offense under any federal law shall have the right to introduce evidence demonstrating that the marijuana-related activities for which the person stands accused were performed in compliance with state law regarding the medical use of marijuana, or that the property which is subject to a proceeding was possessed in compliance with state law regarding the medical use of marijuana," the bill reads.The legislation also lays out specific language stating that cannabis plants grown legally under state law may not be seized. Under the legislation, marijuana and other property confiscated in the process of a prosecution must also be maintained -- not destroyed -- and returned to the defendant if they are able to prove it was for a use accepted by the state.The latest version of the Truth In Trials Act comes as federal crackdowns on dispensaries in medical marijuana states continue to surge. Last week, federal officials targeted one of the nation's largest pot shops. The Associated Press reported:U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag has threatened to seize the Oakland property where Harborside Health Center has operated since 2006, as well as its sister shop in San Jose, executive director and co-founder Steve DeAngelo said Wednesday. His employees found court papers announcing asset forfeiture proceedings against Harborside's landlords taped to the doors at the two locations on Tuesday.Read more relevant text from the bill below:(a) Any person facing prosecution or a proceeding for any marijuana-related offense under any Federal law shall have the right to introduce evidence demonstrating that the marijuana-related activities for which the person stands accused were performed in compliance with State law regarding the medical use of marijuana, or that the property which is subject to a proceeding was possessed in compliance with State law regarding the medical use of marijuana. (b) (1) It is an affirmative defense to a prosecution or proceeding under any Federal law for marijuana-related activities, which the proponent must establish by a preponderance of the evidence, that those activities comply with State law regarding the medical use of marijuana.(2) In a prosecution or a proceeding for a marijuana-related offense under any Federal criminal law, should a finder of fact determine, based on State law regarding the medical use of marijuana, that a defendant's marijuana-related activity was performed primarily, but not exclusively, for medical purposes, the defendant may be found guilty of an offense only corresponding to the amount of marijuana determined to be for nonmedical purposes.(c) Any property seized in connection with a prosecution or proceeding to which this section applies, with respect to which a person successfully makes a defense under this section, shall be returned to the owner not later than 10 days after the court finds the defense is valid, minus such material necessarily destroyed for testing purposes.(d) Any marijuana seized under any Federal law shall be retained and not destroyed pending resolution of any forfeiture claim, if not later than 30 days after seizure the owner of the property notifies the Attorney General, or a duly authorized agent of the Attorney General, that a person with an ownership interest in the property is asserting an affirmative defense for the medical use of marijuana.(e) No plant may be seized under any Federal law otherwise permitting such seizure if the plant is being grown or stored pursuant to a recommendation by a physician or an order of a State or municipal agency in accordance with State law regarding the medical use of marijuana.(f) In this section, the term State includes the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and any other territory or possession of the United States.'Source: Huffington Post (NY)Author: Nick WingPublished: July 18, 2012Copyright: 2012 HuffingtonPost.com, LLC Contact: scoop huffingtonpost.comWebsite: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/URL: http://drugsense.org/url/HrioD6c0CannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml 
Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help 
     
     
     
     




Comment #4 posted by ekim on July 19, 2012 at 13:07:13 PT
 MI. radio show about -Truth in Trials Act tonight
http://michiganmedicalmarijuana.org/topic/40600-planet-green-trees-episode-103-the-kiel-opinion/page__pid__397791#entry397791
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #3 posted by Hope on July 19, 2012 at 09:25:38 PT
Pot Smoking Moms
Pot-smoking moms tired of being judged by wine drinkershttp://moms.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/07/16/12752632-pot-smoking-moms-tired-of-being-judged-by-wine-drinkers?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter(Hat tip to Pete at DrugWarRant.)
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #2 posted by FoM on July 19, 2012 at 05:02:31 PT
Morgan Freeman On Marijuana
July 18, 2012Morgan Freeman is a long-time advocate of marijuana legalization, a point he recently reiterated in a wide-ranging interview with Newsweek. Here's what the "Dark Knight Rises" actor had to say on the issue:Marijuana! Heavens, oh yeah. It’s just the stupidest law possible, given history. You don’t stop people from doing what they want to do, so forget about making it unlawful. You’re just making criminals out of people who aren’t engaged in criminal activity. And we’re spending zillions of dollars trying to fight a war we can’t win! We could make zillions, just legalize it and tax it like we do liquor. It’s stupid. URL: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/18/morgan-freeman-marijuana-legalization-weed_n_1683905.html
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #1 posted by Richard Zuckerman on July 18, 2012 at 18:29:32 PT:
We ought to ask Congress for this one!!!
I'll ask my local Congressional representative to support this one!!Too bad no Congress member has introduced a Bill to require a fully informed jury instruction though, www.FIJA.org, as Oregon, Indiana, Georgia, and Maryland, are the only States whom fully inform their juries. 
[ Post Comment ]


Post Comment