The landscape in the Arizona medical cannabis industry is rapidly changing, and after four and a half years the legal system in our great state is beginning to catch up to the Arizona Medical Marijuana Act. Brave citizens that have been charged with felonies have made the tough decision to take their cases to trial rather than try to plea bargain for a lesser sentence and the avoidance of a felony record.
One such Defendant is Jeremy Matlock whose case has been big news in Arizona. He was charged with sales of a controlled substance after he sold several cannabis plants to an undercover police officer who had presented him with an Arizona Medical Marijuana card. Matlock took his case to trial in Pima County and was found not guilty by Judge Richard Fields. This decision appeared to make clear the legal issues surrounding patient-to-patient sales of their medical cannabis products. It appeared that these transfers were legitimate, but not so fast in the conservative political environment of Arizona.
The prosecutors appealed this verdict to the State Supreme Court and in a decision released last week the case was overturned 3-0. This is a huge blow to the 60,000 plus MMJ patients in Arizona, and I am sure Matlock is reeling as well as he will face another trial during which he will be prohibited from using an affirmative defense. That is he will not be allowed to use the defense that his actions were covered under the AMMA. Needless to say it does not look good for Matlock.
All hope is not lost, the argument made by Matlock and his public defender may not have included all of the relevant issues. Amateur legal scholar Billy Hayes Jr. plans to raise the neglected issues in a Maricopa County courtroom sometime in the future for the charges he faces resulting from his role in the operation of a private vape lounge in Phoenix.
The science surrounding cannabis therapeutics continues to thrive. Cannabis is non-toxic, no one has ever died from cannabis use. The only harms cannabis causes to society and its users are due to its prohibition. Because cannabis is illegal there exists a black market, and similar to the prohibition of alcohol in the 1920s this creates a market opportunity filled by organized crime. We learned then and we are learning now that prohibition does not work.
This article appears in Jun 4-10, 2015.
I would like to take exception to the article,
1- the supreme court never heard the case it was reversed by the appellate court. It can go to a higher court.
2-the appellate court stated that it cannot be sold patient to patient it can be given without reimbursement. So If I hire Juan to fix the hinge on my door for say $120.00 and he out of the kindness of his heart calls his cousin to help with his pain and give me Marijuana for it.
(duh buy here pay there just how freaking convoluted is this going to get really)
3-We hear about the medical qualities of Marijuana but a 1 day $200.00 course to counsel people on it’s use ?
4- We have a situation going on where certain factions are looking for revenue enhancement . Borrowed monies to set up shop and want to recoup investment lock in market control.
5 This legalize Marijuana propositions for a Board, is ridiculous. We need to call all our legislators and get this done next session. set limits on taxation, Keep medical protections, Keep employment protections, keep market availability protections, Allow industrial hemp under the control of the dept. of Agriculture.
6 Allow personal grows for own use only. One of the most ambiguous terms in growing a plant is the amount of plants ? Really what does this mean as to quantity of marijuana it is irrelevant. If anyone goes to a nursery and purchases a plant the price is set upon the size of container. Not the amount of containers the only true way is it to limit the size of caliper or calipers possessed. so simple have a string with a mark to size wrap it around the trunk 2 inches from top of root ball. a guess a total of 6 inches say would do the patient and limit availability. Not bigger than a 2 gallon pot in can be worked out to save market. For the pusher Potter Ville dispensaries and the police & courts looking for lost revenue MPPs proposal. Lets get this done before the feds set standards.
If the person who posted the previous comment was literate, his post would have had a much bigger impact, because through all the of the disjointed sentences, he makes some very valuable insights as to the issue.
I will not repeat what he said, but take the time to make sense out of it. Point number 4 is a driver in the whole legalize movement.
Jury nullification is the only mechanism that common folks have to stop bad laws and bad courts.
A study reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association suggests medical marijuana may be an antidote for the scourge of fatal overdoses caused by prescription pain medication. Medical marijuana patients have reported for many years that they use fewer prescribed pain medications when medical marijuana is available. Research, reported in the JAMA Internal Medicine (Aug 2014), finds that deaths associated with the use of opiate drugs fell in 13 states after they legalized medical marijuana. Compared to states with no formal access to marijuana, those that allowed patients legal access to cannabis saw a steady drop in opiate-related overdoses that reached 33%, on average, six years after the state’s medical marijuana laws took effect. Although many of our Right Wing Nut Jobs focus on what they perceive will be costs associated with marijuana few or none focus on the positive aspects or public health benefits of ending prohibition like reductions in overdose and DUI fatalities. Prescription drug overdoses have surpassed traffic accidents as a cause of death in Arizona. The legalization and regulation of cannabis will have long term benefits and improve the health of those who would otherwise die of opiate drugs. Legalize and regulate this effective natural herbal medicine like alcohol in 2016.