cannabisnews.com: MMJ Dispute Puts Sheriff and County in Position





MMJ Dispute Puts Sheriff and County in Position
Posted by FoM on April 17, 2001 at 15:53:07 PT
Editorial
Source: Times-Standard 
Sheriff Dennis Lewis, now in some danger of being found in contempt of court, is clearly caught in a legal bind not entirely of his own making. It is an unfortunate position for any officer of the law.At issue is whether and to what extent federal law pre-empts state law. The state law in question is the Compassionate Use Act, passed by voters as Proposition 215 in 1996, that legalizes the use of marijuana for medical purposes.
As with much legislation created by ballot initiative, this was so loosely drawn and worded that it has given rise to endless legal wrangling. Fuel is added by the fact that Prop 215 is abominated by most police officers, and seen by pot growers, sellers and smokers as the answer to their prayers. All appear to be working, in their different fashions, to subvert its intent.The case in question involves an ounce of pot that was confiscated by deputies from a Southern Humboldt man during a traffic stop in 1999. The man was charged with transporting marijuana, but the charge was dismissed after he produced a physician's recommendation to use marijuana for a medical condition. On a motion of his lawyer, the court then ordered the Sheriff's Department to return the impounded property.Sheriff Lewis refused. He noted that marijuana in any amount is considered contraband under federal law, which does not recognize its medical use. If he returns the ounce, he contends, he could be charged with violating federal law.This means the county's top law officer is acting in defiance, possibly in contempt, of the county's Superior Court. The judge, in turn, may have overreached himself in assuming that state law pre-empts federal law. As there has still been no U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the legality of the Compassionate Use Act, this creates a most unfortunate jurisdictional snarl.The county is now trying to unravel this by filing an action against both the federal Drug Enforcement Agency and against the marijuana owner, seeking a "declaration of rights and obligations" from the federal district court -- in effect, telling the sheriff what he should do.While Sheriff Lewis is indeed caught in the middle of this dispute, it does not appear to be a situation he tried particularly hard to avoid. It looks very much as if he was seeking a legal confrontation that could lead to a federal ruling, perhaps overturning the state law.The actual amount of marijuana involved, a single ounce, is negligible. The sheriff would almost certainly not have been arrested by federal drug agents if he had chosen to obey the court order. The argument that "transportation" of the ounce makes the offense more serious is, in this case, ridiculous.On the other hand, the sheriff's reluctance to give in on the point is understandable, if not necessarily in accord with the law. The plaintiff/defendant in the case has since been found growing 84 marijuana plants that he also claims are for medical purposes. Lewis clearly believes he is dealing with yet another commercial pot grower attempting to find shelter behind the medical marijuana law, and he may well be correct.Still, police must obey the law just like anyone else, even if they don't agree with it. In this instance, certainly, there is a legitimate doubt over what the law requires. Let's hope it can be resolved soon.Complete Title: Marijuana Dispute Puts Sheriff and County in Difficult PositionSource: Times-Standard (CA)Published: April 8, 2001Copyright: 2001 The Times-StandardContact: letters times-standard.comWebsite: http://www.times-standard.com/Related Articles:Sheriff Rejects Judge's Order To Return Pot http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread9221.shtmlJudge Orders Return of Marijuana http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread8029.shtmlCannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml 
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