Feds...
The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear a case brought by San Diego County, California that sought to establish federal preemption over state medical marijuana laws. The preemption claim was rejected by every court that reviewed the case. The California 4th District Court of Appeals wrote in its unanimous ruling, “Congress does not have the authority to compel the states to direct their law enforcement personnel to enforce federal laws.” However, in another case, the U.S. Supreme Court held that, as long as the CSA contains prohibitions against marijuana, under the Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution, the United States may criminalize the production and use of homegrown cannabis even where states approve its use for medical purposes.
In an effort to provide guidance to federal law enforcement, the Department of Justice (the “DOJ”) has issued Guidance Regarding Marijuana Enforcement to all United States Attorneys in a memorandum from Deputy Attorney General David Ogden on October 19, 2009, in a memorandum from Deputy Attorney General James Cole on June 29, 2011 and in a memorandum from Deputy Attorney General James Cole on August 29, 2013. Each memorandum provides that the DOJ is committed to the enforcement of the CSA, but, the DOJ is also committed to using its limited investigative and prosecutorial resources to address the most significant threats in the most effective, consistent and rational way.
The August 29, 2013 memorandum provides updated guidance to federal prosecutors concerning marijuana enforcement in light of state laws legalizing medical and recreational marijuana possession in small amounts.
The memorandum sets forth certain enforcement priorities that are important to the federal government:
• Distribution of marijuana to children;
• Revenue from the sale of marijuana going to criminals;
• Diversion of medical marijuana from states where it is legal to states where it is not;
• Using state authorized marijuana activity as a pretext of other illegal drug activity;
• Preventing violence in the cultivation and distribution of marijuana;
• Preventing drugged driving;
• Growing marijuana on federal property; and
• Preventing possession or use of marijuana on federal property.
Highly coveted Seal of Approval.
