legalization of marijuana

May 14, 2019

Understanding the CBD Food Craze in California

There is a great deal of information and misinformation about CBD in food and the legality of CBD in food. In 2018, California legalized recreational use of marijuana. Despite its legalization, many uses of marijuana are still illegal.

Consider the source: Is the article you are reading or video you are watching discussing the law in California?

If you answered ‘no’ to the question posed above, do not accept the use of legalized marijuana discussed in the article or video as true in California. While recreational use and possession of marijuana is legal in 10 states, including California and the western states of the country, use or possession of recreational marijuana is illegal, under federal law, in all 50 states. Moreover, in states where marijuana use and consumption are legal, there are many different laws about which use or possession is permissible. What is legal in Colorado will not be what is legal in California.

Can I add CBD to my food?

According to Project CBD, cannabidiol (CBD) is a naturally occurring compound found in cannabis, a plant. It is just one of the hundreds of compounds unique to the plant. The other compound that receives a great deal of attention is tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) which is the ingredient in the plant that causes the high – making the user feel “stoned” or intoxicated.

Hemp CBD has become a nation-wide health craze. There are many positive health benefits to the use of CBD to alleviate aches and pains associated with debilitating chronic conditions like cancer, AIDS, severe chronic pain, and other ailments. California legalized the use of medical marijuana in 1996.

Buying food with CBD is illegal in California. Last summer, the California public health regulators published guidelines explicitly stating that they will not consider CBD to be an approved food additive or dietary supplement until federal or state regulators approve it. Thus, Californians cannot buy food that includes CBD as a food additive or dietary supplement. Continue reading

May 10, 2019

Understanding the Legal Uses of Marijuana in California

by David M. Boertje

We are close to the one-and-a-half-year mark of the legalization of the use and possession of recreational marijuana in California. There is a tremendous amount of misinformation on what is the permissible use and possession of recreational marijuana. The following post will tackle some of these misconceptions.

Use and Possession of Marijuana is Only Legal in 10 states, Including California

When reading about legal marijuana, it is important to focus on the source. More importantly, the state the author is referencing in an article or video is a critical factor. Recreational marijuana is only legal in 10 states. They are California, Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Alaska, Colorado, Michigan, Maine, Vermont, and Massachusetts. Each state defines legal recreational marijuana use and possession differently. Use or possession of recreational marijuana is illegal, under federal law, in all 50 states.

Legal Marijuana can Only be Transported in a Closed Container in the Trunk of a Car

Even though use and possession of recreational marijuana is legal in California, certain uses and types of possession remain illegal and will result in an arrest and charge if detected by police. For example, drivers can possess marijuana in their vehicles so long as it is in a container in the trunk. Even though the driver purchased marijuana legally and possesses a legalized amount, if it is in an open container, in a purse, in a glove-compartment, or on the back seat, an arrest will follow. This law is similar to the open container rule relating to alcohol possession in a car. You would not drive around with an open beer bottle; you cannot drive around with a rolled-up joint on your dashboard. Both types of possession of the legal substance, alcohol or marijuana, will result in a criminal conviction for illegal possession of marijuana or alcohol.

Public Consumption of Marijuana is Illegal in California

Additionally, public consumption of marijuana is illegal in California. While there may be businesses that are licensed for on-site marijuana consumption in California, these businesses may not serve alcohol or allow tobacco use on their premises. This means that bars and clubs cannot allow marijuana consumption on their premises because they serve alcohol. Continue reading

March 6, 2018

Sessions Nixes Obama-Era Rules Leaving States Alone that Legalize Pot

by David M. Boertje

As Jeff Sessions creates chaos in the marijuana community with his rescission of the Obama policy of non-interference with marijuana-friendly state laws, U.S. Attorney Adam Braverman issued a statement backing Session’s new policy. He stated that the change “returns trust and local control to federal prosecutors” to enforce the Controlled Substance Act. Other U.S. Attorney Generals in states like Colorado have said their offices will not change their lenient approach to marijuana crimes.

What Exactly did Jeff Sessions do?

While marijuana currently remains illegal under federal law (the Controlled Substances Act), eight states including California, Oregon, and Colorado have legalized the drug, as has Washington, D.C, creating a conflict of law situation. 28 states currently permit some form of medical marijuana use.

President Obama’s Justice Department issued a policy in 2013 which generally barred federal law enforcement officials from interfering with marijuana sales in states where the drug is legal. Sessions issued a memo in his capacity as Attorney General that will instead let federal prosecutors where marijuana is legal decide how aggressively to enforce longstanding federal law prohibiting it. The one-page memo states: “In deciding which marijuana activities to prosecute under these laws with the Department’s finite resources, prosecutors should follow the well-established principles that govern all federal prosecutions,” by considering the seriousness of the crime and its impact on the community.

These changes come just after the New Year, as legal weed shops opened in California. California is expected to become the world’s largest market for legal recreational marijuana, and is overwhelmingly supported by American voters.

While Sessions’ Justice Department had been largely carrying out Trump’s top priorities until now, this marijuana policy strictly reflects his own personal feelings. Sessions has compared marijuana to being as harmful as heroin.

It is unknown yet how this policy will really affect California’s marijuana market and criminal charges.

Pot Has Nothing to do With San Diego’s Violent Crime

A recent survey (titled “The 2017 National Drug Threat Assessment”) of law enforcement and intelligence agencies conducted by the federal Drug Enforcement Agency says marijuana usage has been responsible for 0% of crime increases in San Diego. Rather, the report concluded that meth entering the country through the Southwest border remains the biggest threat to crime rates. Meth smuggled from Mexico is predicted to increase due to the demand in the U.S. and lack of availability of it, compared to marijuana. Continue reading

November 9, 2016

If Pot is Legalized, it Can Still Have Big Consequences for Certain Immigrants

by David M. Boertje

This November, California voters will choose whether they want to legalize marijuana. California Proposition 64, the California Marijuana Legalization Initiative (also referred to as the Adult Use of Marijuana Act), will be on the state’s November 8, 2016, ballot as an initiated state statute.

However, it is reported by the San Diego Union Tribune, that non-citizens, immigrants, legal and undocumented alike, and green-card holders may still face legal consequences for using marijuana. This includes having their citizenship blocked or getting deported and not being allowed back into the country. This is because despite potential state law being enacted, using marijuana is still illegal under federal law. This affects immigrants who are trying to attain citizenship through the federal process.

Currently, almost 13% of San Diego county residents are not U.S. citizens. This is much higher than the national average, which is 7%.

Current California Marijuana Law

Currently, possession of marijuana for personal use only carries a maximum of six months in jail. See Ca. Health and Safety Code 11357. Often defendants will plead down to that charge instead of pleading guilty to a charge of ‘marijuana possession for the purpose of sale,’ which carries a three-year prison sentence. See Ca. Health and Safety Code 11359. However, pleading guilty to either crime is still a deportable offense if you are a non-US citizen.

Under federal law, the federal Immigration and Nationality Act (“INA”) allows for the deportation of non-U.S. citizens if they have violated the Controlled Substances Act. See INA § 237(a)(2)(B)(i); 8 USC 1227(a)(2)(B)(i). This is why it is extremely important for all non-citizens facing criminal charges to hire an attorney who can strategize the best defenses for his or her specific situation.

Back in 2015, Assemblywoman Susan Eggman proposed Assembly Bill (A.B.) 1351, which would allow immigrants facing minor drug offenses to enter a drug diversion program in lieu of the standard criminal process. It would have made it so that immigrant defendants with no previous history of drug crimes would be allowed to enter a drug treatment program and undergo drug counseling before they enter a plea. If they successfully finish the program, drug charges are dismissed, leaving no criminal record to taint their immigration process. However, the bill has not yet been passed into law. Continue reading