[polluted]

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Dear Patients, Allies, & Supporters:
Before we get too excited about the recent "change" in policy regarding medical cannabis that was recently announced by the Obama administration, we should take a closer look at what this "new" policy actually means.
Regards, Your Green Cross Staff

A Muddier Federal Role
Tom Riley was associate director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy from 2001 to 2009.
The new policy announced on medical marijuana can be broken down into two parts. The first of these is not really “new” and the second is not really “policy.”
First, Attorney General Holder announced that it would no longer be a “priority” for the federal government to prosecute patients with serious illnesses. But that has never been a priority of federal law enforcement, which has been focused on people engaged in the cultivation and trafficking of significant quantities of illegal drugs. Let’s not be conned here: The average quantity of marijuana that someone is in federal prison for marijuana possession is over 100 lbs.
That is not “personal use,” nor is it Granny getting locked in the slammer for puffing a few joints for “medical” purposes. Leaving aside the wisdom of determining medical policy by ballot measure rather than by science, keeping the federal law enforcement focus on drug trafficking is nothing new — it is a continuation of the Bush and Clinton administration policies.
Second, the memo itself is internally conflicted to the point of incoherence. While ostensibly encouraging prosecutors to defer to state and local laws on marijuana, it also recognizes that federal “interest” can still allow the feds, at their discretion, to step in and prosecute. In fact, federal law remains completely unchanged.
The memo specifically states that the new policy should not be interpreted to mean that medical marijuana has been legalized, and that it does not provide a legal defense against federal prosecution. Moreover, it states that even if an individual scrupulously complies with state laws, they still may be subject to federal prosecution.
The gap between the headlines and the reality can only lead to further confusion. California municipalities are struggling with an explosion of store-front pot shops and grow operations. The new federal “guidelines” make the federal role muddier, and may send a green light to cultivators and traffickers who have been cynically using the “medical” label.
A New Course on Medical Marijuana? - Room for Debate Blog - NYTimes.com



Also, Please see Cal NORML’s response:

Cal NORML Release - "New" Federal Policy Leaves Major Questions Unanswered

Although it is certainly encouraging that the Obama administration has committed to writing the AG's declared policy of respecting state medical marijuana laws, the proof will be in the pudding. On careful reading, the policy has major loopholes that give prosecutors broad discretion to determine what they think is legal http://www.justice.gov/opa/documents...-marijuana.pdf
Just a week ago, federal prosecutors in San Diego flouted state law by filing charges against a pair of San Diego dispensary operators, James Dean Stacy of Movement in Action in Vista and Joesph
Nunes of Green Kross. In both cases, DEA agents with doctor's
recommendations made small controlled buys of a few grams of medical marijuana. Neither case would normally have merited federal attention, were it not for San Diego's efforts to pursue medical marijuana providers. Whether their actions were actually illegal under state law was a matter that should properly have been decided in state, not federal, court.
Last August, two Lake County defendants, Scott Feil and Tom Carter, were likewise indicted on federal charges for medical marijuana offenses in apparent disregard of the AG's earlier statements.
The new Obama policy has glaring loopholes, emphasizing that "prosecutors have wide discretion in choosing which cases to pursue, and ... it is not a good use of federal manpower to prosecute those
who are without a doubt in compliance with state law. " The salient
question is, who decides what is 'without a doubt' in compliance with state law? As shown by the recent statements of LA's DA and City Attorney, there exist significant doubts about the legality of most dispensaries in California.
It remains to be seen how far the administration's new policy guidelines will go to prevent further abuses. What is really needed is fundamental reform of federal laws and regulations.
- D. Gieringer, Cal NORML

The Associated Press: AP Newsbreak: New medical marijuana policy issued

[DankJews]

Good Post, Interesting Read, Thank You!


.:Stay Medicated:.

[contract.dude]

ty polluted for the info

[randomee]

I've been telling people that tooo! I'm glad someone said something. I posted on it already but in general heres another side of it.

technically this new MEMO means nothing, read the MEMO for yourself its only 2-3 pages. it says in the MEMO that this document dosen't mean jack diddly. the real GUIDELINES from the cali state department those still stand, and those released in aug 2008. those clarify much more in detail some NOT ALL of the legal bindings to MMJ patients and dispensaries being legal. http://www.ag.ca.gov/cms_attachments...guidelines.pdf its only 11 pages. check it out!