Can the US Govt stop California State over their legal marijuana use?
This is insane that a state simply decides to grow marijuana and have their citizens smoke it if they have a doctor who things it’s recommended for any complaint they can look up in a medical journal. They are even discussing non medical use and have already released marijuana use violators and are expunging their records. What US Act or Code can be used to stop California State?
You can bet the farm the Federal Government will most likely try to infringe on state’s rights with legalization of marijuana, but the Constitution itself dictates that this is a state issue. Drug laws are never specifically mentioned in the Constitution and so therefore, under the 10th amendment are reserved to the states. Legally, it is California’s sole right to legalize the drug.
None. Some people believe it’s insane that the federal government can ban marijuana. The Bush administration threatened to enforce existing federal laws against people selling or prescribing it, but the current administration has decided not to do that.
It’s called state’s rights, hun. States can legally do this, but it will still be illegal under federal law so federal agents will be able to detain offenders. But you don’t see a ton of Feds running around eveywhere, and this is pretty low priority for them anyway. Get with the times, I don’t use marijuana, though I’ve tried it. A little weed isn’t going to hurt any one, as long as it’s used responsibly.
They could, it’s technically against federal law, which overrules state law, but I doubt they would ever act on it. I wrote an interesting article on marijuana a few weeks ago — http://daily-devils-advocate.blogspot.com/2010/09/pot-for-thought.html
Nope. They can try but not succeed. It’s getting legalized in November and there’s not a damn thing you can do to stop it
The Federal Government can but I don’t think they will since the President and Eric Holder the Attorney General said early on into the beginning of Obama’s term that they have no interest in prosecuting people that are abiding by state medical marijuana laws. In the Bush administration they used the Department of Justice to shut down medical marijuana dispensaries all the time.
Yes and no. The federal government can’t force California to outlaw marijuana if the law passes. They can enforce federal laws against marijuana in the state though.
They could also tie the receipt of some related federal funds to having a law against pot. Much as they forced the state to have a minimum 21 year old alcohol purchase law and .08 max blood alcohol DUI law or loose federal highway funding.
The growing and distribution of marijuana is a federal offense. Even if a state legalizes it, federal officers can arrest & prosecute. It HAS been tested in the courts. Congress has the authority under the Commerce Clause of the US Constitution to regulate matters of interstate commerce. The US Supreme Court has ruled that the federal Controlled Substances Act (which outlaws marijuana) is constitutional under the Commerce Clause.
So, to answer your question, while the US government can not directly prevent a state from legalizing marijuana, people who grow, sell, purchase, or distribute marijuana are still subject to federal prosecution.
I’m not sure what country you’ve been living in or what educational level you’ve achieved but you information in your post is way of, embellished, and even completely false.
Medical Cannabis has been legal in the state of California since 1996 with the passage of prop. 215. Sixteen other states have also followed suit with more joining the band wagon. The discussion of non-medical use, or recreational use as you point out is prop. 19. This will allow individuals to possess up to 1 ounce or Cannabis and grow in an area of up to 25 square feet. It also controls and regulates the age in which a person can possess/grow Cannabis similar to that of alcohol and tobacco.
I live in California and not once have I read or heard of anyone being released or having their offenses “expunged” relating to Cannabis. Yes, the state has released some prisoners, many of which where incarcerated due to simple possession. These releases are not due to the infraction but due to the excessive over crowding of our prison and jail systems. The fact is, Marijuana offenders are of little worry and pose little, if any threat of harm to society. No one is having their records “expunged” for any Cannabis related offense unless they had a physicians recommendation and where well within prop. 215 and SB 420 guidelines.
The fact is, no one, not the Federal Government or state government can accurately estimate the impact of ending prohibition nor due we no the revenue impacts. What we do know is that Cannabis is the state cash crop and it is also the number one crop nationally. Yes, you may look it up! We also know that our failed “war on drugs” costs tax payers 100’s of billions of dollars per year. We also know that nearly 70% of drug cartels revenue streams are related to Cannabis. We also know that currently, the illegal cannabis industry in California is valued at roughly $14 billion per year.
Thus, with common sense thought, one can easily see that ending prohibition would great reduce the revenue of drug cartels, great reduce the tax revenue used in continuing prohibition, free up law enforcement for more important issues such as rape, homicide, theft, violence, etc. We also now know that recent scientific studies have proven that Cannabis is far less harmful than most over the counter drugs on the market and not one death has ever been associated with Cannabis alone. We have also come to find out through studies that drivers under the influence of Cannabis pose a limited risk, and that risk is far less than alcohol. We also know that ending prohibition would pave the way to a legal and un-tapped industrial hemp industry that is environmentally friendly, safe, and effective leading to employment opportunities in an age that employment opportunities are few and far between.
The folks against ending prohibition such as yourself have bought in to the age old government rhetoric, do not understand the substance, have not used the substance, are undereducated, and have no clue nor idea as to why prohibition towards Cannabis even started. Growers who are against pro. 19 do so to protect their profits and interests and care little about the folks they provide the drug for now. Law enforcement agencies who are against prop.19 do so to also protect revenue streams in which they receive massive amounts of federal and state funds to eradicate cannabis grow opps. Politicians are against prop. 19 simply because they are fighting for votes and ironically I bet not one of them would submit to a drug test. In fact I believe recently that a politician refused to submit to a test. Hmmmm, the irony!
However, to answer your question regarding the feds stepping in. Yes it is possible but I doubt the administration would want to take on something of this issue. Using Cannabis recreationally is not nearly similar to that of the Arizona Immigration Reform Laws. I don’t see it happening and frankly, I would be pretty unamused that my federal government it would use tax money to fight a law that voters approved, especially when my local schools can hardly afford to keep the lights on.
It is not in the place of our government to dictate what substances we consume or put into our bodies providing that we act responsibly, and prevent harm to others. We have far more pressing matters than Cannabis control and currently the state of California can’t even get a budget passed in a timely manor yet they are gearing up for a vacation.