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Source: @norml @WeedConnection
Posted By: norml@weedconnection.com
media :: news
- Wed, 30 Mar 2016 04:20:21 PST

Supreme Court Turns Back Challenge To Marijuana Legalization Laws

Washington, DC: Supreme Court justices have declined to consider a 2014 suit challenging the legality of Colorado's laws permitting the state-licensed production and retail sale of cannabis to adults.

Justices rejected the lawsuit, filed by Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning and Oklahoma Attorney General E. Scott Pruitt, which sought to strike down Colorado's law on the basis that it is "fundamentally at odds" with the federal Controlled Substances Act. The state Attorney Generals had argued, "The diversion of marijuana from Colorado contradicts the clear Congressional intent, frustrates the federal interest in eliminating commercial transactions in the interstate controlled-substances market, and is particularly burdensome for neighboring states like Plaintiff States where law enforcement agencies and the citizens have endured the substantial expansion of Colorado marijuana." A majority of the Court turned back the petition in an unsigned opinion, while Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito dissented.

The plaintiffs in the suit are contemplating filing a similar legal challenge in federal district court.


Poll: Voters Back Rescheduling And Legalizing Marijuana

Washington, DC: Fifty-two percent of registered voters support legalizing marijuana "for recreational use," according to national tracking poll data compiled by Morning Consult - a Washington DC consulting firm. Forty-three percent of respondents polled said that they oppose legalization and five percent were undecided.

Respondents between the ages of 18 to 29 (63 percent), Democrats (61 percent), and those aged 30 to 44 (60 percent) were most likely to support legalization. Republicans (37 percent) and those age 65 or older (36 percent) were least likely to be supportive.

In response to separate polling questions, 68 percent of respondents said they support legalizing marijuana "for medical use." Fifty-nine percent endorse decriminalizing marijuana, defined as "no arrest, prison time, or criminal record for the first-time possession of a small amount," and 83 percent of respondents said that cannabis did not belong classified as a schedule 1 controlled substance under federal law.

The poll possesses a margin of error of +/- 2 percent.

The Morning Consult polling data is similar to those of other recent national polls, such as those by reported by Gallup, CBS, and Pew, finding that a majority of Americans now support ending marijuana prohibition.


More Municipalities Move Forward With Marijuana Decriminalization

New Orleans, LA: Local legislators in New Orleans, Louisiana and Tampa, Florida voted last week in favor of municipal ordinances to halt minor marijuana possession arrests within city limits.

Members of the New Orleans city council voted 7 to zero in favor of legislation permitting police to cite rather than arrest minor marijuana offenders (defined as those who possess 14 grams or less), including repeat offenders. First-time violators are subject to a $40 fine while subsequent offenders may face fines of up to $100. Under state law, first-time possession offenders are subject to arrest and criminal prosecution (punishable by up to 15 days in jail) while repeat offenders face up to eight years in prison.

Members of the Tampa city council voted 5 to 1 to amend local laws so that the possession of 20 grams or less of cannabis within city limits is a non-arrestable, fine-only offense. First-time offenders face a $75 fine, while multiple offenders could face fines up to $450. By contrast, Florida law defines similar possession offenses as a criminal misdemeanor, punishable by up to a year in prison, a $1,000 fine, and the suspension of one's driver's license for a period of one year.

Tampa's pending policy is similar to those recently enacted in a number of Florida counties, including Miami-Dade, West Palm Beach, and Volusia, as well as in several other metropolitan areas, such as Philadelphia and Milwaukee.

In Pittsburgh, city officials are debating the passage of an amended ordinance to make minor marijuana offenses (involving the possession of up to 30 grams of marijuana) punishable by a summary citation and a fine. Summaries can be expunged in five years if the defendant is convicted and do not require the defendant to be fingerprinted or to appear at a preliminary hearing. Local lawmakers alleged that an earlier version of the ordinance that sought to wholly decriminalize marijuana possession offenses would likely have led to legal challenges.


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