I’m sure we all remember this:
Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire has vetoed key parts of a bill that aimed to regulate medical marijuana dispensaries.
Gregoire said Friday she could not approve the measure after the state’s two U.S. attorneys said that state regulators would not be immune from prosecution. A union that represents thousands of state employees asked Gregoire to veto the bill.
“I will not subject my state employees to federal prosecution. Period,” Gregoire told reporters before signing parts of the bill into law.
At the time, there was no shortage of people pointing out the absurdity of Gregoire’s belief. And since then, even Republican Governor Chris Christie allowed New Jersey’s medical marijuana dispensary regulations to move forward. But now you can add another name to the list of those who find it absurd that the Department of Justice would arrest state employees:
The Department of Justice.
From Raw Story:
The Department of Justice filed on legal brief on Monday that indicated the federal government would not prosecute state employees for implementing state medical marijuana programs, according to the Marijuana Policy Project.
The brief asks for a lawsuit filed by Arizona Governor Jan Brewer (R) to be thrown out.
…
The Department of Justice said Brewer’s claims had no merit, noting that her lawsuit failed to provide credible evidence that state employees were under threat of imminent prosecution.
Unlike Arizona, though, where the voters passed a law that set up dispensaries, we’re left with a giant mess. So much so that the Municipal Research and Services Center still isn’t entirely clear on what cities can do to regulate medical marijuana production and distribution. Here’s part of their page on the new law:
Cities and counties can place zoning restrictions and impose licensing requirements on collective gardens, but it is not clear whether local governments can totally prohibit them, so long as the collective gardens comply with the restrictions on the numbers of plants and numbers of qualified patients. See Sections 403 and 1102 of E2SSB 5073. Also, Chapter 69.51A RCW still allows a “qualified patient” or a “designated provider” to possess a quantity of Cannabis not exceeding a 60-day supply for a patient, which has been interpreted in the regulations as including up to 15 Cannabis plants, so individual gardens are clearly allowed. [If you have been following this webpage recently you will notice that we have changed our interpretation twice on the issue of whether collective gardens can be prohibited. That is a measure of how we are struggling with interpretation of the provisions that go into effect on July 22nd.]
Of course, this hasn’t stopped numerous cities from imposing moratoriums, meaning that a judge will likely sort it all out once a local jurisdiction tries to arrest someone who’s following the law.
UPDATE: More from Dominic Holden and Steve Elliott.
UPDATE 2: According to Dan Catchpole of the SnoValley Star, North Bend may be the first municipality to have its collective garden moratorium challenged in court.
I think it’s a case of not being able to change one’s beliefs when the world around you has changed. She just can’t see a world where pot isn’t illegal.
Same thing with cars, we’re still expanding roadways when the reality is that there will be fewer cars on the road in the future. The Gov and the folks at DOT just can’t wrap their heads around that change.
I think this sort of thing is really common place.
I’ll bet all of this has really slowed the production and selling of marihuana…
I dunno Michael. As always, follow the money.
There are billions and billions of dollars and therefore major powerful “constituencies” to be considered in both the drug war and road construction.
Leaving aside a future post as Solicitor General…
@3
The big money folks whispering in her ear are part of what shapes her world view.
@4
Which is to say that these things aren’t deliberate, calculated, lies, they’re just a world view that’s, in part, shaped by people with a lot invested in keeping up the status quo and, in part, an inability to see a future that’s different from the current state of things.
I really hope that Gregoire just retires after this. Hopefully, there wont be any job offers coming her way from DC in 2012. Same with Ron Simms and John Ladunberg (I’ll be voting agianst him for supreme court). Please retire. They’re not bad people, they’ve done the world a hell of a lot of good, but it’s time for them to retire and let a new people in.
@5,
Wow! Sounds kinda like another argument for term limits!
As far as cannabis goes, what we need is a governor who will simply say to the Feds that no Washington law enforcement group will enforce any federal law against the right of Washington’s adult citizens to ingest cannabis. That is, if the DEA wants a Washington law enofrcement group’s help in conducting a raid against a cannabis site, then that help will not be forthcoming. It’s civil disobedience at the state level so as to “dope slap” the Feds to show them that cannabis is no more harmful than having a beer or a shot of Jack Daniels. It’s about time for Prohibition to finally end!
@6
We have an election every fall, no need for term limits. Although, I’ve supported them in the past.
What we need is to get Big Money away from our elections and change our culture to say that an elected office is something that you hold for a while and then go back to your other life. Or maybe get the idea though a few thick skulled baby boomers heads that the world wont crash in upon it’s self if they’re not running the show.
There’s a place for these folks that have been in office forever as “elder statesmen” types helping find good quality people to run for office and helping them through the process of getting elected.
Hate to say it but, the only elected person in the state that seems to get that part of their job is getting other like like minded people elected is Cathy-McMorris Rodgers. She got her #2 elected as the congressional critter from Vancouver, after all. Who have Norm Dicks and Jim McDermitt gotten elected?
We wont get new laws on pot until we get new people who are willing to push for new laws on pot. We should be pushing our people who have been in office forever to help find their successor and to head for the exits.
Money, drug lords, corporatists and politicians. Yeah, I’m sure something good will come from that brew.