CALIF. SUPREME COURT BLOWS SMOKE AT MARIJUANA LAW

A new California Supreme Court decision Thursday has overruled a
claim of wrongful termination by a man who failed a company drug test
even though he had been prescribed medical marijuana by his doctor,
as is legal in the Golden State. The court ruled 5-2 in favor of the
Sacramento company Ragingwire Inc., finding it was within its bounds
to fire Gary Ross, who had been given the prescription after
sustaining a back injury during his time in the U.S. Air Force.

The Compassionate Use Act, which legalized the use of
doctor-prescribed medical marijuana in California in 1996, does not
protect users nor does it make them immune from employment laws,
which fall within federal boundaries, cited the court's majority.

The Lantern understands that drug use is a serious issue in this
country; however this case is not so much about illegal drug use as
it is about jurisdiction - be it with the state or federal government
- - in certain cases. The 10th Amendment says that powers not given to
the federal government nor denied to the states belong to the states
or to the people. Unfortunately for Ross and his supporters, drug use
is illegal in federal labor law, and therefore the majority opinion
in this case was justified.