JUDGE DISMISSES MEDICINAL MARIJUANA LAWSUIT

PORT ORCHARD - A county judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by a
woman who was fired for failing a drug test, even though she claimed
she was using medicinal marijuana legally under state law.

The woman had sued Colorado-based TeleTech, which has a call center
of almost 700 employees in East Bremerton off Highway 303. She worked
there briefly, but after a drug test in October 2006, she was fired,
although she told her employers that she was recommended to use pot
by a physician.

Superior Court Judge Sally F. Olsen offered no opinion as to the
dismissal, only to say that there was "no genuine issue as to any
material fact," in the case, which was argued before her in Kitsap
County Superior Court Dec. 14.

"We're very pleased with the court's decision," said attorney Jim
Shore, of the Stoel Rives law firm that represented TeleTech.

Shore had argued before Olsen that the Medical Marijuana Act, passed
by Washington voters in 1998, was not intended to create employment
protections to people using marijuana for medicinal purposes.

The woman's attorneys vowed to appeal the case.

The woman, dubbed "Jane Roe" in court documents by her lawyers
because marijuana is illegal in any quantity federally, had sought
$75,000 in damages. But the law firm representing her wants to create
a legal precedent for employees that have recommendations from
doctors to use marijuana.

They plan to submit the case to the Washington State Supreme Court
for possible direct review, said attorney Michael Subit of Frank,
Freed, Subit and Thomas of Seattle. Failing that, it could go to the
one of the state's court of appeals divisions for a hearing, he said.

"We believe the voters and the Legislature intended employers to have
the duty to accommodate their employees' off-site use of medicinal
marijuana," he said. "We understood when we took (the case) this
would be a long battle."

A recently decided California Supreme Court case has similarities to
the TeleTech lawsuit. By a 5-2 vote, that court ruled in January that
employers can fire workers who use medical marijuana even if it was
legally recommended by a doctor.