CALIFORNIA SUPREME COURT TO RULE ON MEDICAL MARIJUANA AND EMPLOYMENT

Within 90 days, the California Supreme Court will use the case of a
medical marijuana patient who lost his job to determine whether or
not companies can fire medical cannabis users for testing positive
for marijuana.

The ruling hinges on Gary Ross, a U.S. Air Force veteran who was
honorably discharged from the military in 1980 because of back pains.
Ross used the computer knowledge he learned to start a career as a
computer assistant, said Ross' attorney Joseph Elford.

"While he was a computer assistant, he visited his doctor," Elford
said. "His doctor suggested that he use marijuana to treat his back
as opposed to some of the conventional pain medications that he had
been taking."

This treatment, however, led to Ross' termination at RagingWire
telecommunications in 2001 when he tested positive for marijuana.
Ross had previously informed his employer that he was approved for
medical marijuana and used it regularly.

Ross took his case to the Sacramento County Court, but the court
ruled in favor of RagingWire, said Americans for Safe Access
communication specialist Chris Hermie.

State law has allowed the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes
since Proposition 215, the Compassionate Use Act, was approved in
1996. However this remains in conflict with national law, as use or
consumption of marijuana remains illegal on a federal level.

RagingWire itself wouldn't violate any laws by employing Ross, Elford
said. Certain safety-sensitive positions such as construction require
their employees to be drug-free, but Ross' position did not meet this criteria.

"[RagingWire] throws in some lip service to the Drug Free Workplace
Act," he said. "But that provides only to distribution or use of
drugs in the workplace. The drug-free workplace has no effect here."

The California Fair Employment and Housing act requires employers to
accommodate their staff as long as it doesn't create hardship for the
employer. Asking a business to install a wheelchair ramp might be
difficult if the business is a family grocery store, Elford said.

In this case, however, no action would be necessary on the part of
RagingWire, he said.

"It's the one medication that helps Gary Ross sleep at night and in
turn actually become a more productive worker," he said. "It's
important to understand he does not claim or nor [sic] does he use
marijuana on the job."

The company has made no allegations that Ross' performance was
impacted by his use of marijuana, he said.

A similar case in Oregon ruled in favor of the employer in 2006, as
the defendant's leg spasms did not qualify as a disability.

"There's not anything within the medical marijuana realm [in
California] that has gone to court really on this," said
Compassionate Coalition Communication Director Nathan Sands. "This is
really going to be a groundbreaking case in that area, but there's
been plenty of cases in the past regarding workers rights that have
generally have come out in favor of the worker."

When contacted, RagingWire declined to comment.