MEDICINAL MARIJUANA LAW REMAINS TOO HAZY

In 1998, Washington state voters approved an initiative allowing for
the use of marijuana for specific medicinal purposes, but the
practical application of the law has been hazy. Meanwhile,
interpretation and enforcement of the law has varied widely from
community to community.

Patients want marijuana for relief from the effects of glaucoma,
multiple sclerosis, Crohn's disease and other ailments. Suppliers want
relief from law enforcement officers who bust them for possession and
illegal sales. The conundrum lies in the fact that the law allows for
marijuana's use with a medical permit, but doesn't explain how it can
be legally obtained. Before November 2008, it was even unclear what
amount constituted a legal 60-day supply. That was clarified by the
state as 1.5 pounds.

The law says patients can grow marijuana plants, but that isn't
practical for many people. Plus, it's not clear that obtaining seeds
would even pass legal muster. So dispensaries have sprouted up, but
Spokane law enforcement is targeting them, saying one person cannot
supply another.

Scott Q. Shupe runs a Spokane dispensary but was recently busted when
he traveled to Oregon to purchase marijuana. That state doesn't
recognize medical permits from other states.

Compounding all of this is federal law that doesn't even acknowledge a
medicinal purpose; however, federal enforcement isn't common.

We don't condone Shupe's act. The Oregon law is clear. But legalizing
medicinal marijuana without laying out a reasonable way to obtain it
is madness. Certainly marijuana can be abused if used foolishly and if
it falls into the wrong hands. So can OxyContin, which is among a long
list of prescription drugs that have become a law enforcement
headache. A Shopko was recently robbed by a thief seeking the
painkiller. But OxyContin can still be obtained with a prescription.
Nobody has to manufacture it in their basements.

The overreaction to marijuana stems from the stigma attached to it
long ago, when laws lumped it with heroin and other dangerous and
illicit drugs. But we know better now. Yet, police departments assign
precious resources to ensure that patients don't obtain it. Meanwhile,
property crimes go uninvestigated for lack of officers.

The state Legislature needs to clarify the law so that patients with
legitimate reasons to use marijuana don't have to be treated like
criminals if they do. This would also make it easier for police
officers and prosecutors to decide when it really is in the public's
interest to intervene.