MARQUETTE CITY COMMISSION MULLS IMPACT OF MICHIGAN MEDICAL MARIJUANA LAW

MARQUETTE - A Marquette County assistant prosecutor briefed the
Marquette City Commission about the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act at
a special meeting last week.

Commissioners said they had the meeting to develop a better
understanding of how the law affects the community. Matt Wiese, chief
assistant prosecuting attorney for the county, explained who is
entitled to a medical marijuana card, how they can get it and other
elements of the act such as how it affects someone within a drug free
school zone.

Wiese said the law authorizes people suffering from a specified
ailment or chronic pain to apply for a medical marijuana card from
the Michigan Department of Community Health. The application form
requires them to see a doctor of medicine or a doctor of osteopathic
medicine who must certify that the person suffers from a condition
and would benefit from medical marijuana. The application and the
physician's certification is then sent to the MDCH with a fee of
$100, which is good for a year. Once the application is received, the
state is required to issue the card within 15 days.

Once a person has a card, they are allowed to posses 2.5 usable
ounces at any one time.

"There are certain restrictions. You cannot use it on public
transportation, in schools, public areas, things of that nature," Wiese said.

Wiese said the law does not define what is usable.

The law also allows the person to grow up to 12 marijuana plants for
their own use or they can enlist the help of a caregiver to grow it for them.

Wiese said the law is not specific as to who you can get marijuana from.

"Under the law you can buy it from anyone that wants to sell it to
you," he said. "That person, if they're not signed up to be your
provider, could get prosecuted criminally. But, if you have a medical
marijuana card and you know someone who sells marijuana, you can
legally buy it from that person.

That doesn't mean that person can legally sell it to you. They can be
at risk of criminal law violation if they're not your provider."

The act also appears to override drug free school zones.

Wiese said a person can posses or grow medical marijuana within 1,000
feet of a school as long as they aren't violating the act.

"The medical marijuana law says you are exempt from criminal
prosecution as long as you are in compliance with the act. So the way
I read that ... if a person lives within 1,000 feet of a school who
had a medical marijuana card and was authorized to grow their own
plants or posses marijuana up to 2.5 ounces, they can do that, even
if within 1,000 feet of a school." Wiese said.