Medical Marijuana

ADVOCATES VS STATE VS FEDS

Dispensing in NJ at a Standstill As Questions Are Still Unanswered

TRENTON -- Advocates say they will consider suing the state if Gov.
Chris Christie continues to stand in the way of implementing a law
that legalizes marijuana for medical use.

But they're not enthusiastic about that possibility.

"I would hope that would be a last option. A court case can drag on
for years and our concern is patients having access now," said
Roseanne Scotti, New Jersey director of the Drug Policy Alliance.

Christie has not yet responded to a memo released last Thursday by
the U.S. Justice Department that says marijuana dispensaries and
licensed growers in states with medical marijuana laws could face
prosecution for violating federal drug and money-laundering laws.

Christie's spokesman, Michael Drewniak, says the governor is awaiting
advice from Attorney General Paula Dow, who is still reviewing the
letter. Christie has been especially concerned about whether state
employees could be prosecuted for their role in regulating medical
marijuana, and the first-term Republican governor recently said he
wanted some assurances before moving forward.

"The federal government is saying medical marijuana is against the
law. Until I get that assurance, I cannot ask people to do things
that they might get prosecuted (for) by federal prosecutors,"
Christie said in June. "What happens if they get arrested and I
ordered them to do it? That's wrong."

But advocates and legal experts say Christie, who spent seven years
as the U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, is well aware of the federal law
and knows federal authorities would never give a blanket assurance
that they won't prosecute a hypothetical case in the future.

"He knows better as a former U.S. Attorney," said Assemblyman Reed
Gusciora, who co-sponsored the bill. "He knows they are not going to
pick on the strictest law in the country."

In her letter to the Justice Department on behalf of the governor,
Dow specifically asked whether state employees could be prosecuted.

The Thursday memo by Deputy Attorney General James Cole reiterated
what was in a 2009 memo, in which the Justice Department told
prosecutors they should not focus investigative resources on patients
and caregivers complying with state medical marijuana laws. The new
memo does not give states cover from prosecution, but notes the broad
discretion local U.S. Attorneys have in their states.

Paul Fishman, the U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, has not commented on the memos.

A person familiar with Fishman's thinking said it was extremely
unlikely that he would prosecute state employees who are complying
with the state's regulatory framework. The person spoke only on
condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk about
the matter.

Sixteen states and the District of Columbia have legalized the
medical use of marijuana, with programs in various phases of
development. New Jersey adopted a law to allow medical marijuana in
January 2010, just before Christie took office.

While Christie says he supports medical marijuana access for patients
who need it, he's expressed problems with the law New Jersey passed,
though it's considered the most restrictive among the states that
allow medical marijuana.

His administration upset activists because it took months to come up
with regulations for the industry -- and they're still not finalized.
Lawmakers have even threatened to nullify Christie's proposed
regulations, saying they violate the intent of the law.

This year, six nonprofit groups were awarded licenses to grow and
sell pot to patients with conditions such as terminal cancer,
glaucoma and multiple sclerosis. Some patients say the drug eases
pain and nausea. But so far, none has been legally sold because the
state has not created a registry of patients who can, under state
law, use the drug.

Some of the groups licensed to grow buds have said they realize they
would be violating federal law and are willing to risk prosecution to
launch their businesses. The organizations that are allowed to grow
and sell marijuana to patients with certain medical conditions are
not-for-profit but the size of the operations is unclear since they
haven't been allowed to start dispensing the drug.