THE COURT ON POT

The Problem Isn't Medical Marijuana. It's Federal Law

You could almost hear Justice John Paul Stevens sigh as he wrote the
majority opinion in the case involving the medical use of marijuana.
He wrote the case is "troubling" because it pits federal power against
sick people. Ultimately, a 6-3 Supreme Court majority affirmed the
federal government's power to regulate interstate commerce, in this
case holding that federal drug laws superseded state-approved medical
marijuana programs.

The case stems from a 2002 federal raid on two California medical
marijuana users. California was the first of 11 states to approve the
use of marijuana, with a doctor's recommendation, to treat disease or
the side effects of other treatments. The two users sued the
government on the grounds that state drug laws involving individual
medical use trumped federal drug authority. Monday's ruling did not
overturn the states' laws. It did leave those who use marijuana as
medicine open to federal prosecution. Practically speaking, the
federal government accounts for a mere 1 percent of all marijuana
prosecutions. The more important issue is where the federal government
targets its drug control efforts. Surely, heroin and cocaine addiction
and the proliferation of methamphetamine labs across the country
warrant greater federal concern and intervention than individuals
trying to manage debilitating illnesses with pot. Indeed, Congress
should take Stevens' cue and pass legislation that would exempt
medical marijuana from federal sanctions.

This ruling behind, attention now turns to the federal challenge to
Oregon's physician-assisted suicide law, approved twice by voters and
upheld by two lower courts, which the justices will hear next term.
The Justice Department argues that Oregon's law violates the federal
Controlled Substances Act, once again pitting federal power against
the states, albeit without the precious Commerce Clause at stake.

The Controlled Substances Act contains a provision that requires the
feds to defer to state policy on the practice of medicine. Courts have
recognized the value of states having a certain latitude to explore
the bounds of contentious social issues. Congress would serve many
patients and the country by specifically establishing such deference
to the states in the medical use of marijuana.