The General
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Michigan - Christian Hines, a registered medical marijuana patient, had pot in his backpack when his Chevy Silverado pickup was pulled over by police near Cascade Road SE and Forest Hills Avenue at 2:47 a.m. on June 24. A Kent County Sheriff's deputy found the marijuana. Although Hines, 22, was legally allowed to have the marijuana, the deputy issued him a ticket for improper transportation of medical marijuana in a vehicle.
Hines is among the first people in Kent County to be charged with this misdemeanor, which came into effect only a few months before he was stopped. As 2013 progresses, the charge is showing up more often on district court dockets throughout Michigan. To Bruce Block, a Grand Rapids attorney who specializes in law related to medical marijuana, the statute is little more than another stab at the voter-approved Michigan Medical Marijuana Act.
"It just seems like another way to harass medical marijuana users," Block said. "I think it's a bunch of crap." Public Act 460 states that medical marijuana must be enclosed in a case that is carried in the trunk of the vehicle. If the vehicle has no trunk, then the marijuana must be enclosed in a case that is not readily accessible from the interior of the vehicle. Violating the law is a misdemeanor punishable by as much as 93 days in jail and a $500 fine.
The act became enforceable this year after passing unanimously in the State Senate and by a margin of 98-10 in the State House during the December lame duck session of the state Legislature. The bill was introduced by Owosso Republican state Rep. Ben Glardon, who said the law is not intended to harass anyone, but is simply is a way to clear up the ambiguities that have plagued the Medical Marijuana Act.
He said the law is not much different than laws that prohibit open alcohol containers in motor vehicles, and really serves as a protection for medical marijuana users who may have come under suspicion when transporting their marijuana. "This helps eliminate some confusion," Glardon said. "It wasn't done as a harassment, at least not on my part."
Glardon said he recognizes that the MMMA was approved by voters and is the law of the state. He said he knows this act does not call for commonly abused prescription drugs to be locked in a trunk. "But if you had a bunch of pills out on the seat of your car, police might find that suspicious," Glardon said. Glardon said he has heard from proponents of medical marijuana who appreciate having the guidelines that help them avoid coming into conflict with law enforcement. Block said he has represented a number of clients in regard to this law and is finding that as long as the person is generally law-abiding, courts are not using the law to slam legal users too harshly.
"I'm not seeing judges send people to jail. Mostly it is fines and costs," Block said. But nevertheless, Block says the law may be looking at a constitutional challenge because the MMMA states that as long as a patient or caregiver complies with the MMMA, they are not subject to arrest, prosecution or penalty in any way.
News Hawk - The General @ 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: Mlive.com
Author: Barton Deiters
Contact: Contact Us - MLive Media Group
Website: Transporting pot: Latest wrinkle in complex medical marijuana regulations | MLive.com
Hines is among the first people in Kent County to be charged with this misdemeanor, which came into effect only a few months before he was stopped. As 2013 progresses, the charge is showing up more often on district court dockets throughout Michigan. To Bruce Block, a Grand Rapids attorney who specializes in law related to medical marijuana, the statute is little more than another stab at the voter-approved Michigan Medical Marijuana Act.
"It just seems like another way to harass medical marijuana users," Block said. "I think it's a bunch of crap." Public Act 460 states that medical marijuana must be enclosed in a case that is carried in the trunk of the vehicle. If the vehicle has no trunk, then the marijuana must be enclosed in a case that is not readily accessible from the interior of the vehicle. Violating the law is a misdemeanor punishable by as much as 93 days in jail and a $500 fine.
The act became enforceable this year after passing unanimously in the State Senate and by a margin of 98-10 in the State House during the December lame duck session of the state Legislature. The bill was introduced by Owosso Republican state Rep. Ben Glardon, who said the law is not intended to harass anyone, but is simply is a way to clear up the ambiguities that have plagued the Medical Marijuana Act.
He said the law is not much different than laws that prohibit open alcohol containers in motor vehicles, and really serves as a protection for medical marijuana users who may have come under suspicion when transporting their marijuana. "This helps eliminate some confusion," Glardon said. "It wasn't done as a harassment, at least not on my part."
Glardon said he recognizes that the MMMA was approved by voters and is the law of the state. He said he knows this act does not call for commonly abused prescription drugs to be locked in a trunk. "But if you had a bunch of pills out on the seat of your car, police might find that suspicious," Glardon said. Glardon said he has heard from proponents of medical marijuana who appreciate having the guidelines that help them avoid coming into conflict with law enforcement. Block said he has represented a number of clients in regard to this law and is finding that as long as the person is generally law-abiding, courts are not using the law to slam legal users too harshly.
"I'm not seeing judges send people to jail. Mostly it is fines and costs," Block said. But nevertheless, Block says the law may be looking at a constitutional challenge because the MMMA states that as long as a patient or caregiver complies with the MMMA, they are not subject to arrest, prosecution or penalty in any way.
News Hawk - The General @ 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: Mlive.com
Author: Barton Deiters
Contact: Contact Us - MLive Media Group
Website: Transporting pot: Latest wrinkle in complex medical marijuana regulations | MLive.com
