Jacob Bell
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He says he was a cancer patient who needed pot for pain. His employer says he posed a safety risk.
The firing of a Battle Creek man from Walmart for smoking pot is putting Michigan's 3-year-old medical marijuana law to the test.
On Wednesday, the American Civil Liberties Union urged the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals to reinstate a lawsuit that claims Walmart wrongfully fired Joseph Casias, 30.
Casias, fired in 2009 after testing positive for marijuana, was an inventory control manager and has had a brain tumor and sinus cancer for more than 10 years.
A federal judge dismissed the lawsuit in February, holding that Michigan's law does not mandate employers to accommodate medical marijuana users.
The ACLU disagrees, arguing that the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act explicitly protects employees from being disciplined at work for legally using medical marijuana.
If Walmart is going to have a store in Battle Creek and employ workers, they have to follow Michigan law, said Dan Korobkin, staff attorney at the ACLU Detroit office.
The company defended its decision to fire Casias, its 2008 associate of the year.
"This is just an unfortunate situation all around, and we're sympathetic to Mr. Casias' condition," said Walmart spokesman Greg Rossiter, noting that the decision to fire Casia was a safety issue.
News Hawk- Jacob Ebel 420 MAGAZINE
Source: freep.com
Author: Tresa Baldas and Bill Laitner
Contact: Contact Us
Copyright: freep.com
Website: ACLU seeks to reinstate lawsuit over Walmart worker's firing for using marijuana
The firing of a Battle Creek man from Walmart for smoking pot is putting Michigan's 3-year-old medical marijuana law to the test.
On Wednesday, the American Civil Liberties Union urged the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals to reinstate a lawsuit that claims Walmart wrongfully fired Joseph Casias, 30.
Casias, fired in 2009 after testing positive for marijuana, was an inventory control manager and has had a brain tumor and sinus cancer for more than 10 years.
A federal judge dismissed the lawsuit in February, holding that Michigan's law does not mandate employers to accommodate medical marijuana users.
The ACLU disagrees, arguing that the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act explicitly protects employees from being disciplined at work for legally using medical marijuana.
If Walmart is going to have a store in Battle Creek and employ workers, they have to follow Michigan law, said Dan Korobkin, staff attorney at the ACLU Detroit office.
The company defended its decision to fire Casias, its 2008 associate of the year.
"This is just an unfortunate situation all around, and we're sympathetic to Mr. Casias' condition," said Walmart spokesman Greg Rossiter, noting that the decision to fire Casia was a safety issue.
News Hawk- Jacob Ebel 420 MAGAZINE
Source: freep.com
Author: Tresa Baldas and Bill Laitner
Contact: Contact Us
Copyright: freep.com
Website: ACLU seeks to reinstate lawsuit over Walmart worker's firing for using marijuana
