The House and Senate have passed a bill that would establish a regulatory system for the medical marijuana business and seek to provide criminal liability protection for patients.
On Thursday, the U.S. Attorneys for Western and Eastern Washington responded to a query from Gov. Chris Gregoire about how Uncle Sam would view this measure should it become law. They said the federal government could still pursue people involved in the medical pot business.
"The Washington legislative proposals will create a licensing scheme that permits large-scale marijuana cultivation and distribution. This would authorize conduct contrary to federal law and thus, would undermine the federal government's efforts to regulate the possession, manufacturing, and trafficking of controlled substances,' the letter from Jenny Durkan and Michael Ormsby said.
(Those jerks. What they're doing is against the constitution.)
It's unclear what's going to happen to Senate Bill 5073. The House and Senate have to reconcile the different versions of the bill the two chambers passed. Gregoire has said she has reservations about the measure — as do some medical marijuana proponents, who fear it has been amended to actually make operating a medical cannabis business more difficult.
Dominic Holden at The Stranger thinks Gregoire may have requested the letter from federal prosecutors ahead of a possible veto of any bill that would make it to her desk.
(Imagine that....)
Washington is one of 15 states where pot use for medical purposes is legal; Voters here overwhelmingly approved an initiative in 1998.
On Thursday, the U.S. Attorneys for Western and Eastern Washington responded to a query from Gov. Chris Gregoire about how Uncle Sam would view this measure should it become law. They said the federal government could still pursue people involved in the medical pot business.
"The Washington legislative proposals will create a licensing scheme that permits large-scale marijuana cultivation and distribution. This would authorize conduct contrary to federal law and thus, would undermine the federal government's efforts to regulate the possession, manufacturing, and trafficking of controlled substances,' the letter from Jenny Durkan and Michael Ormsby said.
(Those jerks. What they're doing is against the constitution.)
It's unclear what's going to happen to Senate Bill 5073. The House and Senate have to reconcile the different versions of the bill the two chambers passed. Gregoire has said she has reservations about the measure — as do some medical marijuana proponents, who fear it has been amended to actually make operating a medical cannabis business more difficult.
Dominic Holden at The Stranger thinks Gregoire may have requested the letter from federal prosecutors ahead of a possible veto of any bill that would make it to her desk.
(Imagine that....)
Washington is one of 15 states where pot use for medical purposes is legal; Voters here overwhelmingly approved an initiative in 1998.