Medical pot provider's sentencing postponed

los angeles times march 24, 2009

"A federal judge in Los Angeles wants more information on the new U.S. attorney general's comment that there are no plans to prosecute dispensary owners operating within their state's laws."

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-medpot24-2009mar24,0,1972907.story

"A federal judge in Los Angeles on Monday postponed the sentencing of man who emerged as a key figure in the national debate over medical marijuana, saying he wanted additional information about a reported change in the Justice Department's policy regarding such prosecutions..."

"Changes to Federal Marijuana Policy May Play Out Soon in Calif. Cases"

"If the federal government's evolving medical marijuana policy takes more concrete shape in the coming weeks, the first signs may come in two pending California cases.

In Los Angeles on Monday, a judge postponed the sentencing..."

"But new DOJ rules will likely play a more decisive role in a case in San Jose, where the city and county of Santa Cruz teamed up with a local dispensary to sue the U.S. attorney general and other federal officials for allegedly interfering with California's medical marijuana laws. At a court appearance on Monday, the two sides agreed to pause the case until early May. And according to plaintiffs attorney M. Allen Hopper, Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Quinlivan said at the time that "there may well be" a written change of policy handed down by then."

http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1202429433229

Thank goodness for people capable of using logic in their professional lives.

This judge gets a thumbs up from me!

GrowTech said:

Thank goodness for people capable of using logic in their professional lives.

This judge gets a thumbs up from me!

Click to expand...

yeah, hopefully the tide is turning

i think the tide is turning - the inertia is too great - the end of prohibition (cautiously optimistic)

update:

"Sentencing delayed in medical marijuana case"

"A federal judge says he's inclined to impose less than the required five years on Charles Lynch, who ran a Morro Bay dispensary. Lawyers are given time to file briefs before a June hearing..."

By Scott Glover
April 24, 2009

The sentencing of a man who has become a key figure in the national debate over medical marijuana was postponed Thursday, with a federal judge saying he was inclined to impose a more lenient sentence than the five years required by federal sentencing guidelines, but questioning whether he had the authority to do so.

"If I could find a way out, I would," U.S. District Judge George H. Wu said. He gave lawyers in the case until June 2 to file briefs regarding the impending sentence of Charles Lynch..."

"I stand before you today because I believe a man is being punished for reasons that don't make much sense," said Owen Beck, whose parents took him to Lynch's Central Coast Compassionate Caregivers when he was battling bone cancer at age 17. "I believe a great injustice is being done."

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-medpot24-2009apr24,0,1972910.story

To bad more Federal judges don't think this way.

FlyLikeAnEagle said:

To bad more Federal judges don't think this way.

Click to expand...

yup, i agree.

hopefully the inertia continues to accelerate

looks like judge Wu tried to not impose a sentence but his hands were tied.

"Pot dispensary owner sentenced to a year and a day in prison"

"...U.S. District Court Judge George H. Wu. Lynch declined the opportunity to address the court moments earlier... Wu said he saw no way around imposing a sentence of at least one year..."

"Lynch’s case made headlines nationwide and came to symbolize the tension between conflicting state and federal marijuana laws. Cultivating, using and selling doctor-recommended marijuana is allowed under some circumstances in California and about a dozen other states, but such activities are banned entirely under federal law."

"Lynch was prosecuted for illegally distributing marijuana from his Central Coast Compassionate Caregivers facility, despite having the blessing of Morro Bay’s mayor, city attorney and other civic leaders."

"During a two-week trial last summer, Lynch’s attorneys attempted to mount a defense based on the service they contend he provided to chronically ill patients who relied on marijuana to ease their suffering. They were barred from doing so, however, because the Supreme Court has ruled that medical necessity is not a legitimate defense for violating federal drug laws."



ref:
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2009/06/charles-lynch.html