Today, in what many consider a historic step in the medical marijuana community – Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn signed into law a bill that allows the city to license and regulate medical marijuana dispensaries within their limits. These regulations come just months after Governor Gregoire’s sectional veto of a new state-wide medical marijuana law.
Despite the excitement surrounding this new signing, there are dual arguments when it comes to whether these new laws are even legally justified.
“You can’t regulate an affirmative defense. And either way the State’s Controlled Substances Act pre-empts the field” says Douglas Hiatt, a long-time medical marijuana defense attorney who worked on the state’s original medical marijuana law. Hiatt has stated publicly in recent weeks that if Seattle passes these regulations, he fully intends to take them to court, to challenge and potentially render invalid the recent ruling (Komo News). Hiatt seems confident in his belief that cities within the state have no authority to regulate an illegal substance. At a recent Kent (Washington) City Council meeting he also threatened to sue them if they pass ordinances regulating dispensaries, such as Seattle just did.
Given Hiatt’s extensive work in the medical marijuana community, many people
who find these new regulations exciting are confused at this approach. He believe that the city regulating these dispensaries, against both state and federal law, will make them a huge target for federal persecution. Up until this point Seattle dispensaries have remained functional, operating in an essential “grey zone” of the law, with help from such strong support from local elected officials. Given the negatives consequences associated with the newly vetoed medical marijuana law, the repercussions of a city so openly accepting these dispensaries and endorsing illegal activity through licensing them, despite potentially being against federal and state law, could lead to harsher federal tactics on the organizations that are dispensing the medicine to their patients.
Despite this, many find this move to be an essential step forward in the midst of the larger goal of the full legalization of medicinal marijuana (or legalization outright), allowing patients safe access to their medicine. In a unanimous vote to regulate these federally titled “drug trafficking groups,” Seattle’s City Council and Mayor have made a hefty political point, that patients not only need, but have every right to have – safe, reliable and convenient access to their medication. The city of Seattle has shown that they are ahead of the curve when it comes to compassionately treating their citizens, and are progressing further than the state itself.
However strong this point may be, we can only hope that this risk won’t put further harm on the business owners who are trying to supply a much-needed medication. It will be interesting to see how things might play out in this lawsuit against Seattle, as it could easily set precedent for future cities and cases. Either way, however things turn out, it’s clear Seattle has the right idea when it comes to one simple fact; Our marijuana laws are failing.
-TheJointBlog
