Pubdate: Fri, 08 Jun 2012
Source: Daily Reporter, The (MI)
Copyright: 2012 GateHouse Media, Inc.
Contact:  http://www.thedailyreporter.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/4589
Author: Don Reid

JUDGES: THERE IS NO RIGHT TO POSSESS MARIJUANA IN MICH.

Lansing, Mich. - There is no "right" to possess marijuana in Michigan 
- - even for those who have a card issued under the Medical Marihuana 
Act (MMMA) - an appeals court has ruled.

Further, anyone who smokes marijuana then drives with any trace left 
is in the bloodstream violates Michigan motor vehicle law, even if 
they possess a MMMA card.

A three-judge Michigan Court of Appeals panel overturned a Traverse 
City case, where the District Court was upheld by the Circuit Court, 
which dismissed charges against Rodney Lee Koon.

Koon was pulled over for driving 83 miles an hour in a 55 mph zone. A 
blood test revealed Koon had THC, the chemical component of the drug, 
in his system.

Koon's attorney argued he was not in violation by operating a motor 
vehicle with a Schedule 1 controlled substance, marijuana, in his 
body because he held a valid MMMA card.

The Traverse City District Court ruled the MMMA protected Koon from 
conviction unless prosecutors could show the driver was impaired by 
the marijuana while driving. Koon has a doctor's prescription for 
treatment of various medical conditions.

The court tried to clarify the murky issue the Michigan Legislature 
is currently trying to come to grips with. The Appellate Court 
pointed out the Constitutional amendment and subsequent legislation 
"sets forth particular circumstances under which they will not be 
arrested or otherwise prosecuted for their lawbreaking" possession 
and use of the drug.

"The MMMA does not codify a right to use marijuana; instead, it 
merely provides a procedure through which seriously ill individuals 
using marijuana for its palliative effects can be identified and 
protected from prosecution under state law," the judges wrote. "These 
individuals are still violating the law by using marijuana. In other 
words, the act grants immunity from arrest and prosecution, rather 
than the granting of a right."

There is a "zero tolerance" law for driving with marijuana THC in the 
bloodstream, the court ruled. Most blood and urine tests show THC in 
test samples even up to 30 days or more after use. There have been no 
definitive tests to show how long a person would be impaired by marijuana use.

Petition

A petition is currently being circulated in efforts to legalize the 
drug whose medical use was approved by voters by a 63 percent margin 
in November 2008.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom