The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
DOJ policy change clouds pot picture
State waits to see effect on medical use
The Obama-era policy of going easy on marijuana went up in smoke, but it remains to be seen whether the new directive of Attorney General Jeff Sessions will have any impact on Connecticut’s nascent medical-marijuana industry.
Some advocates and political leaders are warning the new Department of Justice guidance on marijuana prosecutions could have a negative impact on chronically ill patients for whom marijuana products provide a measure of relief.
“Especially during the midst of a national opioid crisis, medical marijuana provides an important alternative to opioids, and is counted on for relief by 22,000 Connecticut residents,” said Gov. Dannel P. Malloy in a statement. “Rather than diverting critical federal resources and infringing on the will of the American people, Attorney General Sessions would do well to take a leaf out of Connecticut’s book, where our marijuana policies have allowed law enforcement professionals to focus on reducing violent crime, with demonstrated success.”
Malloy said Connecticut would continue to follow state law “regarding marijuana policy despite this short-sighted decision.”
Marijuana is not legal for adult recreational use in Connecticut, unlike California, Colorado and several
other states. But its medical-use statute has been on the books since 2012 for adults, and 2016 (in nonsmoking form) for children with neurological conditions such as epilepsy. Growth industry
The state’s Department of Consumer Protection has issued licenses for nine dispensaries and four “grows” — places where marijuana is grown, processed into different forms and packaged.
At last count, 22,424 patients in the state were being treated through some form of marijuana therapy, with 808 doctors participating in the program.
Adults in Connecticut can get marijuana treatment for cancer, glaucoma, AIDS or HIV, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis and a host of other serious, chronic conditions. Children can receive it for cerebral palsy, cystic fibrosis, spinal cord injury and several other conditions.
Medical marijuana already enjoys legal protection through an amendment attached to congressional spending bills that limits DOJ action against state-sanctioned medical marijuana providers. That amendment must be reinserted into the bill now under negotiation on Capitol Hill. Lawmakers face a Jan. 19 deadline on the bill. Absent a deal, the government would shut down.
Obama-era guidance gave low priority to prosecutions of medical marijuana dispensed under state law. Sessions on Thursday called the policy “unnecessary,” stating that marijuana remains “a dangerous drug” under federal law and that marijuana activity is “a serious crime.”
Therefore, he said, U.S. attorneys should exercise “investigative and prosecutorial discretion in accordance with all applicable laws, regulations and appropriations.”
While it would seem unlikely that federal prosecutors in Connecticut would pursue medicalmarijuana patients, practitioners, dispensaries and growers, there are no guarantees.
“It’s too soon to tell right now,” said Aaron Romano, a lawyer in Bloomfield who is legal counsel to the state chapter of NORML — the National Organization for Reform of Marijuana Laws.