Pubdate: Mon, 25 Feb 2013
Source: Lahontan Valley News (NV)
Copyright: 2013 Lahontan Valley News
Contact: http://drugsense.org/url/Q3XDWCfL
Website: http://www.lahontanvalleynews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3456
Author: Geoff Dornan

LEGISLATURE: DRUG DEBATE LAWMAKERS TOLD MEDICAL MARIJUANA LAW SHOULD 
MANDATE A WAY TO GET IT

Nevada isn't meeting the intent of a constitutional amendment 
allowing medical marijuana because there isn't a legal way for 
patients to get the drug, members of the Senate Judiciary Committee 
were told Friday.

In Nevada, a patient suffering from chronic conditions such as 
glaucoma, multiple sclerosis or others can get a doctor's certificate 
qualifying them to register and use marijuana to relieve their symptoms.

Lawyer Gary Modaferri said a case involving to two men accused of 
illegally providing the drug to patients through a co-op is now 
before the Nevada Supreme Court after Clark County District Judge 
Donald Mosley threw out the case against them, describing the state 
law as "mind boggling."

Modaferri said the judge concluded that the laws barring distribution 
to those patients were "purposely constructed to frustrate" patients.

He said Nevada law makes it legal for residents with a medical 
marijuana card to possess the drug, but illegal for them to obtain 
it. He said Mosley's ruling essentially stated that the current law 
isn't workable and doesn't give people the access to the drug that 
the constitutional amendment contemplated.

That, he argued, violates the spirit of what Nevadans voted into the 
constitution when they approved the medical marijuana ballot question.

He received some support for that argument from Sen. Mark Hutchison, 
R-Las Vegas: "It really doesn't matter how we feel about medical 
marijuana. It's a constitutional mandate."

Sen. Tick Segerblom, D-Las Vegas, who sponsored legislation this 
session that would allow dispensaries to provide marijuana to valid 
medical marijuana cardholders, agreed the situation is impossible.

"Even though the law says its legal to grow the seed, it's illegal to 
get the seed," he said.

Sen. Greg Brower, R-Reno, the former U.S. Attorney for Nevada, said 
the current statutory situation is "hopelessly confusing and dysfunctional."

"The Justice Department is saying yes, we recognize it's illegal and 
the DEA could come and knock down your door but we're not going to do 
that," he said. "That's an untenable situation."

Sen. Aaron Ford, D-Las Vegas, said ultimately the Supreme Court will 
probably have to decide the legality of state medical marijuana laws 
- - or even the legality of states decriminalizing pot.

Asked which states Nevada should look at for "best practices" in 
regulating the dispensing of medical marijuana, the committee was 
told by Karmen Hanson of the National Conference of State 
Legislatures that Colorado is probably the model. She said the 
"product" is highly controlled there to keep things up and up.

"They have to account for literally every ounce of product," she said.

She also said it's a local option in Colorado for communities to 
allow or bar dispensaries.

But she said Colorado's recent decision to decriminalize marijuana is 
new territory since medical dispensaries and recreational 
dispensaries can't be one in the same and that the drug can't be 
grown in the same place it is distributed.

The meeting was designed as an informational session to get lawmakers 
up to speed on the issues surrounding medical marijuana. No action was taken.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom