Pubdate: Fri, 11 Apr 2014
Source: Seattle Times (WA)
Copyright: 2014 The Associated Press
Contact:  http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/409
Author: Gene Johnson, The Associated Press
Page: B1

POT BACKGROUND CHECKS HERE FINALLY OK'D BY WARY FEDS

Yearlong Effort to Get Access to FBI Database

Federal Authorities Put in a Tricky Position on the Issue

(AP) - After a year of requests, the U.S. Justice Department said 
Thursday it is giving Washington state access to an FBI database so 
it can conduct nationwide background checks on people who apply to 
run legal marijuana businesses.

The department said allowing the checks is consistent with its 
priorities in letting legal marijuana experiments in Washington and 
Colorado move forward - including keeping people with troublesome 
criminal histories out of the industry. Washington state officials 
started asking last April for permission to run the checks.

Without explanation, the federal agency declined to respond, even 
though it had allowed similar checks on medical-marijuana licensees 
in Colorado. Washington state eventually started issuing licenses 
without the nationwide background checks.

The discrepancy highlighted the difficulty the feds face as they 
allow the states to experiment with regulating a drug that's long 
been illegal under federal law.

The Obama administration has said it wants the states to make sure 
pot revenue doesn't go to organized crime and that state marijuana 
industries don't become a cover for the trafficking of other illegal 
drugs. At the same time, federal authorities don't want to actually 
help the states violate federal law.

Responding to an Associated Press inquiry on the topic last month, 
the Justice Department said only that it was reviewing its 
background-check policy "to ensure a consistent national approach."

The department's statement Thursday emphasized that while the FBI 
maintains the database, states that want to license medical or 
recreational-marijuana operations will be doing the checks themselves.

It also stressed that the nationwide background checks don't give the 
businesses or the states that regulate them a free pass: They're 
still expected to meet eight federal law-enforcement priorities the 
Justice Department outlined in a memo last summer.

"This decision to permit states and localities to perform their own 
background checks for marijuana licenses is consistent with our 
previous guidance designed to protect public safety and ensure strict 
regulation of those businesses," the statement said.

Jaime Smith, a spokeswoman for Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, said in an 
email that the decision was "certainly helpful in our efforts to move 
forward and establish a strong regulatory framework."

Alison Holcomb, a Seattle lawyer who drafted Washington state's legal 
pot law, called the change a relief.

"It's an issue of consistency," she said. "The (Justice Department) 
set forth a specific set of goals it expected Washington to meet, and 
the refusal to perform nationwide background checks appeared to be an 
obstacle to allowing the state to meet those goals."

Washington state issued its first pot-growing license a month ago and 
has issued nine more since then. The state's Liquor Control Board 
said Thursday it will conduct nationwide background checks on people 
who have already received licenses, as well as those whose 
applications are still being processed.

In Washington, officials use a point system to determine whether 
someone's criminal history is too concerning to grant a license to 
grow, process or sell marijuana under the state law passed by voters 
in 2012. A felony within the past 10 years normally disqualifies an 
applicant, as does being under federal or state supervision for a 
felony conviction.

In the absence of national background checks, officials have relied 
on background checks by the Washington State Patrol to find any 
instate arrests or convictions.

Applicants must have lived in Washington state for three months 
before applying, and many are longtime Washington residents whose 
possible criminal history would likely turn up on a State Patrol check.

Others specifically moved to the state in hopes of joining the new industry.

Applicants are required to disclose their entire criminal history - 
with omissions punishable by license rejection.

It remains to be seen whether Washington state can ensure that its 
licensed marijuana businesses won't become a haven for criminals or a 
public-safety threat, Seattle U.S. Attorney Jenny Durkan said in a 
statement released by her office.

"The jury is out - but this gives regulators a strong tool to ensure 
the public interest," Durkan said.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom