Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Let them smoke pot
Posted by Rhiannon Fionn-Bowman on Tue, Oct 20, 2009 at 10:35 AM
In a win for states rights and tax payers:
On Monday, President Obama kept a piece of that promise when his Department of Justice issued a directive ordering agency lawyers not to prosecute individuals who use or prescribe medical marijuana in states that have legalized the drug for that purpose."It will not be a priority to use federal resources to prosecute patients with serious illnesses or their caregivers who are complying with state laws on medical marijuana, but we will not tolerate drug traffickers who hide behind claims of compliance with state law to mask activities that are clearly illegal," explained Attorney General Eric Holder. "This balanced policy formalizes a sensible approach that the Department has been following since January: effectively focus our resources on serious drug traffickers while taking into account state and local laws."
In the overall scheme of the drug-policy debate, this is a relatively small -- and cautious -- step.
But for medical-marijuana advocates, the administration's formal embrace of a more responsible approach represents a major breakthrough.
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