Washington Supreme Court Renders Doctor's Prescription For Medical Marijuana Meaningless

In a bizarre opinion, the Washington Supreme Court ruled that the police can arrest an individual with a doctor's prescription for medical marijuana or even search his home for marijuana.  The judges ruled that Washington's medical marijuana law only allows for patients to raise the prescription as a defense at trial and does not preclude them from being arrested or searched.  Whether they qualify for a prescription is a decision that has to be made by a jury.  The only saving grace is that the Washington Supreme Court overturned the decision of the trial court by finding that a jury, and not a judge, has to make the decision of whether the patient qualifies for a prescription under the law.  However, the defendant in the case lost because his attorney admitted at trial that his client's condition did not qualify for a prescription under the law.

It looks like the Washington legislature is going to have to rewrite the law to make it meaningful again.

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