January 22, 2010

SAN JOSE, CA -- The recent shift in federal medical marijuana policy, articulated this fall in a Justice Department memorandum instructing U.S. Attorneys to afford greater deference to state laws, resulted in a settlement reached today with a California medical marijuana cooperative, represented by the American Civil Liberties Union and others.

The Santa Cruz-based Wo/Men's Alliance for Medical Marijuana (WAMM), a model medical marijuana collective that provides medicine to the terminally ill free of charge, agreed to dismiss an ongoing lawsuit against the federal government based on the new policy, with the understanding that the litigation will be reinstated in its present posture should the federal government fail to respect state medical marijuana laws in the future.

"Though the new federal policy is far from ironclad, it is a marked improvement, and, we hope, a sign of even better things to come," said Allen Hopper, Litigation Director of the ACLU's Drug Law Reform Project. "The policy provides lawful medical marijuana patients and providers a very welcome, if incomplete, measure of security. And should the federal government once again move to improperly target patients or those who care for them, we will immediately be back in court."

The settlement reached today in the case County of Santa Cruz v. Holder came before Judge Jeremy Fogel of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, San Jose Division. Judge Fogel had previously ruled in the case that the U.S. Constitution permits states to determine for themselves what is legal and what is illegal under state law, including medical marijuana policy, and that the federal government may not deliberately undermine this process.

"It is clear that the federal government had made a practice of intentionally sabotaging state-based medical marijuana reform efforts in the past, but we take them at their word that this is no longer the case," said Hopper. "Today's settlement is another step toward a sensible policy, where states may chart their own course on medical marijuana without federal interference."

The case stems from a 2002 Drug Enforcement Administration raid of WAMM's collective garden, which destroyed the medicine of 200 sick and dying patients. Supportive of WAMM, the City and County of Santa Cruz joined onto the lawsuit soon after.

In addition to the ACLU, WAMM and the County of Santa Cruz are represented by the Drug Policy Alliance, Gerald Uelmen, Professor of Law at Santa Clara University Law School, the law firm of Bingham McCutchen, and private attorney Ben Rice.

Today's filing and the Department of Justice's memorandum altering federal medical marijuana policy are available upon request.

Judge Fogel's previous ruling that the federal government may not deliberately undermine state medical marijuana laws can be found online at: http://www.aclu.org/drug-law-reform/santa-cruz-v-mukasey-order-denying-g...