Jovan Jackson won an appeal on his marijuana distribution charge, sending his case back to the San Diego Superior Court should the prosecutor decide to retry him. His appeal was based on the fact that the trial court judge didn’t allow him to use the state’s medical marijuana laws in his defense of the Answerdam marijuana dispensary; the judge said the dispensary was solely a profit-making business, and not a cooperative. The Appeals Court disagreed.
Medical Cannabis Growing Operation in Oakland, California (Photo credit: Rusty Blazenhoff)
Now, if the prosecutor decides to retry him, he could have the opportunity to make this argument.
“We continue to embrace our interpretation that the Legislature limited the protected activity to the cultivation of marijuana for medical purposes and not large scale distribution of marijuana,” Steve Walker, spokesperson for the District Attorney’s Office.
The state supreme court could stop the potential retrial if it decides to take up the case.
“It’s our hope that the courts will provide more clarity as to the scope of the protected activity, serving to curb abuses of the Compassionate Use Act that have arisen since the passage of the law,” said Walker.
Superior Court Judge Howard Shore erred, the appeals court said, when he said that Jackson couldn’t use the medical marijuana defense simply because of the large number of members of his cooperative. This number, Shore argued, suggested that Answerdam was more of a distribution business than anything else.
Though this shouldn’t preclude him from using the defense, the three-judge Appeals Court panel said, the judge or jury at trial should use this information in determining whether or not the “collective” is, in fact, operating on a nonprofit basis.
The specifics of the medical marijuana laws have led to many conflicts in the criminal courts, and its cases like this one that could prove to clarify the law and it’s specifics. For instance, if the state supreme court took up this case, they could settle what dispensaries are allowed to operate and which are not.
In the meantime, as the laws are sorted out, many prosecutors will continue to file charges where they see fit, seeking clarification where interpretation of the laws may be muddled. California marijuana laws remain muddled and at odds with each other and reality. It will be years before the lines between legitimate use and what the government considers felony drug charges are sorted out.
At least until cannabis is ultimately legalized.
If you are facing charges of marijuana possession, sales, or any other drug offense, contact our attorneys today to discuss your case and how we might be able to help.