Medical marijuana and drug law reform

Medical marijuana and drug law reform

For an explanation of some of the terms used please see our Drug Test Glossary.

Overview of Medical marijuana and drug law reform:

Alaska: Allows patients to use medical marijuana if they have specified medical conditions, a state registry ID card and the advice of a physician. Caregivers must also have the ID cards to avoid prosecution for distribution of marijuana. This law was enacted in March of 1999 after voters passed Ballot Measure #8.

Arizona: In 1996, Arizona became the first state to implement sweeping drug policy reform when its voters approved Proposition 200. That initiative, also known as the Drug Medicalization, Prevention and Control Act of 1996, mandates that non-violent drug offenders arrested for simple possession or use of an illegal drug must receive drug treatment instead of jail time for their first and second offenses. It also allows doctors to prescribe marijuana and other drugs (such as heroin and ecstasy) for medicinal use when it becomes legal to do so under federal law.

California: Over the past decade, drug policy reform in California produced some of the nation's most progressive laws, including initiatives that allow for medical marijuana and treatment-instead-of-incarceration. The Drug Policy Alliances four California offices—Sacramento (California Capital Office), San Francisco (Safety First Project), Berkeley (Office of Legal Affairs) and Los Angeles (Southern California Office)continue to be instrumental in the success of many of Californias drug policy reforms.

Colorado: In 2002, the Colorado legislature approved legislation to reduce the penalties for simple possession of illegal drugs and use the savings to fund drug treatment. Unfortunately, Colorado Governor Bill Owens vetoed the bill. Twenty-three percent of Colorado's state prison population consists of non-violent drug offenders, and Colorado taxpayers spend more than a hundred million dollars a year keeping them in prison. Although the sentencing reform would have only affected a small percentage of drug offenders, it would have saved ten million dollars over the next five years - most of which would have been used for drug treatment services. Governor Owens, however, did sign legislation that reforms the states asset forfeiture laws.

In 2003, the legislature passed a bill to reduce the sentencing for offenders arrested with one gram or less of Schedule I and II drugs. The bill was signed into law by Governor Owens despite his previous veto of a very similar bill in 2002.

Hawaii: The people of Hawaii still remain in the drivers seat of their governments drug policy and the politicians are listening. In February 2003, a student drug-testing bill was defeated when civil liberties groups and parents pressured legislators to reject it. The bill, which was supported by Republican governor Linda Lingle, would have allowed schools to drug test students enrolled in athletics or physically strenuous co-curricular activities. Many who were called to testify voiced concern that such a bill would keep more students away from extra-curricular activities than it would keep them away from drugs.

Illinois: Ninety percent of drug offenders admitted to prison in Illinois are African-American. This number illuminates the problem of Illinois drug enforcement strategy as the state leads the nation in racially disproportionate incarceration of African-American drug offenders. In 2000, 258 of 259 juveniles automatically transferred to adult court for drug crimes were children of color. The Illinois government has done little to stop the race-based incarceration of thousands of minority drug offenders.

Indiana: Almost 20 percent of Indiana state prisoners are drug offenders, costing taxpayers more than $75 million a year to keep them in custody. To free up space in their state prisons and save taxpayers money, legislators passed sweeping drug reforms in 2001, including allowing nonviolent drug offenders to receive drug treatment, home detention or work release instead of prison time.

Kansas: Low-level, first-time drug offenders get community based treatment for eighteen months instead of a prison sentence as of November 1, 2003. The bill was originally written to released prisoners retroactively, but the state Senate struck this measure to avoid a conflict with the governor.

Louisuana: Louisiana's notoriously severe drug laws were largely responsible for the states past distinction of holding the highest incarceration rate in the country. One-third of all Louisiana state inmates were non-violent drug offenders, many of them sentenced to harsh sentences for minor offenses. Harsh drug laws have exacerbated racial disparities in Louisiana's criminal justice system. While African-Americans make up only one-third of the state's population, they made up three-fourths of the state's prison population before sentencing reform.

Maine: Maine allows patients to use medical marijuana if they have specified medical conditions and the advice of a physician specifically referring to marijuana. This law was enacted in December of 1999 after voters passed Question 2.

Maryland: The state passed a medical marijuana law in 2003, but it slaps patients with a criminal conviction when they successfully offer a medical necessity defense in court. This means that even a successful defense results in a permanent criminal record, which poses barriers to financial aid, housing, employment, and more.

Massachusetts: This State remains one of the very few states that have strict barriers in its laws for prescribing syringes. Syringe access programs have been proven to reduce the spread of HIV/AIDS and hepatitis C among injection drug users, and do not create an increase in injection drug users.

Nevada: In less than three years, Nevada has reversed its approach to marijuana offenses. In 1996 and 1998, voters approved an initiative legalizing the medicinal use of marijuana (amendments to the constitution are required to pass twice in the state in order to become law). In June of 2000, a 40-member judicial commission - headed by the Nevada Supreme Court's Chief Justice - recommended reducing penalties for possession of small amounts of marijuana for personal use from a felony to a misdemeanor. In November of 2000, voters approved the medical marijuana initiative a second time (under Nevada law, initiatives have to be approved twice before they can take effect). In 2001, the legislature passed legislation implementing the medical marijuana initiative and decriminalizing small amounts of marijuana for personal use.

New Jersey: The collateral damage of the drug war has been particularly severe in New Jersey. New Jersey ranks 14th among states in the number of citizens disenfranchised from the vote due to felony convictions. Between 16 and 18 percent of African American men cannot vote due to felon disenfranchisement. In addition, other collateral consequences of drug convictions in New Jersey are severe. New Jersey rates almost dead last in terms of removing barriers to social reentry for formerly incarcerated persons.

New Mexico: Of the approximately 5,600 people in New Mexico's state prison system in 2002, about 87% were assessed as needing substance abuse services and 70% as substance abusing or dependent. Nonviolent drug offenders struggling with substance abuse or dependence need help, not jail. This initiative for the 2008 legislative session proposes appropriate community-based treatment, instead of incarceration, for first- and second-time non-violent drug possession arrestees. Offering treatment instead of incarceration enhances public safety by reducing drug-related crime and preserves jail and prison space for violent offenders.

Ohio: In the 1970s, Ohio decriminalized marijuana for personal use. The Ohio law is the most permissive of any marijuana decriminalization legislation in the United States. It fines the offender $100 for the possession of 100 grams or less of marijuana with no jail time and no criminal record. Unfortunately, this has been the only successful reform in Ohio. Ohio ranks 35th in the nation in treatment spending and has terrible racial disparities in its prison system. There are more African-Americans in prison today in Ohio than in Ohio colleges and universities (23,200 to 20,074).

Oklahoma: With no medical marijuana law to speak of, possession of any amount of marijuana subject to a year in jail, and with the failure of a bill to reduce the penalties for possession in 2004, Oklahoma is a ripe target for drug policy reform.

New numbers from Oklahoma show that most of those sentenced to prison for the first time on felony charges were convicted of drug offenses. In addition, 80 percent of the state's inmates had a measurable amount of drugs in their system at the time of arrest.

Oklahoma's prison costs have soared 193 percent, or $253 million, in the past 16 years, according to figures from the Oklahoma Criminal Justice Resource Center. During this period the state's prison population has more than doubled.

Oregon: Oregon allows patients to use medical marijuana if they have specified medical conditions, a state registry ID card and the advice of a physician. If tried on possession charges, patients can also cite a "choice of evils" defense if they do not have an ID card. This law was enacted in November of 1998 after voters passed Ballot Measure #67.

Pennsylvania: After nearly a decade of effort by supporters of reform, both houses of the Pennsylvania legislature passed a treatment instead of incarceration bill in 2004. Gov. Edward Rendell (D) signed it into law November 19, 2004. The legislation provides for intensive treatment as part of a drug sentence, and the first seven months of the treatment program would take place behind bars. While this is not as strong a reform as the no-prison approach approved in several other states, it is a step in the right direction.

Texas: Texas has long been in the national spotlight for rampant racial disparities and abuses in their criminal justice system. With one of the largest prison populations in the country, even modest reforms can have a tremendous impact. A number of recent well-publicized injustices have forced Texas legislators to scrutinize their criminal justice system and enact reforms.

Utah: In November of 2000, the Utah Property Protection Act (Initiative B) - a voter initiative intended to reform asset forfeiture laws - passed with sixty-nine percent approval. Prior to this initiative, law enforcement could seize property from an individual even without bringing charges against the person. The initiative required law enforcement to prove a person’s guilt before any property can be seized. The law also re-appropriated all asset forfeiture seizures to go to public school funds. Previously, law enforcement kept all of the property and money, creating potentially corrupting incentives and bypassing legislative appropriations processes.

Vermont: In 1996, Vermont became one of the first states to pass a meaningful industrial hemp bill when it enacted a bill authorizing research into the feasibility of hemp as a commercial product. Four years later, the legislature passed a resolution urging the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the U.S. Congress to reconsider federal policies that prohibit the cultivation and sell of industrial hemp and related products.

In 2000, the legislature finally legalized methadone (Vermont had been one of only eight states in the U.S. with no methadone maintenance treatment for heroin addiction). Methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) is the proven most-effective method of treating heroin addiction, yet methadone remains one of the most regulated, restricted, and insufficiently available medications in the U.S.

Virginia: In 1998, Governor Jim Gilmore introduced a wave of drug legislation that threatened to turn Virginia into one of the toughest states on drug offenders. The proposed legislation included decreasing the amounts of drugs required to label someone as a “kingpin”; increasing mandatory minimums from five years to ten, including the weight of the non-psychoactive parts of marijuana (seeds and stems) when determining sentences; creating a mandatory minimum for anyone caught with drugs and a firearm at the same time; and giving the death penalty to offenders caught with 6 grams of heroin or 28 grams of cocaine.

Washington State: Washington allows patients to use medical marijuana if they have terminal or debilitating illnesses and documentation from a physician. This law was enacted in November of 1998 after voters passed Measure 692.

Also see Drug test detection times and Drug testing cutoff levels