By Steve Elliott in Chronic City
In a stunning bit of role reversal, law enforcement officials in dispensary-heavy Los Angeles County are gearing up for a massive mobilization against hundreds of pot shops even while the Obama administration backs away from the federal government's traditional role as marijuana enforcer in the states where medical pot is legal.
Today, the administration sent new, more relaxed medical marijuana guidelines to federal prosecutors in the 14 states which have legalized weed for patients. Under the new policy, the federal government will not seek to arrest medical marijuana users and suppliers as long as they conform to state laws.
While keeping a promise President Barack Obama made on the campaign trail in 2008 and since affirmed by Attorney General Eric Holder, the new policy is a significant departure from the Bush administration line, which continued to enforce harsh, Nixon-era federal anti-pot laws regardless of state codes.
Read the rest at Chronic City in the SF Weekly blog, "The Snitch": Chronic City: Feds Lighten Up On Medical Marijuana Just As L.A. Tightens Screws | Digg story
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1 comment:
It won't happen overnight, but law enforcement's attitude about pot **will** change. JoD's long overdue directive is just the first crack in the wall.
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