Summary: A Florida attorney and his law firm claim that medical marijuana is already legal under Florida case law.
Florida residents are gearing up to vote on Amendment 2, which will allow medical marijuana in that state. ActionNewsJax.com reports Ian Christensen, a Florida attorney with the law firm Health Law Services, has commented that, in his opinion, medical marijuana is already legal in his state. In fact, Health Law Services has started issuing ID cards for medical marijuana to patients in the area.
Christensen explained, “It helps or aids the officer in their investigation so they can determine whether there’s probable cause to make an arrest.”
According to Florida’s “Doctrine of Medical Necessity,” Christensen posits that medical marijuana is legal if one’s doctor approves of using the substance and if certain criteria are met by the patient. Christensen adds that the legality of medical marijuana stems from the case Jenks v. Florida. The firm has also referred to other Florida cases to support their position, including a 1991 appellate court decision.
Christensen was an advocate for the medical use of marijuana, saying, “You didn’t cause your illness yourself or intentionally to obtain the controlled substance. That there isn’t a safer medicine available for your condition to treat your illness and that the benefits you would receive on using it would outweigh the harm it would cause to you.”
If you’re a Florida resident, Health Law Services will charge $799 to gather medical records, cover legal services, and set you up with a doctor who will determine if you qualify for medical marijuana usage.
Law and Safety Expert Dale Carson said, “Know that possession of marijuana, which is a controlled substance, is illegal. And the mere possession of a card certifying you as being able to use medical marijuana in Florida doesn’t have any legal standing.”
Carson admitted that the case law Health Law Services refers to is correct, but feels that the situation is very case-specific, and that only a judge would be able to decide such an issue: “It is true medical necessity may be an absolute defense but it’s what is known as an affirmative defense, which means it works in a courtroom, not on the street.”
Photo credit: thenationalmarijuananews.com
Sure, when you’re in court during trial the judge may or may not find your ‘medical necessity’ defense plausible.
You still have to go through the process of getting arrested, booked, bailed out (money that won’t be refunded), and traumatized in the court system, even if you have stage 4 cancer and medical necessity.
It is just as legal as anyone being in possession of any prescribed medication. Do people go to jail when they have pain killers, or muscle relaxers that are controlled substances that are prescribed to them by a licensed physician?
Leave the propaganda to rest, vote YES on Amendment 2.
Stage 4-3-2-1 Cancer; Multiple Schlerosis; Parkinsons;
Glaucoma.
Schizophrenia.
Epilepsy.
Only summarizing a few
Just because there are a lot of conditions that may respond positively to Medical Marijuana, DOES NOT EQUATE these people as recreational abusers.
The current infrastructure for the usage and consumption of medical marijuana treating debilitating diseases is a sketchy one at best, 1) having a ‘medical necessity’ to grow, supply, and consume it medically to treat a life-threatening disease, is only for the defense during a court trial, and even then the judge would have to agree individually case-by-case, that means people who did have a medical necessity defense and used it during trial could still be sent to jail, and this also doesn’t protect a necessity patient from being arrested or having all their medicine and equipment confiscated.
2) This Amendment protects sick patients whom suffer everyday already with a debilitating disease and seek an alternative medicine that won’t cause severe side effects and is completely safe and effective, that Medical Marijuana can be, has been shown to be, and with restricted anecdotal research has proven why it is to be.
Vote Yes on Amendment 2; prove to yourself and others that you’re believer of compassion, even when the world has forgotten what it means to care.