Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the repeal of a 2013 Obama-era policy that protected legalized marijuana programs in various states from federal intervention.
The policy change would allow for each state’s U.S. attorney to decide whether to aggressively enforce the federal marijuana law.
“It is the mission of the Department of Justice to enforce the laws of the United States, and the previous issuance of guidance undermines the rule of law,” Sessions said in a statement announcing the change.
His memo directs prosecutors, in deciding whether to bring cases, to “weigh all relevant considerations, including federal law enforcement priorities set by the attorney general, the seriousness of the crime, the deterrent effect of criminal prosecution and the cumulative impact of particular crimes on the community.”
The memo sparked outrage among advocates for legalized marijuana in New York and around the country.
Jeff Sessions’ order is an attack on the patients and families in New York and around the country who rely on marijuana to ease their pain and suffering,” said Hillary Peckham, chief operating officer of Etain LLC, one of the companies licensed to produce medical marijuana in New York.
Medical marijuana programs and patients are currently protected from federal prosecution by legislation known as the Rohrabacher-Blumenauer amendment. But that amendment expires Jan. 19, along with the temporary spending measure Congress passed last month to keep the government funded. It’s uncertain whether a new spending measure will include the amendment.
“Congress needs to do something,” said state Sen. Diane Savino (D-Staten Island), who sponsored the 2014 law that legalized medical marijuana in New York.
Twenty nine states, including New York, have legalized medical marijuana and eight states, including California, Massachusetts and Colorado, have legalized the recreational use of pot.
Sessions’ memo came just days after California began selling recreational marijuana.
Savino said the directive will add to the uncertainty around New York’s medical marijuana program, which has struggled to attract patients and medical providers willing to prescribe the drug.
As of Tuesday, New York’s program had only 1,384 medical practitioners registered to prescribe marijuana and only 40,286 certified patients.
State Health Commissioner Howard Zucker, in a statement, vowed to protect medical marijuana patients.
“These patients need help, and we cannot turn our backs on them,” Zucker said. “We are committed to ensuring that all New Yorkers who qualify are able to access this therapy.”
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle Thursday also attacked Sessions’ move.
“With no prior notice to Congress, the Justice Department has trampled on the will of the voters in Colo. and other states,” Republican Sen. Cory Gardner tweeted, adding that he was prepared to “take all steps necessary” to fight the move.
Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders also called on Sessions to reverse his decision, saying “no one who has seriously studied the issue believes that marijuana should be classified as a Schedule 1 drug beside killer drugs like heroin.”
credit:msn.com
