ASA 2009 Accomplishments

Federal Policy Wins

Federal Policy on Medical Marijuana Turns Corner - Justice Department tells prosecutors to respect state law. The Justice Department told U.S. Attorneys that they should not expend resources prosecuting medical cannabis patients and their caregivers in states that have adopted laws allowing medical use.

ASA Works with US Rep. Sam Farr (D-CA) to introduce the Truth In Trails Act, HR 3939, with 28 co-sponsors to allow medical defense in some federal marijuana trials by recognizing state medical cannabis laws.

Federal Agency Solicits Proposals for Cannabis Cultivation - Just seven months after the DEA again rejected a judge's recommendation that a university be granted a license to grow research cannabis, a federal "Request for Proposals" was issued for the production and distribution of cannabis.

Research and Scientific Wins

Two Milestones Reached by Dr. Sunil Aggarawal of the University of Washington, member of the ASA Medical & Scientific Advisory Board member:

The American Medical Association affirmed the medical benefits of marijuana and urged further research, reversing its 72 year old position that marijuana be retained as a Schedule I substance with no medical value.

Review of 79 clinical studies finds marijuana a safe, effective medicine - found that "nearly all of the 33 published controlled clinical trials conducted in the United States have shown significant and measurable benefits..."

Regional Wins

WASHINGTON D.C. - Helped to overturn the ban on medical cannabis.

LOS ANGELES - Directly supported the passage of the new dispensary ordinance in Los Angeles

COLORADO - Under pressure from patients and advocates, the Colorado Board of Health rejected a proposal that would have sharply restricted the ability of the state's citizens to access medical marijuana, in favor of allowing patients to obtain their medicine through retail dispensaries.

RHODE ISLAND - Overriding the governor's veto with a near-unanimous vote, Rhode Island legislators have expanded their state's medical marijuana law to ensure safe access for qualified patients.

HAWAII - Lawmakers in Hawaii overrode a veto by the governor to establish a committee to review the state's medical marijuana program.

Legal Wins

California City Loses Lawsuit, Pays ASA $139,000 in Attorneys' Fees - A California city's refusal to return less than $200 worth of cannabis to a qualified patient has now cost them at least a thousand times that--and they had to return the cannabis anyway. "It's unfortunate that the City of Garden Grove felt it necessary to spend more than a quarter of a million dollars challenging a patient's right to his medicine," said ASA Chief Counsel Joe Elford. "Hopefully, other local officials will now do better upholding medical marijuana patients' rights under the law." (City of Garden Grove v. Superior Court)

Collective Cannabis Cultivation OK by California Supreme Court - The right of California patients to collectively cultivate medical marijuana, and sue if that right is violated, has been affirmed by the California Supreme Court in another landmark legal victory for ASA. The court refused to review an appellate court ruling that had found for the rights of a seven-patient collective in Paradise. (County of Butte v. Superior Court)

Medical Marijuana Advocates Force California DMV Policy Change - Qualified Patients No Longer Subject to Arbitrary License Revocation - The ASA legal team saw another big victory for patients in March, when the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) issued a new policy on driver's licenses that ends discrimination against state medical marijuana patients. As of March 2, the DMV Driver Safety Procedure Manual now says that "use of medicinal marijuana approved by a physician should be handled in the same manner as any other prescription medication which may affect safe driving." (Johnson v. Department of Motor Vehicles)

ASA Argues City's Dispensary Ban Violates California Law - In a case with wide-reaching implications, Americans for Safe Access told an appellate court that city bans on medical cannabis dispensaries violate state law. The case involves a small dispensing collective in Anaheim, and whether or not a state medical cannabis law supersedes local bans. (Qualified Patients Association v. City of Anaheim)

ASA Lawsuit Gets County to Issue Patient ID Card - Medical cannabis patients in Solano County will now be able to obtain California state ID cards to protect them from wrongful arrest or seizure of their medicine, thanks to legal action by ASA. (ASA v. Solano County)

U.S. Supreme Court Refuses Challenge to Medical Marijuana Law - Beginning in 2006, San Diego county officials had argued that federal prohibition of marijuana prevented them from implementing provisions of California's medical marijuana law. By refusing to hear the case, the U.S. Supreme Court ended the challenge, leaving San Diego compelled to follow the direction of voters and the state legislature. Law enforcement officers cannot arrest medical marijuana patients or seize their medicine simply because federal law refuses to recognize the medicinal use of marijuana.

ASA Suit Says Law Requires Federal Agencies To Use Sound Science - In a case with far-reaching implications, ASA is pursuing a test of a little-known federal law that says government agencies must use sound science and disseminate accurate scientific information. On April 14, the federal Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments from Americans for Safe Access on their right under the law to force such federal agencies as Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to correct the inaccurate information they disseminate about medical marijuana. (ASA v. Department of Health and Human Services)