Maryland General Assembly adjourns without passing caregiver protections
Last year, MPP and our allies helped pass legislation giving patients an affirmative defense against charges of possessing marijuana. Plans were in place to expand on that law by providing for regulated access to marijuana, but after a veto threat from Gov. O’Malley, a compromise was struck and the bill was amended to extend the affirmative defense to caregivers. Unfortunately, although both the Senate and House passed their own versions of the bill, the legislature has adjourned without the two chambers passing the same bill. The bill ended as collateral damage to failed budget negotiations took up most of the session’s last day.
It’s not all bad news — two bills that reduce the penalty for possession of less than 10 grams of marijuana and allow those charged with possession of marijuana to avoid being jailed while awaiting bail did pass. You can read MPP’s summary of marijuana policy reform in Maryland in 2012 by clicking here, or on the link to your right. The bills are headed to Gov. Martin O’Malley’s desk, so please ask him to sign them.
Marijuana laws in Maryland
For medical purposes:
Patients whose doctors have diagnosed them with a debilitating medical condition (including a condition that is “severe and resistant to conventional medicine”) are subject to arrest, but can assert the medical use of marijuana as an affirmative defense at trial. In addition to having a debilitating condition, patients will need to show that the doctor who made the diagnosis was one with whom the patient has an ongoing, bona fide physician-patient relationship, and that marijuana is likely to provide him or her with therapeutic or palliative relief. Finally, the defense is not available to anyone in possession of more than one ounce of marijuana or who uses marijuana in a public place.
For patients who don’t qualify for the full affirmative defense, there is also a sentencing mitigation whereby, upon conviction, the patient can present evidence of “medical necessity.” If the court agrees, the maximum penalty that can be imposed is a $100 fine.
The law does not include caregivers, dispensaries, or home cultivation to provide patients with a safe source of their medicine. Watch this video and then call Gov. O’Malley to help us change that:
For non-medical purposes:
If a bill passed earlier this year is signed by Gov. O'Malley, beginning October 1, possession of under 10 grams of marijuana is punishable by up to 90 days in jail and a fine of up to $500. More than that can carry up to a year in jail, in addition to a fine of up to $1,000. Troublingly, the arrest rate for African-Americans in Maryland is almost 20% higher than the national average and is over three times that of whites in the state.For more on the negative consequences of Maryland's marijuana laws, check out this thorough analysis from Jon Gettman, Ph.D.
