Title:
TX: Rep. Naishtat reintroduces medical marijuana defense bill
Message:
On Friday, Austin Representative Elliott Naishtat introduced legislation that would give medical marijuana patients an affirmative defense in court should they be arrested on charges of marijuana possession. The bill has been introduced in previous sessions, but patients are still waiting for the bill to be given a hearing in the relevant House committee.
Ask your legislators to support medical marijuana in Texas.
If passed, HB 594 would enact protections for physicians who make written or oral statements to their patients that marijuana would likely provide benefits that outweigh any risks. Patients whose doctors make such statements would be able to present evidence of the statement in court if charged with possession of marijuana and have their charges dismissed.
This bill is far from perfect; patients would not be protected from arrest and would have no legal way to obtain marijuana. Still, it’s a significant improvement over current Texas law, and at the very least, it warrants a fair committee hearing. Please ask your legislators to support this bill. When you’re done, forward this to a friend and ask them to do the same.
