Articles Posted in Marijuana

Baltimore’s top prosecutor recently announced that her office will no longer prosecute marijuana possession in the city effective immediately, and additionally will vacate nearly 5,000 prior possession cases dating back to 2011. The announcement, which was posted on the Baltimore City State’s Attorney’s website has already generated national headlines. Both CNN and the New York Times have published articles about the announcement, and local news stations were on hand to televise a follow-up press conference. The 39-year old chief prosecutor stated that pursuing marijuana possession cases offers no public safety value, erodes public trust and diverts valuable police resources away from more important cases. Additionally she stated there is no association between marijuana possession and violent crime, and that these possession cases disproportionally targeted communities of color. The office will continue to prosecute distribution and possession with intent to distribute marijuana cases as long as there is additional articulable evidence of dealing. Each of these crimes is a felony under Maryland law, but first time offenders in Baltimore City will now be offered diversion and given the opportunity to have their cases dismissed and expunged.

While some members of the community lauded the prosecutor’s decision, other government officials didn’t just jump onboard with her plan. In the press conference the prosecutor called on the local law enforcement community to join in and focus their attention and resources on violent crime, but the city’s top cop didn’t bite. The interim police commissioner publicly voiced his disapproval of the State’s Attorney’s plan, and declared that his officers will not be directed to discontinue arresting or citing individuals for possessing marijuana in the city. The interim top cop, who will be replaced in the coming months by an out of state successor, said in no uncertain terms that his officers will continue to enforce state marijuana possession laws. He went on to say that the last thing the city needs is another illegal substance, and added that he and his colleagues absolutely see a link between violent crime and marijuana. The interim commissioner didn’t explain how the two are linked other than to say that his commanders see it all the time in Baltimore.

There is little doubt that police officers in Baltimore and throughout Maryland have deemphasized marijuana possession cases. Law enforcement still uses pot as a means to gain access to vehicles and justify searches of a person, but there are fewer possession cases showing up in court. The fact that the interim police commissioner came out so strong so soon against the City State’s Attorney seems more like a defense of the department’s autonomy. The commissioner in essence was stating that no lawyer could tell him and his officers which laws to enforce and which laws to ignore. Logically speaking, there is absolutely no reason why a city cop should charge someone with possession of marijuana if the case won’t be prosecuted. It would be hard to find a worse way to spend tax payer dollars and tie up police resources than to charge someone in a case that will undoubtedly be dismissed, but politicians will be politicians. And speaking of politicians, the Mayor came out with a statement that unsurprisingly supported both sides and avoided offending either. Rather than take a stance the Mayor’s office played politics and stayed neutral.

Just one year ago dozens of medical marijuana patients lined up outside a Montgomery County dispensary to make the first legal pot purchases in Maryland. This past Saturday marked the official one-year anniversary of those historic medical cannabis sales, and business is now booming for the industry. The Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission or MMCC originally estimated first year sales to total $46 million, but now it looks like their prediction was off by a wide margin. After posting modest revenue of $1.8 million in the launch month last year, revenues then increased dramatically each month thereafter. January produced $2.6 million in revenue, February jumped to $3.8 million, and March to $5.5 million. This August and September both produced total revenues over $10 million and the numbers continue to climb. At this point it is a not so conservative estimate that sales for 2018 will top $100 million, more than twice the number thrown out by the MMCC.

The revenue prediction from the MMCC was hardly a guess and likely based on data such as polling of potential patients and comparing revenues from other states. Though regardless of their scientific approach it’s easy to see how the state drastically underestimated the power of its own program. Most people just don’t want to talk about their marijuana use to those outside their close circle of friends, and they especially don’t want to discuss it with the government. Unfair as it is, there is still a major negative stigma attached to marijuana that alcohol has managed to avoid. In America it’s still perfectly acceptable to have a few beers after work, but take a puff or two and all the sudden you are a drug user. Numerous private companies and government agencies have drug polices that prohibit marijuana use, and a soldier can easily be kicked out of the military for casual consumption. While half the states have legalized medical cannabis, the professional world hasn’t caught up, thus it’s still not completely acceptable to use this natural product with medicinal value. Patients and social users still have much to lose by talking freely about their use.

Other reasons for the staggering revenue reports have to do with geography, as Maryland is surrounded by states to the south that have not yet fully embraced the medicinal value of cannabis, and will likely be some of the last to allow legal use. Virginia and North Carolina technically have medical marijuana programs, but access is more difficult and may be limited to CBD and low THC products. Maryland allows out of state residents to obtain a license and make purchases, and the process is not difficult or expensive. In addition to physicians, nurse practitioners, dentists and other professionals have the authority to prescribe medical cannabis and many do not require lengthy and comprehensive evaluations. The state has made it quite simple to obtain approval to purchase.

Medical marijuana first became available in Maryland just 8 months ago, and after a few hiccups in the opening weeks the program is now becoming a well-oiled machine.  There are 65 dispensaries currently throughout the state, and almost all are enjoying a steady stream of business.  These dispensaries reported gross sales of $1.8 million in December and now that number is approaching $10 million.  In addition, there are now seven times more medical marijuana purchases per month than when the program first began.  Since the beginning of summer at the end of May until now the number of patients has risen 30 percent to roughly 36,000.  This number could increase another 3 to 4 times still, as experts have estimated 2 percent of the state’s total population will eventually obtain certification.  And finally, while we’re talking numbers, there are now 985 medical providers who can recommend cannabis, which is up from 709 at the end of May.  New patients are coming forward each day, and medical doctors, nurse practitioners and psychologists are jumping on board as well.

Considering it took almost 5 years from when medical marijuana first became law until it became operational, the current progress has to be considered a success.  But that doesn’t mean the system in Maryland is without flaws.  For starters medical cannabis is not covered by any health insurance plans in the state as it’s still not approved by the FDA as medical necessity.  Patients can spend anywhere from $100 to $1,500 a month for their supply of cannabis, and while state dispensaries offer high quality safe products, they don’t come cheap. Tight regulations, limits on the number of growers and distributors and long expensive delays are just some of the reasons for high cannabis prices in Maryland, and for some it can be cost prohibitive.

Not everyone can afford to spend hundreds of dollars per month cash to obtain the medicine they need to simply feel normal.  The sad truth remains that it is still cheaper to medicate with prescription narcotics that are both chemically habit forming and potentially deadly.  Some resort to growing marijuana plants in their homes or on their property to cut costs, but this is a risky strategy as personal marijuana cultivation is still a felony in Maryland.  Lawmakers recently tried to pass a bill legalizing the possession of up to an ounce of pot and allowing residents to grow up in six plants in their homes, but this bill failed to make it to the governor’s desk.  Growing even one marijuana plant is a felony the CDS manufacturing law and is punishable by up to 5 years in prison.  Law enforcement still actively investigates any tip involving marijuana manufacturing and spends taxpayer dollars performing expensive aerial surveillance missions in search of outdoor home growers.  Tips and surveillance can lead to search warrant, which then can lead to seizures and arrest.  Things only get more serious if an otherwise lawful firearm is found on the searched premises, as this can lead to a charge for possession of a firearm in drug trafficking crime, which carries a minimum mandatory prison sentence upon conviction.

The last few months have been a relatively quiet time regarding medical marijuana news stories in Maryland.  The program seems to be running smoothly and there have been no major incidents at state licensed grow houses and dispensaries such as break-ins or missing product.  The baseless concerns about the possibility of kids and vagabonds hanging out in dispensary parking lots has obviously not come to fruition, and general crime involving medical marijuana has been pretty much nonexistent.  Wait times at dispensaries has been manageable and the supply chain of flower is steady.  There are still some gripes about the inexplicable absence of edibles and other forms of the medicine, but overall the program’s first year is going well.

No news is good news for the (still) controversial medical marijuana program, so when you see the words medical marijuana in the Sun or the Post these days it’s likely to report a problem.  There appears to be a pretty big problem for an Anne Arundel County grower that was one of the first to open for business in Maryland.  Three employees of this particular grow house apparently sent sworn statements to the General Assembly, which accuse the grower of using illegal pesticides on their product in order to eliminate mold and pests. All three of the former employees were at the company last summer when they were allegedly told to spray at least one infested crop with pesticides that often were given code names by supervisors.  This practice apparently continued for months until the employees took their concerns to the in-house compliance officer and subsequently left their jobs.  Two of the three left back in April, while the third stayed on until June, all the while allegedly spraying the code named pesticides whenever told.

The company has categorically denied the use of pesticides, which were all illegal when the three employees said they were used.  A recent tweak in the law now allows the temporary use of minimum risk pesticides, but this tweak is irrelevant to the claims of foul play by the employees.  At least one dispensary from Queen Anne’s County is not buying the grow house’s denial, as their patients reportedly complained of burning eyes and throats after using their products.  Owners of this dispensary have already stopped purchasing from the Anne Arundel grower and others may join in the future.  The scandalous nature of this story is enhanced by the fact that one of the co-owners of the grow house is a prominent supporter of the governor, and even served on his transition team.  This owner was allegedly informed of the pesticide use at two meetings back in April, but he has not commented on the allegations.