10 Mar Landmark Ruling on Out-of-State Medical Marijuana Cards in AZ
Todd Coolidge of Coolidge Law Firm, serving the Greater Metro-Phoenix Arizona area, has won another landmark case! Recently, The Court of Appeals made a ruling on his oral argument in the case of a California man traveling in Arizona with a physician recommendation for cannabis. His client won!
The ruling was also covered in an article by azcentral.com, part of the USA Today Network. The following is an overview of that article.
The question in the case of The State v. Kemmish was whether the Arizona Medical Marijuana Act (which was narrowly passed by voters in 2010) allows travelers with approved medical marijuana cards from other states to possess cannabis in the state of Arizona.
On March 15, 2018, a decision made by a three-judge panel in Arizona ruled in favor of the appellee (when the respondent in a case appeals to a higher court) by choosing to uphold the earlier ruling of a La Paz County Superior Court judge. The Panel determined, “Whether another state’s medical marijuana law requires an identification card, a physician’s letter, or some other documentation is immaterial, so long as the documentation is sufficient under the law of the issuing state.”
Tourists to the Sun State should be aware, however, while you will not be convicted for possessing marijuana with a valid medical marijuana card, it is still illegal for out-of-state cardholders to purchase from Arizona dispensaries.
Coolidge Law Firm is tough, caring, and thorough. If you have questions about cannabis laws in Arizona or about any other aspects of criminal law, we’re ready to talk. We’re qualified criminal specialists, and we win cases.
Images used under creative commons license – commercial use (3/5/2018) Jurassic Blueberries (Flickr)