Three medical marijuana patients have sued the city of Great Falls over the city's recent ban on medical marijuana caregivers.
According to a lawsuit filed Tuesday in Cascade County District Court, Great Falls medical marijuana patients Algy Thain, David Sears and Kraig Jackson say the city commission's June 1 decision to ban any land use for the purposes of medical marijuana unlawfully prohibits them from growing their own medical marijuana and causes them "substantial hardship" by making it difficult to obtain the drug.
"The main argument is that the local city government is a vassal of the state and has a duty to enforce state laws, not federal," said Carl Jensen, the Great Falls attorney representing the three plaintiffs in the case. "The (city commission) has overreached its authority, inhibiting my client's access to their medication."
The ban is set to go into effect July 1.
A group called Montanans for Responsible Legislation said Tuesday's lawsuit is the "first of many" to be filed in the state.
"Our most ill, the very people this law intends to protect, can no longer wait for equitable treatment and justice," Douglas Chyatte, of Montanans for Responsible Legislation.
Great Falls City Attorney James Santoro did not immediately return a call requesting comment on the lawsuit.
The Montana Medical Marijuana Act, which voters overwhelmingly passed through a 2004 ballot initiative, has become one of the hottest issues facing lawmakers as hundreds of new patients sign up each month. The state has seen a fivefold increase in new medical marijuana cardholders in the past year.
As a result, municipalities throughout the state are instituting bans or moratoriums on medical marijuana caregiver shops and state lawmakers are considering ways to reform the law in the next legislative session. One state senator has proposed an outright repeal of the law that allows chronically ill patients to use marijuana.
Groups on both sides of the issue agree that the current law is overly broad and needs to be modified, but Montanans for Responsible Legislation said patients should not be forced to forgo medical marijuana in the meantime.
"While it is not our intent to create an acrimonious or adversarial relationship with the elected officials of Great Falls, we realize many of our ill do not have the luxury of waiting for the wheels of the bureaucracy to churn slowly towards a solution," Chyatte said.
NewsHawk: Ganjarden: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: Great Falls Tribune
Author: JOHN ADAMS
Copyright: 2010 Great Falls Tribune
* Thanks to MedicalNeed for submitting this article
According to a lawsuit filed Tuesday in Cascade County District Court, Great Falls medical marijuana patients Algy Thain, David Sears and Kraig Jackson say the city commission's June 1 decision to ban any land use for the purposes of medical marijuana unlawfully prohibits them from growing their own medical marijuana and causes them "substantial hardship" by making it difficult to obtain the drug.
"The main argument is that the local city government is a vassal of the state and has a duty to enforce state laws, not federal," said Carl Jensen, the Great Falls attorney representing the three plaintiffs in the case. "The (city commission) has overreached its authority, inhibiting my client's access to their medication."
The ban is set to go into effect July 1.
A group called Montanans for Responsible Legislation said Tuesday's lawsuit is the "first of many" to be filed in the state.
"Our most ill, the very people this law intends to protect, can no longer wait for equitable treatment and justice," Douglas Chyatte, of Montanans for Responsible Legislation.
Great Falls City Attorney James Santoro did not immediately return a call requesting comment on the lawsuit.
The Montana Medical Marijuana Act, which voters overwhelmingly passed through a 2004 ballot initiative, has become one of the hottest issues facing lawmakers as hundreds of new patients sign up each month. The state has seen a fivefold increase in new medical marijuana cardholders in the past year.
As a result, municipalities throughout the state are instituting bans or moratoriums on medical marijuana caregiver shops and state lawmakers are considering ways to reform the law in the next legislative session. One state senator has proposed an outright repeal of the law that allows chronically ill patients to use marijuana.
Groups on both sides of the issue agree that the current law is overly broad and needs to be modified, but Montanans for Responsible Legislation said patients should not be forced to forgo medical marijuana in the meantime.
"While it is not our intent to create an acrimonious or adversarial relationship with the elected officials of Great Falls, we realize many of our ill do not have the luxury of waiting for the wheels of the bureaucracy to churn slowly towards a solution," Chyatte said.
NewsHawk: Ganjarden: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: Great Falls Tribune
Author: JOHN ADAMS
Copyright: 2010 Great Falls Tribune
* Thanks to MedicalNeed for submitting this article
