Important:

Smoking is not allowed in moving vehicles - which includes cars and boats.  If you need to transport the medical cannabis, do so by putting it in the trunk or away from the driver in the very back of the car if there is no trunk.  Smoking while driving is dangerous.

Join Norml

and ASA(Americans for Safe Access) to help support the changes that California has made in the law regarding medical cannabis use.  This law, or issues surrounding it, are constantly being challenged. Without these agencies and many others like them, there would not be any effort to help maintain the functionality of the law.

The Law ( California laws, prop  215, sb420)

California Laws                                                               

The following are the two laws which are responsible for the change in cannabis law that we see in California.  They are extremely important to understand for all those who wish to become familiar with medical marijuana.  We recommend that you read them carefully and ask questions about these laws at your visit in order to be fully aware of your rights and limitations under the law.  Many of the problems  can arise when  individuals are not familiar with these restrictions.

There are many misconceptions about the law  that are held by the lay public but as well as by professional in the justice system.  Reading the following laws/propositions will help you become proactive with your own care.

Proposition 215

THE COMPASSIONATE USE ACT OF 1996

(this LAW IS WHAT STARTED THE CHANGE IN THE WAY CANNABIS WAS USED IN THIS STATE.)

Section 1. Section 11362.5 is added to the California Health and Safety Code, to read:

(a-b) This section shall be known and may be cited as the Compassionate Use Act of 1996.

    (1) the people of the State of California hereby find and declare that the purposes of the Compassionate Use Act of 1996 are as follows:

    (A) To ensure that seriously ill Californians have the right to obtain and use marijuana for medical purposes where that medical use is deemed appropriate and has been recommended by a physician who has determined that the persons health would benefit from the use of marijuana in the treatment of cancer, anorexia, AIDS, chronic pain, spasticity, glaucoma, arthritis, migraine or any other illness for which marijuana provides relief.

     (B) To ensure that patients and their primary caregivers who obtain and use marijuana for medical purposes upon the recommendation of a physician are not subject to criminal prosecution or sanction.

     (C) To encourage the federal and state governments to implement a plan for the safe and affordable distribution of marijuana to all patients in medical need of marijuana.

     (2) Nothing in this act shall be construed to supersede legislation prohibiting persons from engaging in conduct that endangers others, nor to condone the diversion of marijuana for non-medical purposes.

     (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no physician in this state shall be punished, or denied any right or privilege, for having recommended marijuana to a patient for medical purposes.

     (d) Section 11357, relating to the possession of marijuana, and Section 11358, relating to the cultivation of marijuana, shall not apply to a patient, or to a patient's primary caregiver, who possesses or cultivates marijuana for the personal medical purposes of the patient upon the written or oral recommendation or approval of a physician.

     (e) For the purposes of this section, Primary caregiver means the individual designated by the person exempted under this act who has consistently assumed responsibility for the housing, health or safety of that person.

Sec. 2. If any provision of this measure or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, that invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of the measure which can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions of this measure are severable.

SB420

Background

California voter passed proposition 215 in 1996, which declared that qualified patients should be exempt from the state laws determining that marijuana use and possession is against the law, and that patients should not be punished for possession or cultivation.  These guidelines were lacking in specifics, so the proponents wrote SB420, which was signed into law by Governor Davis and took effect Jan 1 2004.

• SB420 also states that patients suffering from:

• Cancer

• Aids

• Anorexia

• Cachexia

• Insomnia

• Chronic pain

• Arthritis

• Migraine

• Glaucoma

• Persistent muscle spasm (including , but not limited to spasms associated with multiple sclerosis)

• Seizures

• Severe nausea

• Or any other persistent or chronic medical symptom that either:

• Substantially limits the ability of the person to conduct one or more  major life activities as defined in the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.

• Or

• If not alleviated, may cause serious harm to the patient’s safety or physical or mental health. These patients can legally use and possess marijuana with a licensed physician’s recommendation.  This statement by the physician must be carried by the patient at all times and is to be shown to law enforcement in case of an encounter.  State Law enforcement (including CHP) generally recognizes these statements as a valid exemption to the state laws.

• Patients who qualify and are recommended are allowed:

• To possess 8 oz  ( ½  pound) of dried cannabis on their person or in their vehicle.

• To grow 6 adult plants.  May have 12 young plants, must cut to 6 when flowers appear.  Plants must be grown INDOORS.  “Patient must post their physician statement right beside or on the plant container, in plain view".

• It is not legal to smoke while operating any motor vehicle, on land or otherwise!

• When transporting medicine, keep it is the trunk!!  If there is no trunk, keep the medicine out of sight and out of reach of the driver to prevent any suspicion of DUI

• It is not legal to smoke or grow within 1000 ft of a school, daycare, or school bus stop. 

• It is not legal to buy or sell marijuana, even under state laws!!  To avoid the appearance of of intent to sell, patients should keep their medicine in the original container.  Do not divide quantities!  The presence of scales, multiple packages of medicine, large amounts of cash may give police the evidence they need to charge someone with intent to distribute.

• SB420 provides for collective or cooperative dispensaries that are caregivers for patients.  These dispensaries will need a copy of all of their patients’ statements and are designated as caregivers.  This allows them to grow and process all patients’ allotted amounts of medicine.  The patients then reimburse the cooperative of the cost of growing and processing the medicine.  Some collectives are just that, and the medicine is shared equally among the patients without concern for monetary reimbursement. 

• Please refer to the California NORML or Americans for Safe Access activist groups for more detailed legal information.  They can also provide legal referrals when needed.