Marijuana Laws

Driving Under Influence of Marijuana and Implied Consent in Michigan

Published on: January 24, 2017 | by Patrick Barone

Driving Under Influence of Marijuana and Implied Consent in Michigan

If you’ve used medical marijuana in Michigan, drive your car, and are stopped by the police, you can be charged with OWI or “operating while intoxicated.” This is because Michigan’s drunk driving statute, found at Michigan Compiled Laws 257.625, indicates in part as follows:

As used in this section, “operating while intoxicated” means any of the following:

(a) The person is under the influence of alcoholic liquor, a controlled substance, or other intoxicating substance or a combination of alcoholic liquor, a controlled substance, or other intoxicating substance.

Michigan Court Finds Search Producing Marijuana is Unlawful

Published on: October 13, 2016 | by Patrick Barone

If you are charged in Michigan with possession of Marijuana and/or Possession of Marijuana with Intent to Deliver, and the search producing the drugs is unlawful, your case can be dismissed. That’s effectively what happened in the case of People v. Mahdi, where Mr. Mahdi was convicted of two counts of possession with intent to deliver less than 50 grams of a controlled substance, MCL 333.7401(2)(a)(iv), and one count of possession with intent to deliver less than 5 kilograms of marijuana, MCL 333.7401(2)(d)(iii).

In investigating this crime, the police found out where Mr. Mahdi lived, then tricked his mother into giving them consent to search her house where he lived. The police did this because consent is an exception to the Fourth Amendment search warrant requirement. In searching the home, they did not find any drugs but did find keys, a cell phone and a wallet. This led the police to the apartment where they did find the drugs that became the basis of the felony drug charges. Also, while in possession of the phone, the police were able to retrieve calls from individuals ostensibly attempting to purchase drugs.

The court held that Mr. Mahdi’s mother had the authority or ability to consent, but because the police said they were going to search for drugs, but found keys, wallet and phone, the search exceeded the consent given. Her consent was for the limited purpose of uncovering drugs. Thus, the wallet, keys and phone were not lawfully seized by the police.

History Repeated: The Resemblance Between Medical Marijuana and Alcohol Prescriptions During Prohibition

Published on: September 8, 2016 | by Patrick Barone

In history there’s an adage that what’s old is new again. This certainly seems to be the case with Michigan’s Medical Marijuana act which allows a caregiver to legally sell marijuana to a patient bearing a valid prescription. Otherwise, it is illegal to sell, use or possess marijuana.

During prohibition it was similarly illegal to sell, use or possess alcohol. One exception to this prohibition was the alcohol prescription. According to the Smithsonian Institution’s web site, during prohibition your doctor could write you a prescription for booze. This would allow “patients” to purchase a pint of booze every ten days!

History buffs will be interested to know that during prohibition a particularly creative lawyer by the name of George Remus took full advantage of this “loophole.” First, he used his contacts in Washington to pass laws that he could take advantage of to build a mostly legal business empire. To do this, he purchased all the standing liquor, meaning that already produced by distillers around the country. He used his connections to get “withdraw permits” and he arranged to have this withdrawn booze sold to drug companies that he also owned. This booze would then be sold to pharmacies that would fill the alcohol prescriptions. In this way Remus became both buyer and seller, thereby assuring the uninterrupted availability of alcohol to anyone who wanted it. To learn more, watch Ken Burns documentary about Prohibition.

Drivers with Pot in Their System up by Fifty Percent Since 2007

Published on: September 2, 2016 | by Patrick Barone

According to the Government statistics, (National Highway Safety Administration), in the last forty years, the number of drunk drivers on the road is down by more than 70%! However, based on statistics from the last seven years, the number of driver with pot in their system is up by 50%!

With DUI alcohol arrests significantly down everywhere the government and police agencies, including those in Michigan, are turning their attention to arresting DUI drug drivers; particularly those drivers who are “under the influence of marijuana.”

There are many problems with the plan to arrest more Michigan DUI marijuana cases. First, there is no reliable method to determine, at the roadside, if someone is under the influence of marijuana. Still, this was the basis for the recent change in Michigan DUI law that changed the law of roadside testing.