Archived articles from The Marijuana Patients Organization (marijuanapatients.org), an advocacy site that was widely popular in the United States from 2010- 2017.
Medical Marijuana Politics in Michigan
Medical Marijuana has been a hot topic in Michigan since the 1970s. For decades Michigan’s citizens, politicians and interest groups have debated whether medical marijuana is a necessary drug for sufferers of debilitating illnesses or a dangerous drug that must be forbidden for its cancerous and memory affecting properties. In this time, interest groups on both sides of the issue have weighed in on the debate and pushed toward various policy reforms on this issue. The Michigan legislature has also taken sides on this issue. While this does not tend to be a strongly partisan issue in Michigan, individuals within the Michigan legislature clearly have mutually exclusive intentions for medical marijuana’s future in Michigan. In the end, the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act was passed in 2008. This was viewed as a win by many medical marijuana supporters, but the issues of regulation and implementation of the act are still being discussed and many caretakers and patients still commonly experience entanglements with law enforcement over grey areas of the act. One Flint area caretaker explained his point of view by saying, “the local ordnances still discriminate and profile against the people who use medical marihuana. Rather then looking at it as a medication, they are still viewing it as a common street drug rather then educating the authorities and society about marihuana.” Overall, the issue of medical marijuana is one that has divided Michigan interest groups and policymakers for decades and will likely continue to be a divisive issue for years to come.
Oakland county court houses are prosecuting many individuals for legally possessing doctor prescribed marijuana, and a handful of judges are not allowing any one to mention the words Medical Marijuana at trial. In addition any reference that the defendant is legally allowed the use of marijuana prescribed by a doctor will not be permitted, an effort spearheaded by prosecutor Jessica Cooper. Oakland county (Cooper) is abusing power.