AZ Gov sues Feds for clarification on MMJ

[hazy]

This link is to a memo from Arizona Governor Jan Brewer's office saying that the State AG is going to file suit in Federal Court this week to see whether or not the state's mmj law, the AMMA, is 'legal' or not.
More ripples/waves from the Letter to AzDHS director Will Humble from Arizona's US Attorney Dennis Burke, saying that the Feds would 'vigorously enforce' the Controlled Substances Act concerning medical marijuana.
I guess if the feds say no, our politicians will scrap the AMMA as an 'illegal' law.

http://azgovernor.gov/dms/upload/PR_52411_GovBrewerAGHorneAnnounceSuitAMMA.pdf

-------------------------------

State of Arizona
Janice K. Brewer Office of the Governor Main Phone: 602-542-4331
Governor 1700 West Washington Street, Phoenix, AZ 85007 Facsimile: 602-542-7601
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Tasya Peterson
May 24, 2011 (602) 542-1361
tpeterson@az.gov

Governor Brewer, Attorney General Horne Announce Suit Regarding
Arizona Medical Marijuana Act
Court Action Needed to Determine Whether AMMA Violates Federal Law

PHOENIX – Governor Jan Brewer today announced that she has directed Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne to file suit by the end of the week seeking a declaratory judgment from a federal court regarding the legality of the Arizona Medical Marijuana Act (AMMA).

“For the state employees charged with administering the medical marijuana program or the Arizonans who intend to participate as consumers, it’s important that we receive court guidance as to whether they are at risk for federal prosecution,” said Governor Brewer. “As explained in a recent letter from the U.S. Attorney for Arizona, the federal government considers marijuana a controlled substance. Arizonans deserve clarity on an issue with such dire legal implications.”

The Arizona Department of Health Services had been diligently implementing voter-approved AMMA provisions until it received a letter, dated May 2, 2011, from U.S. Attorney Dennis Burke. Burke’s letter warned that marijuana remains a Schedule I Controlled Substance, meaning that “growing, distributing and possessing marijuana, in any capacity, other than as a federally authorized research program, is a violation of federal law regardless of state laws that purport to permit such activities.” Burke declared that his office would “vigorously prosecute individuals and organizations that participate in unlawful manufacturing, distribution and marketing activity involving marijuana, even if such activities are permitted under state law.”

The U.S. Attorney’s letter raises significant questions about the legality of both the AMMA and related Arizona Administrative Code provisions. In particular, Governor Brewer is concerned for the vulnerability of state employees charged with administering the AMMA, including, but not limited to, the issuance of dispensary licenses and qualified-patient registration cards. If a federal prosecutor were to decide that such activities are contrary to federal law, state employees may be subject to federal prosecution.

Medical marijuana also presents uncertainty for state law enforcement. The U.S. Attorney's letter calls into question the ability of the Arizona Department of Public Safety (DPS) to maintain federal grant monies, the department’s enforcement activities and federal task force actions, and the employment status of DPS employees who could be in violation of federal law while participating as consumers in the AMMA.

For these reasons and others, a declaratory judgment action regarding medical marijuana in Arizona is necessary to determine whether AMMA violates federal law and, therefore, is void.

“The State of Arizona has worked to follow the wishes of voters,” said Governor Brewer. “But I won’t stand aside while state employees and average Arizonans acting in good faith are unwittingly put at risk. In light of the explicit warnings on this issue offered by Arizona’s U.S. Attorney, as well as many other federal prosecutors, clarity and judicial direction are in order.”
###

 

[paladin420]

Don't really kno what to say . I thought she had balls. Seems to me mmj would fit right in with what the are tryin to do on the border. Even though the feds are sueing.

 

[Cojito]

over the years conservative politicians in Arizona have demonstrated they care little about federal law. they just don't want Cannabis in their state. never have. so this letter probably makes them quite happy. and it's excellent cover for them to stop the new law. this way they don't look like they're trying to thwart the will of the people. they get to blame the feds, something they love to do.

curious, did other MMJ states get the same letter? (- or is Az special?) what did these other states do in response? did they ignore it? fight it?

 

[groer]

This is pure political bullshit, a bitch with no balls and no brains. I've been waiting for weeks now for the dhs to fix their site so I can be added as a caregiver, and now this bs...

 

[kmk420kali]

San Diego and San Bernardino Counties already tried this...took it to the SCOTUS, and they refused to hear their argument--
Feds can still bust...but the State Elected Officials, must obey State Law--

 

[hazy]

over the years conservative politicians in Arizona have demonstrated they care little about federal law. they just don't want Cannabis in their state. never have. so this letter probably makes them quite happy. and it's excellent cover for them to stop the new law. this way they don't look like they're trying to thwart the will of the people. they get to blame the feds, something they love to do.

curious, did other MMJ states get the same letter? (- or is Az special?) what did these other states do in response? did they ignore it? fight it?

US Attorneys around the country have sent threatening letters to assorted state governors, and department directors. Rhode Island's governor just scrapped that states mmj law because of the letter he got. In Washington state, their governor is trying to thwart the will of the people because of the threatening letter she got. etc, etc.

But let's face it, We the Arizona people don't give a shit about what the fed gov wants, as folks have pointed out above. Neither does our governor, when it comes to good conservative stuff. But for marijuana, she has taken a way out that she hopes will get rid of MMJ without her being the bad guy to the voters.

Here's the quote that tells the real story:

Referring to herself and state Attorney General Tom Horne taking a neutral stance, not taking a position on the subject while it is in judicial review, she said, "We will not take a substantive position, either to thwart the will of the voters ... nor to try to impose our own policy views."

That statement makes it clear that their 'policy views' are in conflict with the will of the voters.

 

[Madrus Rose]

3 Deputys under 'America's Toughest Sheriff' Joe Arpaio, busted for role in drug & human smuggling ring

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/nat...busted_for_role_in_drug__human.html?r=topnews

Three Arizona cops smuggled drugs and humans and laundered money for a vast narco-trafficking ring, all under the nose of the self-proclaimed "America's toughest sheriff," authorities said.

Gruff...gruff..gruff gruff !!

One of the moles, a female corrections officer, was carrying the love child of a cartel capitán, and all three were accused of leaking sheriff's office tips to help the ring guide smugglers, drugs and cash through the area from Mexico, authorities said.

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said Deputy Alfredo Navarette, 37, and two corrections officers, Sylvia Najera, 25, and Marcella Hernandez, 28, were among 12 people rounded up in Tuesday's sting.

The early morning raids capped a year-long investigation into the ring, which is suspected of funneling loads of heroin into the Valley area west of Phoenix.

mi no hable Englais

Navarette, a 10-year veteran of Arpaio's anti-human smuggling unit, was arrested when he showed up for work, and a sweep of his apartment found two illegal immigrants hiding there.

Arpaio said Hernandez was eight-months pregnant with the child of Francisco Arce-Torres, the operation's ringleader, who has ties to Mexico's notorious Sinaloa cartel.

She and Najera were busted on their way to work at the county's largest jail, and cops said Hernandez had nearly $20,000 on her.

The arrests were a blow to the tough-talking Sheriff Arpaio, who has been resisting calls to step down amid allegations of corruption, misspending and racial profiling in his office.

"We have enough violence without having moles in my own organization that put my deputies in danger," Arpaio said.

The smuggling ring moved $56,000 of heroin into the area each week, cops said, and each of the dirty cops played a crucial role in keeping the operation underground.

Arce-Torres, the Phoenix-based ringleader, coordinated smugglers through the valley from his family's heroin operation in Mexico.

The smack was stashed and cut at two drophouses run by Hernandez, the Arizona Republic reported.

Investigators said Navarette fortified Acre-Torres' house with surveillance cameras, registered cars for the gang and harbored runners at his house.

Meanwhile, Navarette and Najera, the other corrections officer, set up a shell company to launder dirty drug money, the paper said.

All three are accused of using dozens of other tactics to help the ring dodge the law.

Navarette, in particular, used his anti-trafficking expertise to doublecross his own department.

"He repeatedly supplied details about the illegal-immigration crime-suppression operation to leaders of the drug-trafficking organization," Arpaio said.

Navarette was booked on conspiracy, money laundering and human smuggling charges. His bail was set at $1 million.

Hernandez was booked on similar charges and had bail set at $2 million, while Najera faced money-laundering and other charges.

With News Wire Services

 

[budlover123]

... saying that the Feds would 'vigorously enforce' the Controlled Substances Act concerning medical marijuana....

well guess what fed, the controlled substances act states that a schedule 1 drug has absolutely no medical value, is obviously not a classification for a natural plant that some 14+ states have "medical" laws specifically concerning that plant. No need to worry, right?

They even called it medical marijuana, do they even know the laws they claim to wish to enforce?

 

[hazy]

Well, Az AG Tom Horne has filed the lawsuit with the feds yesterday to get 'clarification' of whether or not the AMMA violates fed law. Which of course it does, so... I almost hope that hey shut down the whole registration process. Then a doctors rec and a filled out app from the state become your 'card.'

Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery the other day also advised the county not to approve any dispensaries in Maricopa County. The voter's will means nothing to these people. Hopefully they'll feel it at the polls next election.


Hey Madrus, yep, these three people in the MC Sheriff's office moved more drugs(heroin, meth) into Phoenix and caused more damage than all the 'pot shops'= dispensaries, the "medical" marijuana "patients"= patients, and the "legal dope dealers"= caregivers, combined.

 

[Tony Aroma]

I don't believe "suing the feds" is the right way to put it. As I understand it, it's more like suing the people of AZ. The governor is not filing suit in federal court in defense of the law voted in by the people of her state. She is filing suit to have the law overturned, contrary to the wishes of a majority of her constituents.

Bottom line: Instead of defending the people for whom she works agains the feds, this governor is selling those people out to the feds. As they say, with friends like that...

 

[danut]

I think there is a real possibility of this going against the Governor.

In which case, they will help to solidify the law in AZ and the rest of the mmj states.

 

[Donald Trump]

3 Deputys under 'America's Toughest Sheriff' Joe Arpaio, busted for role in drug & human smuggling ring

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/nat...busted_for_role_in_drug__human.html?r=topnews

Three Arizona cops smuggled drugs and humans and laundered money for a vast narco-trafficking ring, all under the nose of the self-proclaimed "America's toughest sheriff," authorities said.

Gruff...gruff..gruff gruff !!

One of the moles, a female corrections officer, was carrying the love child of a cartel capitán, and all three were accused of leaking sheriff's office tips to help the ring guide smugglers, drugs and cash through the area from Mexico, authorities said.

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said Deputy Alfredo Navarette, 37, and two corrections officers, Sylvia Najera, 25, and Marcella Hernandez, 28, were among 12 people rounded up in Tuesday's sting.

The early morning raids capped a year-long investigation into the ring, which is suspected of funneling loads of heroin into the Valley area west of Phoenix.

mi no hable Englais

Navarette, a 10-year veteran of Arpaio's anti-human smuggling unit, was arrested when he showed up for work, and a sweep of his apartment found two illegal immigrants hiding there.

Arpaio said Hernandez was eight-months pregnant with the child of Francisco Arce-Torres, the operation's ringleader, who has ties to Mexico's notorious Sinaloa cartel.

She and Najera were busted on their way to work at the county's largest jail, and cops said Hernandez had nearly $20,000 on her.

The arrests were a blow to the tough-talking Sheriff Arpaio, who has been resisting calls to step down amid allegations of corruption, misspending and racial profiling in his office.

"We have enough violence without having moles in my own organization that put my deputies in danger," Arpaio said.

The smuggling ring moved $56,000 of heroin into the area each week, cops said, and each of the dirty cops played a crucial role in keeping the operation underground.

Arce-Torres, the Phoenix-based ringleader, coordinated smugglers through the valley from his family's heroin operation in Mexico.

The smack was stashed and cut at two drophouses run by Hernandez, the Arizona Republic reported.

Investigators said Navarette fortified Acre-Torres' house with surveillance cameras, registered cars for the gang and harbored runners at his house.

Meanwhile, Navarette and Najera, the other corrections officer, set up a shell company to launder dirty drug money, the paper said.

All three are accused of using dozens of other tactics to help the ring dodge the law.

Navarette, in particular, used his anti-trafficking expertise to doublecross his own department.

"He repeatedly supplied details about the illegal-immigration crime-suppression operation to leaders of the drug-trafficking organization," Arpaio said.

Navarette was booked on conspiracy, money laundering and human smuggling charges. His bail was set at $1 million.

Hernandez was booked on similar charges and had bail set at $2 million, while Najera faced money-laundering and other charges.

With News Wire Services

FUCK THAT SHERIFF I CANT STAND HIM

 

[hazy]

Yeah DT, ^^You don't want to end up in his jail, or his 'tent city'. He did have a pretty funny show called "J. L. Spa." or something like that. They'd send guys with warrants invitations for some free 'luxury spa treatment'. Then after the female deputy started the massage, etc, they'd get him to sing about how much he loved going to 'JL'. (say it faster they'd say) then they'd bust him and get a good laugh.

A day or two ago in or near Tucson, Pima County Sheriffs shot and killed a guy in a raid of 4 homes that netted them 1 ounce of marijuana. They shot the guy 60 times.

 

[hazy]

medical-pot-dispensary-applications-denied

Scottsdale

Medical-pot dispensary applications to be denied
by Mary K. Reinhart - Jun. 1, 2011 12:00 AM
The Arizona Republic

State health Director Will Humble was putting the finishing touches Tuesday on the letter he will give to prospective medical-marijuana dispensary owners when he declines their applications.

Though Humble and his staff have spent months preparing for today's start of the dispensary application process, the federal lawsuit filed Friday by Gov. Jan Brewer has put the kibosh on it.

"We'll explain to them that we're unable to accept applications right now and thank them for their efforts," he said. "At least they'll have something when they leave to document that they tried."

The first letter likely will be handed to attorney Ryan Hurley and his clients, who plan to try filing a dispensary application this morning at the state Department of Health Services' headquarters and be turned away. Hurley said getting denied will set the stage for a lawsuit against the state for failing to implement the provisions of the voter-approved medical-marijuana law.

Humble is a plaintiff in the federal lawsuit, which seeks a declaratory judgment to determine if the new law conflicts with federal drug statutes and whether compliance with Arizona's voter-approved medical-pot law shields state employees, patients, dispensary owners and others from federal prosecution.

The state was to accept dispensary applications throughout the month of June and issue up to 126 permits by August. But Humble put the process on hold Friday, saying the court filing and advice from the Attorney General's Office made it legally dicey. The health department continues to accept applications for caregiver and patient ID cards as required under the law.

Hurley and his clients will not have an official application to submit, even though state rules require it, because Humble never posted one on the health department's website.

Attorney Lisa Hauser, who wrote Proposition 203 and represents several would-be dispensary owners, said she doesn't need to be turned away from Humble to take legal action. She said some of her clients may choose to file suit against the state for "failure to perform its duties under the act."

The federal lawsuit names U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and U.S. Attorney Dennis Burke as defendants, along with voters who supported the ballot measure, patients and would-be dispensary owners. It contends that letters sent over the past several months by federal prosecutors have cast doubt on the legality of Arizona's law and the liability of state employees and others who abide by it. Arizona is among 16 states with medical-marijuana laws and all of them conflict with federal law, which outlaws the cultivation, sale and use of pot.

Dr. Nicholas Flores, a Scottsdale oncologist and potential dispensary medical director, said he agreed to be a defendant in the lawsuit because he believes patients deserve clarity on the issue. Federal prosecutors have said they won't prosecute patients but could go after growers and sellers.

"I'd like to see some kind of resolution for my patients," he said. "I'm tired of watching my 70-year-old patients try to figure out how to score an ounce in an alley."

Reach the reporter at 602-444-8603.

 

[Madrus Rose]

On the positive note the girls Sundevil Softball team is in the playoffs , just rolling over everyone & up 10 over Florida in the first of the championships . (make that 11-0)
http://bayarea.sbnation.com/2011/6/...-championship-2011-tv-schedule-asu-vs-florida

This was a significant developement , the 2page study done for the UN stating that the Drug War has Failed & signed off by many noteables including former UN Secretary General & Reagan's Seretary of State George Shulz & Paul Volker ..you guys may not have caught :

Drug War Has Failed And Governments Should Explore Legalizing Marijuana, Says Report
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/01/drug-war-has-failed-report_n_870096.html

NEW YORK — The global war on drugs has failed and governments should explore legalizing marijuana and other controlled substances, according to a commission that includes former heads of state, a former U.N. secretary-general and a business mogul.
A new report by the Global Commission on Drug Policy argues that the decades-old "global war on drugs has failed, with devastating consequences for individuals and societies around the world." The 24-page paper will be released Thursday.

"Political leaders and public figures should have the courage to articulate publicly what many of them acknowledge privately: that the evidence overwhelmingly demonstrates that repressive strategies will not solve the drug problem, and that the war on drugs has not, and cannot, be won," the report said.

The 19-member commission includes former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan and former U.S. official George P. Schultz, who held cabinet posts under U.S. Presidents Ronald Reagan and Richard Nixon. Others include former U.S. Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker, former presidents of Mexico, Brazil and Colombia, writers Carlos Fuentes and Mario Vargas Llosa, U.K. business mogul Richard Branson and the current prime minister of Greece.

Instead of punishing users who the report says "do no harm to others," the commission argues that governments should end criminalization of drug use, experiment with legal models that would undermine organized crime syndicates and offer health and treatment services for drug-users in need.

The commission called for drug policies based on methods empirically proven to reduce crime, lead to better health and promote economic and social development.
The commission is especially critical of the United States, which its members say must lead changing its anti-drug policies from being guided by anti-crime approaches to ones rooted in healthcare and human rights

 

[Madrus Rose]

FUCK THAT SHERIFF I CANT STAND HIM

He's a throw back pig , no two ways about it...saw a special up here in Cali & he was walking thru the tents explaining how tuff it was in Tent City ...he stopped to ask one young sassy white kid how he liked it trying to make a point for the camera's & the kid said "fine, this was easy not a problem " ! lol

Should have seen the scowl on his face & he asked the kid if he'd like to do more time , which he replied no sir i'm out in 3days . You could tell all the older black guys were all shrinking back , yes massa , no massa ..but this kid blew his photo op bigtime .

Right out of "Cool Hand Luke" , the fat bastard was pissed off but the tents did save money for normally frugal thinking AZ's

 

[easyrasta]

hes our bull conner