CA is giving back the seized weed.

In a story back in December,  I asked the question: What happens to the medical marijuana seized from Answerdam Alternative Care now that a jury has found the operator of the collective, Jovan Jackson, not guilty on all marijuana-related charges?

There was no clear answer, though attorneys close to the issue argued that the marijuana should be treated no differently than other seized items and therefore, yes, it oughta be returned to the patients of the collective.

According to the LA Times, on Friday, a Superior Court judge in Los Angeles agreed with that argument and ordered the California Highway Patrol to return 60 pounds of marijuana to a man, Saguro Doven, who was transporting it for a collective.

Both Doven’s and Jackson’s cases came down to the vagueness of California’s medical-marijuana laws.  According to the times:

Jonas said the prosecution’s expert witness, CHP Sgt. Richard Fuentes, was unqualified to render an expert opinion in the case because he lacked the knowledge required to distinguish lawful from unlawful possession and transportation of marijuana, according to court records…

…Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge William Sterling agreed that the prosecution expert was unqualified and ordered the charge of possession for sale dismissed.

Similarly, Jackson’s jury foreman told the press after the verdict that they couldn’t tell whether Jackson was breaking the law or not–the ultimate in reasonable doubt.

The case of Answerdam’s weed has a complication the LA’s case does not. The California Highway Patrol is holding Doven’s pot and CHP will have to return it.  Answerdam’s 5.2 pounds is currently being kept by the US Drug Enforcement Agency, which operates under federal law. They just don’t give back schedule 1 narcotics.

This brings us back to the 10th Amendment and the principles of  Federalism: To what extent does a state have a right to write and enforce its own laws without federal government interference?