Washington State's recently enacted marijuana law, initiative 502, conflicts with federal law. The Feds don't seem likely to abide by state law, if a recent incident against two California landlords is any indication.
Two California
landlords have found themselves in a legal tug-of-war over the
state’s pot regulations.
After California
sanctioned the sale of medical marijuana, and it appeared the federal
government would condone the practice, a national medical
marijuana dispensary took up shop at two separate sites near Oakland.
Now, both of
those landlords are being threatened by federal officials with
forfeiture of their property under a federal statute that holds a
landlord liable for renting to a tenant who is distributing drugs.
One shop has been operating since 2006.
In response to
the forfeiture action, the landlords filed a suit against the
dispensaries attempting to forbid the sale of marijuana under the
federal statute. This week, a federal judge says they don’t have
the right to do that.
At
the same time, the landlords are having trouble pushing the evictions
through at the state level. One judge has determined that the
landlord cannot evict the tenants over the federal law.
Now, according
to a recent newsreport, the City of Oakland has joined the fray, arguing that
closing a dispensary would create a public health hazard because
it would force patients to buy marijuana on the black market.
According to the
report, the federal forfeiture action is proceeding against the
landlords.
Last year, a
Montana landlord faced a similar forfeiture action, a jail
sentence, and fine after his tenant’s marijuana grow operation was
raided by federal authorities. While the landlord knew that
marijuana would be grown in the property, he said he believed that
the lease was legal because the tenant had a licensed issued by the
state, and it appeared at that time that the federal government would
honor the state’s law.
from the American Apartment Owners Association
The Feds are trying to smother the pot industry by attacking those who do business with them. Let us hope Washington state government will step up to the plate and protect not only lawful dope operations but those who support them.
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It was clear from the beginning that I-502 was only an endorsement of Olympia's lazy ways. Don't expect them to protect anything while the rest of the state sinks into the mire.
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