A huge victory for medical marijuana patients.

A huge victory for medical marijuana patients.

For two years in a row, the House of Representatives has voted to approve the Rohrabacher-Farr Medical Marijuana Amendment, which prohibits the federal government from prosecuting medical marijuana patients or distributors who are in compliance with the laws of their state.

Unfortunately, the DEA had another take on the amendment:



The DEA, however, didn't see it that way. In a leaked memo, the Justice Department contended that the amendment only prevents actions against actual states -- not against the individuals or businesses or business that actually carry out marijuana laws. In their interpretation, the bill still allowed them to pursue criminal and civil actions against medical marijuana businesses and the patients who patronized them.

In a scathing decision, a federal court in California has ruled that the Drug Enforcement Administration's interpretation of a recent medical marijuana bill "defies language and logic," "tortures the plain meaning of the statute" and is "at odds with fundamental notions of the rule of law."

Breyer goes through the arguments against the DoJ's case, referring to the floor debate as well as the plain language of the bill. But, "having no substantive response or evidence, the Government simply asserts that it 'need not delve into legislative history here' because the meaning of the statute is clearly in its favor," Breyer writes. "The Court disagrees." He called the DoJ's interpretation of the amendment "counterintuitive and opportunistic."

Judge Breyer’s ruling hands a shield to every state-legal pot shop facing federal action, lawyers state. It sets a precedent that will likely chill federal prosecutors eyeing state-legal medical cannabis enterprises, said the law office of attorney Robert Raich, through a spokesperson. “We finally have a federal judge who is taking the authors of the spending amendment seriously when they say the intent and its wording should be interpreted so that the federal government should not be spending resources prosecuting individuals complying with state law.”

Medical cannabis operators sued and not only did they win their lawsuit, the Judge Charles Breyer unloaded on the DEA in the decision: Judge Breyer didn't stop there:It's a massive win for the medical marijuana industry: Great news for the growing number of medical marijuana patients nationwide.