Legal Perspectives: Medicinal Marijuana in California

Medicinal marijuana is becoming a growing presence on college campuses.  Students are arriving having already been issued Medical Marijuana ID cards, as well as producing fraudulent ones to discredit policy violations.  Knowing the resources available, and the law, is critical for California professionals.  State law prohibits the use of medicinal marijuana in the Kindergarten through 12 grade venue explicitly, but speaks more broadly when stating that card holders are not permitted to smoke within 1000 feet of a school, as well as not permitted to smoke wherever smoking is generally forbidden.  Often, universities create a smoke free campus environment on campus, or follow their county guidelines around smoking.  From the administrator perspective, the law’s section describing where smoking marijuana is forbidden is not classified as narrowly as the previous section defining restrictions from “school” as K-12.  Further, creating a smoke-free campus environment will easily diminish the use of on-campus medicinal marijuana.
What is more difficult is when a student decides to claim a valid medical marijuana card upon being caught using marijuana.  California is prepared to offer the following website to ensure that the card presented is valid and issued by the state: http://www.calmmp.ca.gov/ .  Asking to verify the card will help ensure that policy violations are handled accordingly.  The legal use of marijuana has very specific definitions, and a user of this medicine must understand the societal perspectives of when and where using medicinal marijuana is appropriate.  Students who attempt to utilize a fake marijuana ID need to know their institution, and future employers, have resources to ensure their abiding of California’s laws.  by Jonathan Calabretta