What are the Laws in Washington Regarding Marijuana?
While many states' drug laws involve complex distinctions of weight and location when assigning penalties, Washington's rules are very straight forward. For marijuana possession, there is only one distinction: whether you have more or less than 40 grams on your person. Possessing less than 40 grams is a misdemeanor that is punishable by a maximum of 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine. Anything over 40 grams is no longer deemed for personal use and is a felony, with the punishments ratcheting all the way up to 5 years in prison plus a $10,000 fine.
The possession, manufacturing, or distribution of drug paraphernalia is also a misdemeanor, with the same 90 days in jail and $1,000 fine as simple possession. However, the paraphernalia usually must be "dirty" (contain actual drug residue) to be prosecutable. Both of these misdemeanors carry with them mandatory minimum sentences of 24 hours in jail for a first offense, with the time served doubling after each additional offense. This means that if you are caught with any amount of marijuana, you MUST be incarcerated for at least 24 hours.
What About Cultivating Marijuana Plants?
For marijuana sale or cultivation, Washington recognizes no weight distinctions. ANY amount of marijuana cultivated, sold, or distributed is an automatic felony, and as such, subject to 5 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. If the sale is to a minor who is at least 3 years younger than the seller, then the fines and prison times are doubled.
But I Have a Doctor's Permission to Cultivate Medical Marijuana...
Washington is one of 11 states that have enacted medical marijuana laws, so if you do have valid doctor's permission (with documentation), then this opens up some options. However, while Washington law removes state-level criminal penalties for the use, possession, or cultivation of marijuana by bona fide medical patients, it does not prohibit your arrest for those things. It merely allows medical marijuana to be used as a valid defense at trial. If your defense is successful, then the charges will be dropped.
The law lists the conditions for which marijuana may be prescribed as: - Cachexia
- Cancer
- HIV or AIDS
- Epilepsy
- Glaucoma
- Intractable pain (defined as pain unrelieved by standard treatment or medications)
- Multiple sclerosis
- Crohn¿s disease
- Hepatitis C
- Anorexia
However, the bill was later amended to also add "any disease which results in nausea, vomiting, wasting, appetite loss, cramping, seizures, muscle spasms, and/or spasticity, when these symptoms are unrelieved by standard treatments." This is obviously a very broad list, and as long as your doctor has recommended marijuana, his judgment will not usually be questioned by the court.
For cultivation, the state law allows patients (or their primary caregivers) to grow and maintain no more than a 60-day supply of marijuana. While there is no state run registry documenting who is a patient and who isn't, if you are arrested for whatever reason and are found to be in possession of more than a 60 day supply, then you may not be able to use the medical marijuana defense. (There is, however, great leeway in what constitutes a "60-day supply," since most patients self-medicate and choose their own daily dosages). Do I Need a Lawyer?It is very important to remember that Washington's medical marijuana laws have no effect on the Federal Law banning all marijuana. This means that federal agents can still arrest you and sentence you to federal crimes, even if you are using marijuana under the guidance of a doctor. The interactiions of state and federal law can be very confusing, so you should contact a criminal defense attorney immediately to help understand exactly what rights you have in Washington, even if you haven't been arrested. |
