Michigans medical-pot fees paying for police raids, vests

Michigans medical-pot fees paying for police raids, vests

When Deborah Young of Ferndale sent her $60 fee to Lansing this year to register as a medical-marijuana user, she assumed the state would use her money to review her paperwork and print her ID card.

The fees are “for the operation and oversight of the Michigan medical marihuana program,” says state law — spelling marijuana with an “h,” the old-fashioned way as in federal law.

Last month, though, Young said she and other card holders were shocked to learn that Michigan’s Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs — LARA — had built up so much in fees that it gave $1.2 million to 18 county sheriffs, including those in Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties. The grants are intended via legislative approval to be used by sheriffs for training and enforcement of Michigan’s medical marijuana act.

“They’re raiding the same people who paid those fees,”  said Young, 58, who has glaucoma, a serious eye disease approved for medical-marijuana treatment in Michigan.

“We couldn’t believe it,” said Young. Ferndale residents learned not only that the Oakland County Sheriff received fee revenue from the ID cards but that their own city’s police department was set  to get a share of it for use in medical-marijuana investigations.

The Oakland County Sheriff’s Office received $323,725 this year from LARA, according to a county memo sent to cities getting the grant offers. According to the memo, the county sheriff plans to spend $98,000 on 28 raid-style bulletproof vests, $80,000 on a Chevrolet van, pickup and trailer to transport seized marijuana plants; $10,000 to train investigators, and $134,000 for overtime pay to medical-marijuana investigators. Much of the overtime pay is being offered to 15 communities in Oakland County that lend officers to OAKNET — the Oakland County Narcotics Enforcement Team.

The Ferndale City Council rubber-stamped the grant without discussion in mid-July. Rochester and Royal Oak city councils also voted last month to accept grant money. Ferndale’s share of $5,582 was to pay overtime for officers in countywide medical-marijuana raids, according to the county memo.

When Young and other residents began calling the city to complain, the council put the grant back on its agenda. And it prompted Young to stand before the council members to demand that they rescind their decision.

“Why would we need a medical-marijuana oversight grant in Ferndale? Why would we even be a part of something to harass sick people?” she told council members.

Her questions also prompted bigger ones: Whether medical-marijuana users are primarily law-abiding Michiganders who merely seek a respite from pain and other conditions approved for medical-marijuana treatment; or whether they’re mainly seeking a sensory high, with the aid of complicit doctors willing to sign forms, and of drug dealers bent on making big profits while dodging federal drug laws.

Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said he sees dispensary operators as a serious threat to society.

“These grants aren’t to prosecute someone who’s not breaking the law,” Bouchard said.  Oakland County’s memo offering grants to local police departments, provided to 15 city councils and township boards, said that medical marijuana “is being smuggled, mailed and transported into Oakland County from other states on a regular basis.” Michigan’s medical marijuana act, a vague law passed by voters in 2008, is an invitation to drug dealing, profiteering and the involvement of organized crime, Bouchard said.

Bouchard is unabashed about his vigorous campaign to wipe out dispensaries in Oakland County, citing a state Supreme Court ruling in 2011, which Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette has said means that most dispensaries were illegal in Michigan. Law enforcement officials in some counties, including Wayne, have tolerated the spread of dispensaries, but Bouchard said he is adamantly opposed to such leniency.

Oakland County investigators recently learned that two workers at a chain of four dispensaries, operating in Wayne and Oakland counties, were shot by a rival group, he said.

“One individual was murdered. The other was shot several times, but survived,” Bouchard said, adding: “I don’t care what some other counties are doing. The law says these types of facilities are illegal (and) they put law-abiding citizens at risk.”

The practice of turning medical-marijuana users’ fees against them by police agencies is not new in Michigan, although this year’s escalation of grants was shocking, said Rick Thompson, editor of the online Compassion Chronicles, a blog for medical-marijuana patients.

“This started out as a small, hidden part of the state’s budget in fiscal year 2014,” Thompson said. As the medical-marijuana funds swelled from cranking out ID cards, the Legislature began earmarking grant money for county sheriffs, Thompson said.

“The language said it would be for education about and enforcement of Michigan’s medical marijuana act, but you can see what that turned into,” he said. In the first year, four counties spent $116,000, state records show.

This year, the grant money grew tenfold, said State Representative Jeff Irwin, D-Ann Arbor. The Macomb County Sheriff  is allowed up to $254,125, and the Wayne County Sheriff got $473,256, Irwin said.

The grants could expand dramatically again next year because LARA now has a whopping $31 million in its medical-marijuana fund, mainly from fees paid for ID cards by nearly 200,000 Michiganders, who were either approved to use medical marijuana or approved to be caregivers and provide medical marijuana to others.

The fee revenue this year flows in at nearly $9 million a year, $3 million more than the cost to administer the program, Irwin said.

Funneling fresh windfalls to law enforcement could mean more raids of dispensaries, home growing operations and other medical-marijuana sites, Irwin said.

Michigan is one of only two states that allows medical marijuana but doesn’t allow dispensaries, said Karen O’Keefe, a lawyer who is director of state policies for the Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit Marijuana Policy Project.

“The big problem in Michigan is that the Legislature just has not updated the law” to allow dispensaries, O’Keefe said.

“It just does not make sense that you tell people, your only legal option is to plant a seed and wait four to five months” for it to grow the plant, said O’Keefe, in Grosse Pointe Woods last week to visit her parents.

Law-enforcement leaders have lobbied to block bills in Lansing that would’ve allowed and regulated dispensaries. This fall’s lame-duck session of the state Legislature could change that, said State Sen. Rick Jones, R-Grand Ledge.

“Right now, we have a package of bills that would do that, and in a way that would be acceptable to police, acceptable to the cities and townships, and acceptable I think to most of the patients,” said Jones, a former sheriff of Eaton County and chair of the powerful Senate Judiciary Committee.

“The only people who oppose this are the ones who are profiting greatly” by hiding criminal enterprises behind the cover of Michigan’s medical marijuana law, he said. In the meantime, police must keep the pressure on those who’ve turned dispensaries into dens of illegal drug dealing, he said.

At the Ferndale City Council meeting late last month, another speaker who opposed accepting the county’s grant was former Ferndale mayor Craig Covey, a strong supporter of fully legalized marijuana. Covey is running in November against Bouchard for Oakland County Sheriff.

“So the money that’s coming back to Ferndale (as a grant to police) is coming from people with glaucoma, people with pain conditions, people who are legal patients using medical marijuana, and it’s being used to shut down compassion clubs and dispensaries,” Covey told the city council.

Standing nearby, Ferndale police Chief Timothy Collins already was counting on having an extra $5,000 in his budget.

“This is simply a vehicle for the city to be reimbursed for some of our overtime. Royal Oak accepted it two weeks ago,” Collins told the city council.

After a short debate, the council voted 3-1 to rescind its previous vote. The grant had been rejected. “Thank you, Ferndale!” shouted Young, as she and others applauded. But moments earlier, the audience heard Councilman Dan Martin’s dire assessment of the vote: “I understand that this is a symbolic stance — the county’s going to do what it’s going to do.”

 

 

Bill Laitner , Detroit Free Press 10:39 p.m. EDT August 6, 2016

Medical Marijuana, Gun Ownership, and CPLs in Michigan

Medical Marijuana, Gun Ownership, and CPLs in Michigan

It is a complex and changing area of law. We know that federal law (18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(3)) makes it a felony for an “unlawful user of … any controlled substance” to “possess … any firearm or ammunition.”

Marijuana is classified as a Schedule I controlled substance, so it is a felony for a user of marijuana to possess a firearm or ammunition. Juxtapose this with the fact that 28 states and the District of Columbia have now passed laws legalizing the medicinal and/or recreational use of marijuana.

The main question we get is: “I have a MMMA Card, can I still get a CPL and own and possess firearms?”

To get a License to Purchase a pistol or a Concealed Pistol License in Michigan, you must also pass a federal background check (NICS check). This brings federal law into the Michigan scheme of licensing. The ATF takes the position that anyone with a MMMA card is probably using and therefore they are not allowed to possess a firearm until 12 months after their last use. So, even having a card is a prohibitor in the eyes of the federal government.

Some argue that this may be a leap as a person with a MMMA card may not use marijuana the same as a CPL holder may not ever carry a pistol. The federal law has been challenged and been upheld so far. Courts have, without any real empirical evidence, assumed a connection between marijuana use and gun violence.

The Michigan database on who has a MMMA card does not talk to the State or Federal databases that are used for background checks. So, unless the person admits they have the card there is no real way for anyone to find out.

But you must fill out certain forms when you apply for a License to Purchase or CPL and you are stepping into a grey area when the marijuana question must be answered. Hopefully, we will get some clarity from new legislation or court cases in the future to make this interaction between laws more sensible.

More information about medical marijuana and firearms ownership can be found HERE.

About MCRGO:

The Michigan Coalition for Responsible Gun Owners is a non-profit, non-partisan organization. Formed from just eight people in 1996, we now have thousands of members and numerous affiliated clubs across the state. We’re growing larger and more effective every day.

Our mission statement is: “Promoting safe use and ownership of firearms through education, litigation, and legislation” Visit: www.mcrgo.org.

Read more: http://www.ammoland.com/2016/12/michigan-medical-marijuana-gun-ownership-cpls/#ixzz4SUjTbrTP

Like them or not, new laws provide framework for dispensaries, extracts

Like them or not, new laws provide framework for dispensaries, extracts

We know where marijuana law and access in Michigan is going in the short term. Two recent legal developments have laid it out.

The first development is that there will be no vote on legalizing recreational use of marijuana on this year’s ballot. It’s been lingering on life support as MI Legalize went through various legal challenges and appeals in the state courts to get the signatures on their petitions counted. But it died when the state Supreme Court refused the case. There is still a federal challenge to the state decision, but even if there were a win down the road on that front, it wouldn’t happen in time for a vote this year. A federal judge denied a motion to stop the printing of ballots for this year’s election.

Not that MI Legalize has given up the effort. The organization is pursuing a federal appeal. At the same time the group is reorganizing — with lessons learned — for an attempt to get on the ballot for 2018, a gubernatorial election year. Presidential elections bring out more voters, which is what MI Legalize was hoping for, but apparently they don’t want to wait four years before calling the question again. If public opinion trends keep moving in the direction they have been, it’s a question of when, not if, marijuana will be legalized.

The second development has a more immediate impact for the 212,928 medical marijuana patients registered in the state. Gov. Rick Snyder signed Public Acts 281-283 last week, setting up the system for medical marijuana sales in the state, and possibly giving us a preview of what a recreational sales system will look like down the line. The Michigan Medical Marihuana Act (MMMA) did not specifically account for marijuana dispensaries for distribution, and some counties enforced the catch-22 of “patients may have marijuana, but there’s no place to buy it.” Now there can be dispensaries, and it is up to local municipalities whether they want to allow them or not.

PA 281, the Medical Marihuana Facilities Licensing Act, regulates the growth, processing, transport, sales, and taxation of medical marijuana. The law creates three levels for growing licenses: up to 500 plants; up to 1,000 plants; and up to 1,500 plants.

PA 282 changes the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act to allow for extracts, oils, and infused products. That was another testy point, because the MMMA specifically referred to the “dried leaves and flowers” of the marihuana plant, but not extracts made from them. State law enforcement was never comfortable with high potency substances made from marijuana extracts.

A seed-to-sale tracking system for medical marijuana — known as the Marihuana Tracking Act, or PA 283 — was tacked on later in the process with backing from business interests and law enforcement.

The laws take effect immediately, although in practical terms the only one that matters is PA 282, for patients who need oils and extracts. The practicalities of how the licensing is administered will be up to a new state-appointed board.

Getting the laws in place is an important point in a long and ongoing process. Whether they are good or not depends on who you talk to.

“When we first started approaching public officials and legislators, most of them didn’t even want to talk to us about medical marijuana,” says Robin Schneider of the National Patients Rights Association. “Many didn’t believe there was medicinal benefit at all. We spent years debating with law enforcement about regulations, the need for transporting security, and seed-to-sale tracking. The two opposite sides had to meet in the middle.”

That was spoken like a veteran of political negotiating. Schneider has spent six years working in Lansing trying to get something like these laws passed and sees them as a good thing. She’s seen the opposition up close and personal, and believes this is a major victory, particularly for patients who need extracts and oils.

The regulations do reflect something of a law enforcement approach when you look at the seed-to-sale tracking and secure transport provisions. This generates questions as to how the governor-appointed Marihuana Advisory Council will approach its duties. Will it take an oppositional or nurturing attitude to a new industry in the state?

“The bills were driven, written, and approved by the law enforcement community, which will not have the same interests in the success of the program as the dispensary people,” says attorney Michael Komorn, president of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association. “This is a police oversight program that has nothing to do with the medical marijuana act. It’s a license that is supervised by the law enforcement team akin to the liquor control system.”

At the very least, the new laws add layers of bureaucracy to the distribution of medical marijuana, which was expected. It also regulates where some of the money in a lucrative new industry will go. Dr. Gary Wolfram, a Hillsdale College economist, has given a conservative estimate that the state will collect $63 million annually in fees and taxes, while generating about 10,000 jobs.

The money involved helps draw in those reluctant to engage with marijuana. With tight budgets and reluctance to raise taxes, this is an opportunity for state resources. It also draws in others who want to get a piece of that financial action. Will there be a level playing field for anyone to join in? Or will it be stacked toward those who are — for lack of a better reference — friends of the governor?

“I’m still skeptical of this legislature and their plans,” says Jamie Lowell of the Third Coast Compassion Club in Ypsilanti, the first licensed dispensary in Michigan. “How will the state actually treat this process? I’m a little paranoid. I’ve seen enough shenanigans and tomfoolery to have legitimate questions.”

Lowell is active with the MI Legalize group and is feeling the sting of the state legislature’s action to block the legalization petitions, such as a law passed last spring that kept all the signatures collected from being counted.

Not everybody is holding hands and singing the praises of these laws. But they are adding some definition to contested provisions of the MMMA that have led to legal problems and even imprisonment for some. At least the question of whether dispensaries are legal in Michigan is settled. They are.

“I think it’s a good thing anytime you get a little more regulation and a little more transparency,” says Julius Dubose, founder of Dubs Apothecary, a self-described mobile facility that has had its wares at medical marijuana events in Detroit. Dubose wants to open a storefront facility soon. The new laws make that possibility much more clear.

“I’m open to any municipality that will allow it,” Dubose says.

Michigan’s new medical marijuana laws may not be the most enlightened, but they do provide more clarity for those who want to operate dispensaries and produce extracts. And for most, just knowing what the rules are will make a difference.

 

AVVO Reviews November 2016

AVVO Reviews November 2016

Professional and Effective

5.0 stars
Posted by Nathan
November 29, 2016
My family and I hired Michael for a Minor in Possession. He was able to retain my right to use Medicinal Marijuana while on probation and had the frequency of drug alcohol testing redused significantly. He was extremely well put together both in person and practice. He works with a dedicated team that makes every case personal. Phenomenal people all around, We’re very satisfied with their work.

Hired attorney

Hire Michael Komorn-an attorney whose got your back

5.0 stars
Posted by Jamie Lowell
November 12, 2016
Over the years- I have been in a unique position to see arrests, hear extensively about arrests and police encounters, and attend many court hearings concerning cannabis activity.

When I found myself in the position of being charged for crimes concerning cannabis- I knew exactly who to call- attorney Michael Komorn.

I thought that I was charged unfairly- far from home and that I would be trapped into admitting to a crime and suffering consequences for behavior that did not warrant such treatment. Komorn understood the predicament and told me very directly- “I got your back.”

I have witnessed attorney Komorn take on many kinds of cases and defend all kinds of people, Komorn takes more than an active interest. Attorney Michael Komorn understands the fear, the concerns, the uncertainty, and the stress of being charged or suspected of a crime and being faced with the immense burden of the criminal justice system. Komorn will speak the truth and will not “sugar coat” the situation but he truly cares and will offer solace to the accused as well as surrounding family and friends.

When Michael got in front of the judge and interacted with the prosecutor in Roscommon County where my case was heard- it was obvious that they knew that they would not have an easy time pursuing the fines and costs or possible jail time they were seeking.

What started out as a misdemeanor and possibly felony, went to two misdemeanors, which then went to one civil infraction with a small fine.

I hired Michael Komorn to fight for my rights- not to hold my hand through the process of succumbing to a broken system- and that is exactly what he did.

Komorn told he had my back- then he proved it.

Hired attorney

More AVVO reviews

Michigan State Police Legal Updates

Michigan State Police Legal Updates

From November 1999 through August 2016

 

MSP Legal Update No. 125 (08/16)

Statutes: Used Motor Vehicle Parts Act amended regarding buying and receiving used motor vehicle parts, including used motor vehicle tires, tire wheels or rims, or continuous tire tread.

 

MSP Legal Update No. 124 (08/16)

Statutes: Amendments to the Michigan Penal Code to add the crimes of assault and battery of a pregnant individual and intentional dissemination of sexually explicit visual material of another person.

 

Legal Update No. 123 (07/16)

Criminal Law: A homeowner or another person rightfully possessing a home after it has been foreclosed on and sold at a sheriff’s sale cannot be prosecuted for larceny in a dwelling house when he or she removes fixtures from the home during the statutory redemption period.

 

Vehicle Code: A temporary registration plate that is not in a clearly visible position or in a clearly legible condition provides reasonable suspicion that MCL 257.225 is being violated.

 

Legal Update No. 122 (04/16)

Criminal Law: Once lawfully inside a “dwelling,” a person cannot be prosecuted for home invasion for subsequently entering an interior room of the dwelling without permission.

Vehicle Code: The portion of a person’s private driveway immediately next to his or her private residence is not a place “open to the general public” or a “place generally accessible to motor vehicles” for purposes of the Michigan Vehicle Code.

Medical Marihuana: A person who smokes marihuana in his or her own car while parked in the parking lot of a private business that is open to the general public is not entitled to assert the immunity or defense provisions of the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act.

 

Legal Update No. 121 (03/16)

Vehicle Code: The presence of a towing ball attached to a vehicle which obscures or partially obscures the registration plate is a violation of the Michigan Vehicle Code.

 

Legal Update No. 120 (01/16)

Statutes: Michigan Vehicle Code amended to allow electronic copies of certificates of insurance.

 

Legal Update No. 119 (12/15)

Statutes: Amendments to the Firearms Act affecting the process for obtaining a Concealed Pistol License.

 

Legal Update No. 118 (10/15)

Criminal Law: Resisting and obstructing statute does not apply to reserve police officers; Did you Know? Vehicles manufactured as a golf cart or as an off road vehicle (ORV) cannot be modified and titled as an assembled vehicle for on-road use.

 

Legal Update No. 117 (07/15)

Criminal Law: Amendments to the Firearms chapter of the Michigan Penal Code related to firearms and pneumatic guns; Criminal Law: Amendments to the Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act related to firearms and pneumatic guns; Statutes: Amendments to the definition of “firearm” found in the Firearms Act, the Revised Statutes of 1846, and the Death or Injuries from Firearms Act.

 

Legal Update No. 116 (05/15)

Search and Seizure: Absent reasonable suspicion, extension of a traffic stop in order to conduct a dog sniff violates the Fourth Amendment; Statutes: Provisions of the Michigan Vehicle Code relating to “preliminary roadside analysis” eliminated.

 

Legal Update No. 115 (04/15)

Sexual Assault Victims Rights: Information and notices required to be provided to a sexual assault victim; Statutes: Requirements for the collection and handling of sexual assault kit evidence.

 

Legal Update No. 114 (03/15)

Criminal Law: Various human trafficking and prostitution statutes amended; Forfeiture: Various forfeiture provisions amended.

 

Legal Update No. 113 (01/15)

Statutes: Provisions of the Michigan Vehicle Code relating to operating a vehicle while intoxicated amended.

 

Legal Update No. 112 (12/14)

Statutes: Amendments to the Firearms Act Affecting Access to Firearms Records. Did you Know? Handcuffing a person unduly tight or excessively forceful is a violation of the Fourth Amendment.

 

Legal Update No. 111 (10/14)

Search and Seizure: A police officer may frisk a suspect only if there is reasonable suspicion to believe the suspect is armed and dangerous.

 

Legal Update No. 110 (09/14)

Vehicle Code: The mere presence of a towing ball attached to a vehicle which obscures or partially obscures the registration information on a registration plate is not a violation of the Michigan Vehicle Code.

 

Legal Update No. 109 (06/14)

Search and Seizure: Police officers are generally required to obtain a search warrant to search digital information on a cell phone seized from a person incident to arrest.

 

Legal Update No. 108 (05/14)

Criminal Law: Felon in possession statute amended to prohibit ammunition in addition to firearms.

 

Legal Update No. 107 (04/14)

Criminal Law: Sex Offenders Registration Act verification and annual registration fee requirements amended.

 

Legal Update No. 106 (03/14)

Criminal Law: Michigan Penal Code amended to allow a person to make, manufacture, transfer, or possess a short-barreled shotgun or short-barreled riffle under certain conditions.

 

Legal Update No. 105 (10/13)

 

Criminal Procedure: Audiovisual recording of custodial interrogations for major felonies.

 

Legal Update No. 104 (07/13)

Criminal Law: Organized Retail Crime is now prohibited by Michigan Law; Vehicle Code: Removal of moped passenger restrictions.

 

Legal Update No. 103 (06/13)

Medical Marihuana: The protections of the Michigan Medical Marihuna Act extend to a registered qualifying patient who internally possesses marihuana while operating a vehicle unless the patient is under the influence of marihuana; A registered qualifying patient is not entitled to immunity from arrest prosecution, or penalty under section 4 of the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act for transferring marihuana to another registered qualifying patient. A registered primary caregiver is not entitled to immunity under section 4 of the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act for transferring marihuana to anyone other than a registered qualifying patient connected to the caregiver through Michigan’s registration process; Section 4 of the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act does not provide a registered primary caregiver with immunity from arrest, prosecution, or penalty when growing marihuana collectively with other registered primary caregivers and registered qualifying patients; The definition section of the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act was amended, including provisions for growing marihuana plants outdoors; The Michigan Penal Code amended to include restrictions on transporting usable marihuana in or upon a motor vehicle.

 

Legal Update No. 102 (01/13)

Criminal Law: Uncompensated transfers of marihuana between registered qualifying patients constitutes medical use of marihuana under the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act; A person cannot be prosecuted under MCL 750.237 for constructive possession of a firearm while intoxicated in his or her own home.

 

Legal Update No. 101 (09/12)

Criminal Law: Michigan law prohibiting begging in a public place is unconstitutional;  Back-To-Basics Hot pursuit exception to search warrant requirement.

 

Legal Update No. 100 (08/12)

Criminal Law: Michigan Penal Code and Firearms Act amended to allow for possession and reasonable use of Tasers by Michigan Concealed Pistol License holders.

 

Legal Update No. 99 (06/12)

Criminal Law: Michigan law prohibiting the possession of tasers and stun guns is unconstitutional; The Michigan Medical Marihuana Act does not protect a person from arrest if the person’s registry identification card is not reasonably accessible at the location of arrest.

 

Legal Update No. 98 (06/12)

Statutes: Michigan fireworks laws amended to expand the types of fireworks that may be sold to and used by consumers without a permit.

 

Legal Update No. 97 (06/12)

Criminal Law: Common chemical compounds found in synthetic cannabinoids (K2/Spice) and synthetic cathinones (Bath Salts/Plant Food) added to list of Schedule 1 controlled substances.

 

Legal Update No. 96 (04/12)

Vehicle Code and Medical Marihuana: A person shall not operate a motor vehicle with any amount of a Schedule 1 controlled substance, including medical marihuana, in the person’s body.

 

Legal Update No. 95 (04/12)

Vehicle Code: Motorcycle helmet use

 

Legal Update No. 94 (03/12)

Search and Seizure: The installation of a GPS tracking device onto a suspect’s vehicle constitutes a search; Interview & Interrogation: Imprisonment alone does not constitute custody for purposes of Miranda

 

Legal Update No. 93 (01/12)

Sex Offenders Registration Act: Homeless offenders permitted to use emergency overnight shelters in student safety zones under certain conditions; Commercial Motor Vehicles: Use of hand-held mobile telephone while driving

 

Legal Update No. 92 (12/11) Search and Seizure: Consent-once-removed doctrine; Back to Basics: Restrictions on entry into a residence to make an arrest with a warrant or a warrantless felony arrest

 

Legal Update No. 91 (11/11)

Attorney General Opinions: Law enforcement officers are not required to return marihuana to a registered patient or primary caregiver upon his or her release from custody; Vehicle Code: Authorized emergency vehicles

 

Legal Update No. 90 (10/11)

Public Health Code: Bath salts added to list of Schedule 1 controlled substances; Drug forfeiture funds may be used for any law enforcement purpose; Back to Basics: Michigan law does not prohibit citizens from recording police officers performing their duties.

 

Legal Update No. 89 (09/11)

Criminal Law: The Michigan Medical Marihuana Act does not permit the sale of marihuana; The Michigan Medical Marihuana Act requires the physician’s statement occur before the illegal conduct in order for the affirmative defense to apply and in order for the person to be immune from arrest, prosecution, or penalty

 

Legal Update No. 88 (08/11)

Statutes: Sex Offenders Registration Act amendments; the tier system; the reporting requirements; homeless offenders; employee definition includes volunteers; non-residents; penalties.

 

Legal Update No. 87 (07/11)

Search and Seizure: Age must be considered when determining whether to give Miranda warnings to juvenile suspects; Vehicle Code Moving violations in school bus zones

 

Legal Update No. 86 (10/10)

Firearms Law: Open carry; unlawful premises; brandishing; transporting; carrying concealed; pistol registration; CPL pistol free zones; possession by out-of-state residents.

 

Legal Update No. 85 (08/10)

Criminal Law: Prohibited use of tracking devices; downloading child pornography on a CD-R does not automatically mean manufacturing; searching for child pornography on the Internet may be possession; 11-Carboxy-THC is not a controlled substance; sexual contact includes touching for humiliation

 

Legal Update No. 84 (06/10)

Criminal Law: Carrying a dangerous weapon with unlawful intent, MCL 750.226 Vehicle Code: Texting while driving

 

Legal Update No. 83 (04/10)

Public Heath Code: Smoke Free Law Vehicle Code: Removing motor vehicles involved in traffic crashes from roadway

 

Legal Update No. 82 (02/10)

Criminal Law: Homeless not required to register Back-to-Basics: Request for an attorney prior to chemical test

 

Legal Update No. 81 (09/09)

Vehicle Code: Implied consent violations and inevitable discovery Back-to-Basics: Hot pursuit exception to the warrant requirement

 

Legal Update No. 80 (06/09)

D.N.A. Law: Collection of samples at arrest; post-conviction testing

 

Legal Update No. 79 (06/09)

Criminal Procedure: Interrogation after appointment of counsel

 

Legal Update No. 78 (04/09)

Criminal Law: Medical marihuana rules & identification cards Criminal Procedure: Search warrant for wanted persons

 

Legal Update No. 77 (04/09)

Criminal Procedure: Limits on searches incident to arrest

 

Legal Update No. 76 (04/09)

Criminal Law: Catalytic converters added to larceny from a vehicle Criminal Procedure: Police responsibility to disclose exculpatory evidence

 

Legal Update No. 75 (04/09)

Criminal Law: Nonferrous metal regulatory act (scrap metal); secondhand and junk dealers; larceny and nonferrous metal

 

Legal Update No. 74 (03/09)

Criminal Law: Leaving child unattended in vehicle; child abuse – reckless endangerment

 

Legal Update No. 73 (03/09)

Firearms Law: Certification for retired police officers

 

Legal Update No. 72 (02/09)

Vehicle Code: Passing stationary waste haulers, utility vehicles, and road maintenance vehicles D.N.A. law: Use and misuse of DNA samples or profiles; disposition of samples or profiles; effect of good faith errors

 

Legal Update No. 71 (01/09)

Firearms Law: Possession of another’s pistol; CPL revocation; “legal resident” defined; pistol-free zones; new residents with out-of-state CPLs; pistol possession by non-residents; judges and pistol-free zones

 

Legal Update No. 70 (12/08)

Firearms Law: Pistol safety inspections eliminated Criminal Law: Dog bite requirements

 

Legal Update No. 69 (12/08)

Criminal Law: Medical Marijuana

 

Legal Update No. 68 (10/08)

Search & Seizure: Canine sniff of house Did You Know?: License expiration Back-to-Basics: Terry pat downs

 

Legal Update No. 67 (06/08)

Vehicle Code: Booster seat requirement Criminal Law: CSC by school employees

 

Legal Update No. 66 (06/08)

Statutes: Breaking & entering of shipping containers; animal abuse Back-to-Basics: Firearms – open carry, possession of another’s pistol, non-resident possession, safety inspection certificates, ammunition & long-guns, CPL notification requirements

 

Legal Update No. 65 (06/08)

Statutes: Private (Professional) Investigators Criminal Law: Interfering with crime report

 

Legal Update No. 64 (04/08)

Search & Seizure: Search incident to arrest – passenger arrests; search warrants based on e-mail address

 

Legal Update No. 63 (03/08)

Vehicle Code: Video displays in view of driver Back to Basics: Witness tampering

 

Legal Update No. 62 (02/08)

Criminal Procedure: Children and dying declarations Search & Seizure: Locked glove boxes and searches incident to arrest

 

Legal Update No. 61 (12/07)

Criminal Procedure: Drug field tests admissible at prelims Attorney General Opinion: Illegal aliens and driver’s licenses Back to Basics: Border searches

 

Legal Update No. 60 (12/07)

Vehicle Code: Signaling lane changes Criminal Law: Elements of felony nonsupport Did You Know?: Scope of implied consent hearings

 

Legal Update No. 59 (11/07)

Vehicle Code: Unsigned registrations — not illegal Back to Basics: Lawful purposes for transporting a pistol

 

Legal Update No. 58 (11/07)

Search & Seizure: Protective property checks Criminal Law: Minor refusing PBT

 

Legal Update No. 57 (07/07)

Criminal Procedure: Forfeiture of improperly seized property Search & Seizure: Constructive entry Did You Know?: Authority of police to violate law Back to Basics: Police orders to have a person exit a vehicle

 

Legal Update No. 56 (06/07)

Criminal Procedure: Prosecutor disqualification; Ineffective counsel; Passengers challenging stops Search & Seizure: Searches of items owned by passengers Back to Basics: Crime scene exception Did You Know?: Unattended vehicle

 

Legal Update No. 55 (05/07) Criminal Procedure: Use of force in medical situations Search & Seizure: Abandoned property; Inventory of personal property; Post-fire searches Did You Know?: Open carry of a pistol, part II Back to Basics: Police-citizen encounters

 

Legal Update No. 54 (04/07)

Criminal Procedure: Dying declarations; faulty Title III warrants Search & Seizure: 911 hang-ups and Terry stops Interview & Interrogation: Refusal to provide a written statement Use of Force: Vehicle pursuits & intentional collisions Did You Know?: Open carry of pistols Back to Basics: Liquor inspections

 

Legal Update No. 53 (03/07)

Statutes: Libraries as drug free zones; Junk dealers; Embezzlement from a charity Did You Know?: Exceeding authority when executing a search warrant Back to Basics: Entering a residence to make an arrest

 

Legal Update No. 53 (03/07)

Statutes: Libraries as drug free zones; Junk dealers; Embezzlement from a charity Did You Know?: Exceeding authority when executing a search warrant Back to Basics: Entering a residence to make an arrest

 

Legal Update No. 52 (02/07)

Criminal Procedure: Investigative subpoenas Did You Know?: Court and AG Opinions Back to Basics: Bond and search incident to arrest

 

Legal Update No. 51 (01/07)

Statutes: LEIN checks for parole status; Felony OWI – three in lifetime; Search & Rescue teams; Private road Vehicle Code enforcement; Meth lab website; Military ID and alcohol purchases; Furnish cell phones to prisoners; Assaults upon corrections officers Search & Seizure: Miranda and co-tenant’s consent; Exigent circumstances in meth labs Interview & Interrogation: Public safety exception to Miranda Did You Know?: Vehicle inspections Back to Basics: Tricks during interrogations

 

Legal Update No. 50 (12/06)

Statutes: Self-defense sprays; Juvenile breath tests Search & Seizure: Consent searches and third-party property Interview & Interrogation: Suspect understanding of rights Did You Know? Armored vehicles Back to Basics: Interview of juvenile suspects

 

Legal Update No. 49 (11/06)

Statutes: Felony Murder; Sex Offender Registry Did You Know?: Possession of Untaxed Tobacco Back to Basics: Interrogation & Miranda

 

Legal Update No. 48 (10/06)

Statutes: Impersonating a Firefighter Did You Know?: Interpreters for the deaf Back to Basics: Custody & Miranda

 

Legal Update No. 47 (09/06)

Statutes: Harboring a Fugitive; The Self-Defense Act; Sales of Ephedrine; Meth Reporting; Child Abuse Reporting Search & Seizure: LEIN Checks as a Search Did You Know?: Arrest of Parole Violators Back to Basics: Miranda requirements

 

Legal Update No. 46 (08/06)

Statutes: Kidnapping; Unlawful Imprisonment; Human Trafficking OWI Law: Independent Chemical Tests; Criminal Procedure: Definition of ‘Firearm’ Did You Know?: Possession of Firearms by Non-Michigan Residents Back to Basics: Inventory Search Summary

 

Legal Update No. 45 (07/06)

Statutes: Disorderly conduct at funerals; School lockdown drills; CPL expiration dates; Knock-and-announce Cases: Metabolized THC in OUID cases; Admissibility of 9-1-1 tapes; Consular notification; Plain smell; and Exculpatory Evidence

 

Legal Update No. 44 (06/06)

Statutes: Electronic monitoring of parolees; Replacement of license plates; Forfeiture, Display of emblems. Cases: Aiding and abetting; “Operate” defined; Accessory after the fact, Response to burglar alarms; Knock and announce; and Hot pursuit

 

Legal Update No. 43 (05/06)

Hearsay exception – domestic violence; Disorderly conduct at funerals; Emergency exception to search warrant rule; Soliciting a minor using a computer; Minor possessing BB gun; Terry pat-down review; Cigarette butts as litter

 

Legal Update No. 42 (04/06)

Statutes: Gray market cigarettes; Truck speed limit – 60 mph; Phone & computer tampering; E-mail SOR notification; Police scanners; CPL Holders – pistols owned by others; Extension of expired CPL Cases: Consent search when suspect refuses; Anticipatory search warrants; Vision obstruction; Seizures while driving; OUIL law summary Attorney General Opinions: Machine guns; Child custody

 

Legal Update No. 41 (01/05)

Identity Protection Act; Public Act 458 Statute of Limitations; Secretly obtaining another’s personal identification; Venue for prosecution of identity theft; Expansion of prohibited explosives law.

 

Legal Update No. 40 (10/04)

Evidence obtained in violation of Miranda; First confession without warning may taint second confession; Venue for prosecution is where the crime occurred; Taser law amended; Hazing law created.

 

Legal Update No. 39 (08/04)

Michigan adopts good faith exception; ID proceedings that occur prior to any adversarial judicial criminal proceeding; Knock and talk procedures and remaining in the home without consent; Mandated reporters and reporting suspected child abuse.

 

Legal Update No. 38 (07/04)

False reports now include 911 operators; Urine can be considered a harmful substance for adulterated food charge; Perjury does not require proof of materiality; Eaves dropping statute amended; Carjacking statute rewritten; Armed Robbery statute rewritten; Unarmed Robbery rewritten; May arrest for OWI if have probable cause to believe subject operated under the influence

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Legal Update No. 37 (10/03)

Emergency services providers may not detain an individual suspected of carrying a communicable disease; Officers may not initiate questioning when the Sixth Amendment is invoked; CSC fourth constitutes an assault for Home Invasion charges; District court judges may issue search warrants.

 

Legal Update No. 36 (09/03)

OUIL/.08 Legislation-Public Act 61; Zero tolerance for certain controlled substances; Misconduct in office applies when a police officer acts with “corrupt purpose;” Uttering and publishing may include a copy of a document.

 

Legal Update No. 35 (08/03)

False impersonation of a police officer statute rewritten; Registration violations are civil infractions; Assisting a subject does not automatically render liability; Statutory right to polygraph extends until the verdict; Eavesdropping charges may be brought against a subject who hides a camera in his own bedroom.

 

Legal Update No. 34 (07/03)

Premeditation requires time for a second look; Officer’s subjective reason for searching; No VIN exception to the search warrant rule; Accident scenes and the Fifth Amendment; Misconduct in office; The exclusionary rule.

 

Legal Update No. 33 (05/03)

Suppression of a confession; Felony Firearm Conviction; Indecent Exposure; Reasonable suspicion for a Terry Stop; Accidental dog bite by a police K-9.

 

Legal Update No. 32 (04/03)

One count carjacking, two occupants; False police report may apply to false crime details; Charges for felony murder could be brought against a mother who left children in locked car; Forceful act must occur at the time of the taking for armed robbery; “Confessing to all charges would be in your best interest” is not a promise leniency; Zero tolerance violation may be used to enhance OUIL charge.

 

Legal Update No. 31 (03/03)

Child sexually abusive material is rewritten: New definitions, New penalties; Operating a locomotive under the influence; CSC includes actions by teachers; Possession of counterfeit tax stamps for cigarettes requires knowledge that they are counterfeit.

 

Legal Update No. 30 (02/03)

Conspiracy charges may still occur even if the police become involved; Statute on stun guns rewritten; Traffic stops may be based on reasonable suspicion and Officers do not have to “verbally” identify themselves; Possession of stolen car is a felony; CCW and DNR violations; Changes made in drug penalties.

 

Legal Update No. 29 (01/03)

Statements obtained in violation of M.C.L. 764.27; Liability may occur where an officer makes an arrest after being insulted; Second warrant is needed to reenter property already searched; Raising an OUIL Causing Death to a charge of Second-Degree Murder; Receiving and concealing stolen property.

 

Legal Update No. 28 (09/02)

Violation of 48-hour rule may lead to liability; Admissible evidence; Claiming defense of an unborn child; Sexual contact has been redefined; Mental Health official added to Criminal Sexual Conduct; Force requirement under CSC; Police officers allowed to carry certain weapons.

 

Legal Update No. 27 (08/02)

Questioning during an OUIL investigation; Robbery charges require some type of force or violence; The “Castle Doctrine;” Open fields exception and protected curtilage; A prevailing claimant in a forfeiture action; Use of drugs is no defense to criminal activity unless it was a specific intent crime and the defendant had an unforeseeable reaction to medication or other legal substance.

 

Legal Update No. 26 (07/02)

Resisting and obstructing, along with assault upon officers, now under new law MCL 750.81d; “Reasonable” assistance in locating witnesses for defense; What is needed for forceful entry into a house; Illegal possession of a controlled substance can be actual or constructive; The offense of Fleeing and Eluding does not require a certain speed or distance

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Legal Update No. 25 (06/02)

Concealing or storing a stolen firearm can be considered a continuing offense; Reasonable suspicion is the proper standard for investigatory detentions; “Household” is an all-inclusive word for a family unit residing under one roof; Detainment for on-scene-identifications, or shows, may take such time that is reasonable.

 

Legal Update No. 24 (05/02)

A bail Bondsmen can be liable for a false arrest; An inoperable vehicle is still considered mobile for the automobile exception to a search warrant; Soliciting minor for immoral purposes does not require knowledge of actual age; “New” procedures for search warrants; etc.

 

Legal Update No. 23 (03/02)

Simple assault and battery becomes a 93 day misdemeanor; Domestic Relationships includes dating relationships; Officer may arrest for violation of personal protection orders issued from other states, Indian Tribes or United States Territory; It is not entrapment where the police do nothing more than present the defendant with the opportunity to commit the crime of which he was convicted;

 

Legal Update No. 22 (01/02)

Charges of “felon in possession of firearm;” Authority of local officers deputized by the County Sheriff; Prisoners giving testimony in court cannot be shackled; Gross indecency; Proving the offense of “carrying a firearm while under the influence;” Felonious driving now applies to all places open to the general public.

 

Legal Update No. 21 (11/01)

The “knock and talk” tactic is constitutional; The scope of consent; “No-Knock Warrant”; Euthanasia is not justifiable homicide; New Terrorism Legislation; Increased penalties for other violations.

 

Legal Update No. 20 (10/01)

Legal impossibility is not a defense in Michigan; Increased penalties for Construction Zone Injuries; Increased penalties for traffic injuries to farm workers; An unauthorized driver of a rental car my have standing to challenge search; “Just shy of” reasonable suspicion to detain a motorist; “Assault Upon an Employee of a Place of Confinement”; Interest on returned forfeiture.

 

Legal Update No. 19 (08/01)

Examining the exterior of an item without a search warrant; The crime a making a false police report; Lying does not constitute resisting and obstructing; Depositing money from a business transaction to a personal account; Sex Offender Registration includes youthful offenders; Delivery of controlled substance includes social sharing.

 

Legal Update No. 18 (07/01)

Requirements when stopping CCW license holder; CCW Free Zones; Carrying “while under the influence”; Seizure of pistols; Notice of suspension; Impersonating an FIA worker; Assault upon FIA workers; Lacking knowledge of drug amount-no defense for a delivery charge, but may be a defense for a conspiracy charge.

 

Legal Update No. 16 (06/01)

Failure to leave copy of affidavit; The “public safety” exception for Miranda; Felons in “possession of a firearm”; Statute of Limitations-Public Act 6 of 2001 MCL 767.24; Two parties drag racing-both are “involved” when an accident occurs.

 

Legal Update No. 17 (06/01)

Thermal Imaging violates Fourth Amendment without search warrant; Rioting includes actions aimed at police officers; Entering a residence when it’s believed that a person within is in need of immediate help; Failure to look at officers-one factor to establish reasonable suspicion; A juvenile’s confession is admissible if the statement is voluntarily made.

 

Legal Update No. 15 (03/01)

Uttering and publishing; Questioning a suspect after requesting an attorney; “Reasonable beliefs” to armed robbery; Unrecovered buy money; Knowing and voluntary waiver of Miranda rights; “Totality of the circumstances” in determining if a confession is admissible.

 

Legal Update No. 14 (02/01)

Attorney/Client privileges; A “spiritual” therapist; Use of audio tape to identify a suspect; Restitution under Crime Victims Rights; Listening to cordless phone conversations is eavesdropping; Sixth Circuit upholds stalking statute; Reasonable detention of a suspect is constitutional.

 

Legal Update No. 13 (01/01)

First degree murder for killing a police officer; Retreat from one’s porch; Pulling a telephone cord from the wall; Polygraph by a witness; Leaving a copy of an affidavit; Felony for training an animal to fight; CCW does not apply to double-edged knives.

 

Legal Update No. 12 (12/00)

Officers must inform suspects that attorney is available; US Supreme Court invalidates drug checkpoints; Can be convicted of OUIL causing death and involuntary manslaughter; Obtaining blood results from hospital may invade doctor patient privilege; Absconding on a felony charge; PPO Violations; 1st degree murder for killing a police officer upheld.

 

Legal Update No. 11 (11/00)

New law on sale of Nitrous Oxide; Increased penalties for Methamphetamine; Abandoned vehicles on trunklines; The authority of bordering states police officers; School officials can request vehicle info; Lawfully abandoning newborns; The smell of intoxicants may result in an investigatory detention; Gamma-Butyrolactone illegal for human consumption.

 

Legal Update No. 10 (10/00)

Probable cause to issue a search warrant; Assault with intent to commit unarmed robbery is included in felony murder; Unarmed robbery charges; Statute of limitation when suspect lives in another state; Right to a jury for MIP trials; CSC 2nd degree.

 

Legal Update No. 09 (09/00)

Investigative detention; Charges for leaving the scene of an accident; Sale of children; Felons in possession of body armor; Vulnerable adult fraud.

 

Legal Update No. 08 (08/00)

Searching the casing surrounding the gear shift; Miranda rights; Mental anguish required for 1st Degree CSC; Warrantless arrest authority; Spousal privilege law change.

 

Legal Update No. 07 (06/00)

Measuring the length of the truck; Incest charges under CSC; Vulnerable Adult Abuse; Third degree Child Abuse; Criminal activity on the Internet; PPO process.

 

Legal Update No. 06 (04/00)

Privacy of luggage; Warrantless entry under exigent circumstances; Voluntariness; Admissible statements against a co-defendant; Removal of victim from life support; Plea bargaining statements.

 

Legal Update No. 05 (03/00)

Anonymous call of man with a gun; Lying to a police officer; Felony firearms charges.

 

Legal Update No. 04 (02/00)

The Odor of Marijuana, CCW Statute Violations, Statements Made to Third Parties, Anticipatory Search Warrants, Safety to Others

 

Legal Update No. 03 (01/00)

Leaving the Scene of a Personal Injury Accident, Pandering, Fingerprints for DWLS 1st Offense, Child Abuse, Drug Free School Zones, Computer Crimes, Identity Fraud, Consuming Alcoholic Liquor on School Property, Statewide School Safety, Fleeing From Police

 

Legal Update No. 02 (12/99)

Crime Scenes, Equal Protection, Escape, Use of Fake Warrant, 48 Hours, Gross Indecency, Resisting and Obstructing

 

Legal Update No. 01 (11/99)

OUIL, Home Invasion, Sex Offender Registration