Judges in Seattle have decided to vacate the marijuana convictions of hundreds of people who were penalized for pot possession before the state made marijuana legal in 2012.
According to the Seattle Times, in April, city attorney Pete Holmes filed a motion asking the city’s seven municipal court judges to vacate the convictions of anyone charged with misdemeanor possession between 1996 and 2010. Holmes, who was elected in 2010, decided to stop prosecuting minor marijuana offenses when he took office.
“Inasmuch as the conduct for which the defendant was convicted is no longer criminal,” read the judges’ order, “setting aside the conviction and dismissing the case serves the interests of justice.”
Have you been charged with a drug crime or violation of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act? Remain Silent and Contact Komorn Law Immediately to protect your rights and freedom 800-656-3557.
On Monday, all seven judges passed theorder (pdf).
The order also noted:
Possession of Marijuana charges prosecuted in Seattle Municipal Court between 1996 and 2010 disproportionally impacted persons of color in general, and the African American community in particular. Of the over 500 cases involved in this motion, the racial demographics of defendants were: 3% Asian, 46% black, 46% white, 3% Native American, 2% unknown. The Court makes no finding that these numbers are 100% accurate, or that individual defendants were specifically impacted because of their race.
City officials estimate that 542 people will be affected by the motion. Those affected by the order will be notified by mail and will have 33 days to object to having the charge removed or request an individualized filing. Those who want the charges removed from their records will have to do absolutely nothing.
“For too many who call Seattle home, a misdemeanor marijuana conviction or charge has created barriers to opportunity—good jobs, housing, loans and education,” said Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan,
Komorn Law has represented numerous clients through the legal chaos of starting up a business in the Michigan Medical Marihuana Industry.
If you or someone you know is facing charges as a result of Medical Marijuana, DUI, Drugs, Forfeiture, Criminal Enterprise, etc. Please contact our office and ensure you’re defended by an experienced lawyer in the evolving laws.
Lead attorney Michael Komorn is recognized as an expert on the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act. He is the President of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association (MMMA), a nonprofit patient advocacy group which advocates for the rights of medical marijuana patients and their caregivers.
Contact us for a free no-obligation case evaluation 800-656-3557.
Grosse Pointe Woods Municipal Court receives high marks in survey
GROSSE POINTE WOODS — When hearing cases in his courtroom, Grosse Pointe Woods Municipal Court Judge Theodore Metry always keeps a few thoughts in mind.
“Most people are here on something they don’t want to be here for, or are here for the first time,” Metry said. “I try to give everyone an opportunity to at least be heard. People want to have a say. I should be fair with them.”
According to a news release from Michigan Courts Communications Director John Nevin, the Grosse Pointe Woods Municipal Court has received high marks for the fourth year in a row from members of the public regarding their experiences with the court.
In a survey that was administered for courts across the state, users were asked questions about whether the court was accessible, timely and fair, and if they were treated with courtesy and respect by the judges and staff.
Have you been charged with a drug crime or violation of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act? Remain Silent and Contact Komorn Law Immediately to protect your rights and freedom 800-656-3557.
According to the survey — conducted in late 2016 — a reported 99 percent of Woods court users said that they were treated with courtesy and respect by the staff; 93 percent said they thought the way Metry handled their cases was fair; and 95 percent of users said the judge treated everyone with courtesy and respect.
“I feel great about it,” Metry said. “We’ve scored well every year we’ve done (the survey). My staff does a great job. I think I have a great staff. We want to work with people. I want to show the city in a great light. We’ll keep up with what we’re doing to continue to operate in the same manner.”
Komorn Law has represented numerous clients through the legal chaos of starting up a business in the Michigan Medical Marihuana Industry.
If you or someone you know is facing charges as a result of Medical Marijuana, DUI, Drugs, Forfeiture, Criminal Enterprise, etc. Please contact our office and ensure you’re defended by an experienced lawyer in the evolving laws.
Lead attorney Michael Komorn is recognized as an expert on the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act. He is the President of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association (MMMA), a nonprofit patient advocacy group which advocates for the rights of medical marijuana patients and their caregivers.
Contact us for a free no-obligation case evaluation 800-656-3557.
NOTICE REGARDING MICHIGAN TAX ON ILLEGAL ACTIVITIES
72 (Rev. 4-15) – Issued: September 12, 2018
Michigan’s sales tax is imposed on the retail sale of tangible personal property. Marihuana and other drugs illegal under state or federal law are tangible personal property, the retail sales of which are subject to Michigan sales tax absent an applicable exemption.1
Have you been charged with a drug crime or violation of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act? Remain Silent and Contact Komorn Law Immediately to protect your rights and freedom 800-656-3557.
This includes sales by “dispensaries” or provisioning centers regardless whether licensed under the Medical Marihuana Facilities Licensing Act (MFLA).
Only the transfer of marihuana by a registered primary caregiver for compensation in connection with assisting a registered qualifying patient in the medical use of marihuana under the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act (MMA) is not subject to sales tax.
In that instance, the patient is liable for use tax based on the purchase price of the marihuana. See RAB 2018-2.
All other retail sellers must report and remit sales tax based on 6% of the sales price of the marihuana or other drug.
Legal and illegal activities are also subject to any other taxes imposed in Michigan, including the income tax and corporate income tax.2
Komorn Law has represented numerous clients through the legal chaos of starting up a business in the Michigan Medical Marihuana Industry.
If you or someone you know is facing charges as a result of Medical Marijuana, DUI, Drugs, Forfeiture, Criminal Enterprise, etc. Please contact our office and ensure you’re defended by an experienced lawyer in the evolving laws.
Lead attorney Michael Komorn is recognized as an expert on the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act. He is the President of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association (MMMA), a nonprofit patient advocacy group which advocates for the rights of medical marijuana patients and their caregivers.
Contact us for a free no-obligation case evaluation 800-656-3557.
Judge: “There is nothing in the record which would lead this court to believe that the mother is unwilling to provide the appropriate care for the child.”
A Minnesota mom whose 10-month-old son was taken from her by child protective services because she didn’t stick around the hospital for a second opinion on his cough regained custody 4 months and 6 court dates later.
The judge ruled that the nurse who claimed Amanda Weber’s actions left her child, Zayvion, in “danger of dying,” had engaged in “disinformation.”
It all started in May when Weber brought Zayvion to Children’s Hospital for a cough. Doctors determined Zayvion was fine and stable, and after a long wait for another doctor, Weber wanted to go home and signed that she was leaving against medical advice. The next day, Zayvion was immediately taken away by CPS for medical neglect.
After Zayvion was taken, Weber began her fight to get him back. The county declared that Weber had deprived her son of necessary medical care. Weber denied this, asserting that both the social worker and a doctor on the case had acted “in bad faith and with malice.”
Last week, Judge Leonard Weiler agreed. He ruled there was zero evidence of medical neglect on the mom’s part, and that she had acted within her rights in taking Zayvion home.
“There is nothing in the record which would lead this court to believe that the mother is unwilling to provide the appropriate care for the child,” wrote Weiler.
Have you been charged with a crime or violation of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act? Komorn Law has had success in the return of children taken by CPS (Read about this famous case here). Contact Komorn Law Immediately to protect your rights and freedom 800-656-3557.
The case came to the attention of Dwight Mitchell, founder of a Minnesota group called the Family Preservation Foundation, which fights for the rights of decent families against state intrusion. As he told The St. Cloud Times, “It’s not unique to Amanda. In fact, it’s the norm. I have another mother who is going through the same situation right now.” Mitchell described CPS’s actions here as “legal kidnapping.”
Minnesota Human Services Commissioner Emily Piper defended her agency.
What the ????………………..
“It is always a hard situation when courts or county social workers remove children from their parents’ custody,” she said in a statement. “These very difficult decisions are not made lightly, and are always made in the best interest of the children involved. If families don’t cooperate, it is even more difficult.“
Perhaps Piper could concede that it was difficult for the Webers, too. While the boy was in foster care, he took his first steps. When Weber heard that from the foster mom, she was devastated.
She has moved her family to Wisconsin to ensure she will not be dealing with any “difficult decisions” Minnesota’s child protection authorities make about her parenting ever again.
Komorn Law has represented numerous clients through the legal chaos of starting up a business in the Michigan Medical Marihuana Industry.
If you or someone you know is facing charges as a result of Medical Marijuana, DUI, Drugs, Forfeiture, Criminal Enterprise, etc. Please contact our office and ensure you’re defended by an experienced lawyer in the evolving laws.
Lead attorney Michael Komorn is recognized as an expert on the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act. He is the President of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association (MMMA), a nonprofit patient advocacy group which advocates for the rights of medical marijuana patients and their caregivers.
Contact us for a free no-obligation case evaluation 800-656-3557.
Legalized Recreational Marijuana in 9 States and DC – Is Michigan Next?
Michigan
Voters will decide Nov. 6, 2018 whether to legalize recreational marijuana statewide. Here’s a great report from Michael Crowe which was posted on ClickonDetroit.com
Have you been charged with a drug crime or violation of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act? Remain silent and Contact Komorn Law Immediately to protect your rights and freedom 800-656-3557.
The basics
The proposal that will appear on the Nov. 6 ballot is titled Michigan Marijuana Legalization Initiative (MMLI), and it would allow persons 21 years of age or older to possess and use marijuana as long as they’re not in public or driving under the influence. Should MMLI pass, individuals would be allowed to carry up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana on their person and possess up to 10 ounces at home. They would additionally be allowed to grow up to 12 marijuana plants at their residence.
However, municipalities would be able to limit or ban marijuana businesses within their boundaries. MMLI would also impose a retailer-paid excise sales tax of 10% on marijuana sales in addition to the state’s standard sales tax of 6% paid by the consumer.
Taxation
The 10% excise tax rate would essentially make Michigan the state with the lowest overall tax rate on recreational marijuana in the nation. Colorado imposes a 15% excise tax and 15% sales tax on recreational marijuana sales. Oregon has a 17% sales tax with up to 3% in local taxes. Washington maintains a hefty sales tax of 37% on recreational sales. California, Nevada, Alaska, Massachusetts and Maine also have higher overall taxes on the product than Michigan would if voters approve MMLI.
Opponents of the ballot initiative have actually seized upon its relatively low tax as an argument for their side. “Michigan would become the marijuana capital of America if this passes,” said Scott Greenlee, president of anti-legalization group Healthy and Productive Michigan. “The 10 percent tax rate is the lowest of any state that has recreational marijuana, and yet people would be able to have more of it on them and in their homes than anywhere in America.”
Revenue allocation
The idea behind MMLI’s restrained excise tax is to encourage consumers to shop in the legal marketplace rather than the illegal one, while still raising the hundreds of millions of dollars necessary to provide significant funding for the following:
Administrative costs in Michigan’s Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs
$20 million annually (for at least two years or until 2022) to research the use of marijuana in treating U.S. military veterans and preventing veteran suicide
All remaining revenue would be divided as such:
15% to cities in proportion to the number of marijuana retail stores or micro-businesses within the city
15% to counties in proportion to the number of marijuana retail stores or micro-businesses within the county
35% to the school aid fund for K-12 education
35% to the Michigan transportation fund for the repair and maintenance of roads and bridges
Even some proponents of MMLI admit, however, a 10% excise tax won’t be sustainable in the long-run as supply catches up with demand and prices drop. Matthew Abel, a senior partner at Cannabis Counsel (a marijuana law firm in Detroit) and the executive director of the Michigan chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, explained that the state legislature will have to take action in the future if it wants to sustain recreational marijuana revenue.
In Colorado, higher taxes on recreational marijuana enable the first $40 million to go to education and infrastructure projects in the state. Local governments that have approved marijuana businesses also get a share of the revenue, as they would in Michigan. The rest enters a Marijuana Tax Cash Fund that is used for a variety of aims.
Timing and more
Should Michigan voters approve the recreational marijuana ballot initiative on Nov. 6, the state’s Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs would not begin accepting business applications until December 2019. For 24 months after that, the department can only accept applications from Michigan residents who already have a license to operate a medical marijuana facility.
The slow timeframe bears a resemblance to Colorado’s recreational marijuana rollout. Voters there legalized the substance in 2012, but the first businesses didn’t open until January 2014. Also like Colorado, Michigan’s recreational marijuana proposal does not prohibit employers from drug testing their employees and making disciplinary decisions based on such tests.
A recent poll suggests Michigan’s vote on MMLI is likely to be close, but the broader national trend feels like a tipping point has been reached on marijuana legalization. Thirty states have legalized it in one form or another, recreational use is now legal along the entire West Coast and a number of Democratic senators are gearing up to propose legislation to decriminalize and regulate marijuana at the federal level.
Read more and check for follow up stories here at Click On Detroit
Alaska Medical Marijuana Laws: The possession limits for medical marijuana patients are the same as the limits for adult users.
Possession and Cultivation Limits
Age: 21+
Usable Marijuana: up to 1 oz
Plants: up to 6 plants with no more than 3 mature plants
Hash & Concentrates: Possession of hash and concentrates is illegal. Possession of up to 3 g is a misdemeanor, more is a felony.
Have you been charged with a drug crime or violation of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act? Remain Silent and Contact Komorn Law Immediately to protect your rights and freedom 800-656-3557.
2. California
State Marijuana Laws
Ballot Measure: Proposition 64: The Adult Use Marijuana Act — Approved Nov. 9, 2016 by 57% of voters
Effective: Nov. 9, 2016 (revised penalties); Jan. 1, 2018 (retail sales); 2023 (restrictions to be lifted on large-scale corporations)
California Medical Marijuana Laws: Medical cannabis patients are not subject to the limits of the recreational law and may possess up to 8 oz usable marijuana, and 6 mature or 12 immature plants.
Possession and Cultivation Limits
Age: 21+
Usable Marijuana: up to 1 oz
Plants: up to 6 plants, including the harvest from those 6 plants
Hash & Concentrates: up to 8 g (more than 8 g is a misdemeanor)
3. Colorado
State Marijuana Laws
Ballot Measure: Amendment 64 (55%) — Approved Nov. 6, 2012 by 55% of voters
Colorado Medical Marijuana Laws: Medical cannabis patients are not subject to the limits of the recreational law and may possess up to 2 oz usable marijuana, and 6 plants (3 mature and 3 immature).
Possession and Cultivation Limits
Age: 21+
Usable Marijuana: up to 1 oz
Plants: up to 6 plants with no more than 3 mature plants
Hash & Concentrates: up to 1 oz
4. Maine
State Marijuana Laws
Ballot Measure: Question 1 — Approved Dec. 17, 2016 (after recount of Nov. 8, 2016 election results was abandoned) by 50.26% of voters
[Editor’s Note: On May 2, 2018, the Maine House (109-39) and Senate (28-6) voted to override Gov. Paul LePage’s veto of LD 1719 (Chapter 409 Public Law) . The Department of Adminstration and Financial Services is required to present regulatory rules for legal sale and production of marijuana to the legislature in January 2019; marijuana retail shops are expected to open no sooner than Spring 2019. The bill lowers the recreational marijuana possession limits from 6 mature plants to 3 mature plants.]
Maine Medical Marijuana Laws: Medical cannabis patients are not subject to the limits of the recreational law and may possess up to 2.5 oz marijuana and 6 plants.
Possession and Cultivation Limits
Age: 21+
Usable Marijuana: up to 2.5 oz
Plants: up to 3 flowering plants, 12 immature plants, unlimited seedlings, and all marijuana produced from the plants
Hash & Concentrates: up to 5 g
5. Massachusetts
State Marijuana Laws
Ballot Measure: Question 4 — Approved Nov. 8, 2016 by 53.66% of voters
Massachusetts Medical Marijuana Laws: Medical cannabis patients are not subject to the limits of the recreational law and may possess up to 10 oz (a 60-day personal supply).
Possession and Cultivation Limits
Age: 21+
Usable Marijuana: up to 1 oz
Plants: up to 6 plants; no single residence may exceed 12 plants
Hash & Concentrates: up to 5 g. Possession of hash is illegal though decriminalized for possession of up to 1 oz.
6. Nevada
State Marijuana Laws
Ballot Measure: Question 2 — Approved Nov. 8, 2016 by 54.47% of voters
Nevada Medical Marijuana Laws: Medical cannabis patients are not subject to the limits of the adult-use law and may possess up to 2.5 oz of usable marijuana and 12 plants.
Possession and Cultivation Limits
Age: 21+
Usable Marijuana: up to 1 oz
Plants: up to 6 plants; no single residence may exceed 12 plants
Oregon Medical Marijuana Laws: Medical cannabis patients are not subject to the limits of the adult-use law and may possess up to 24 oz of usable marijuana and 24 plants (6 mature and 18 immature).
Possession and Cultivation Limits
Age: 21+
Usable Marijuana: up to 1 oz in public; up to 8 oz homegrown at home
Plants: up to 4 plants per residence
Hash & Concentrates: up to 16 oz solid infused at home; up to 72 oz liquid infused at home; up to 1 oz extract at home
Vermont Medical Marijuana Laws: Medical cannabis patients are not subject to the limits of the adult-use law and may possess up to two mature plants, seven immature plants, and 2 oz of usable marijuana.
Possession and Cultivation Limits
Age: 21+
Usable Marijuana: up to 1 oz
Plants: up to 6 plants per household (no more than 2 mature), and all marijuana produced from the plants
Washington Medical Marijuana Laws: Medical cannabis patients are not subject to the limits of the adult-use law and may possess up to 3 oz usable marijuana; 48 oz of marijuana-infused product in solid form; or 216 oz marijuana-infused liquid; 21 g concentrate; 6 plants for personal use and up to 8 oz from those plants .
Possession and Cultivation Limits
Age: 21+
Usable Marijuana: up to 1 oz
Plants: Plants are illegal. Any amount is a felony.
Hash & Concentrates: up to 16 oz marijuana-infused product in solid form; up to 72 oz marijuana-infused product in liquid form; up to 7 g marijuana concentrate
District of Columbia
State Marijuana Laws
Ballot Measure: Initiative 71 — Approved Nov. 4, 2014 by 64.87% of voters
DC Medical Marijuana Laws: Medical cannabis patients are not subject to the limits of the recreational law and may possess up to 2 oz dried marijuana
Possession and Cultivation Limits
Age: 21+
Usable Marijuana: up to 2 oz
Plants: up to 6 plants per person with no more than 3 mature plants; up to 12 plants (no more than 6 mature) for a single residence with more than one 21+ resident
Hash & Concentrates: Possession of hash and concentrates is illegal and punishable with 180 days in jail and a $1,000 fine.
Komorn Law has represented numerous clients through the legal chaos of starting up a business in the Michigan Medical Marihuana Industry.
If you or someone you know is facing charges as a result of Medical Marijuana, DUI, Drugs, Forfeiture, Criminal Enterprise, etc. Please contact our office and ensure you’re defended by an experienced lawyer in the evolving laws.
Lead attorney Michael Komorn is recognized as an expert on the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act. He is the President of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association (MMMA), a nonprofit patient advocacy group which advocates for the rights of medical marijuana patients and their caregivers.
Contact us for a free no-obligation case evaluation 800-656-3557.
