AN INITIATION of Legislation to allow under state law the medical use of marihuana; to provide protections for the medical use of marihuana; to provide for a system of registry identification cards for qualifying patients and primary caregivers; to impose a fee for registry application and renewal; to make an appropriation; to provide for the promulgation of rules; to provide for the administration of this act; to provide for enforcement of this act; to provide for affirmative defenses; and to provide for penalties for violations of this act.
Qualifying patient or primary caregiver; arrest, prosecution, or penalty prohibited; conditions; privilege from arrests; presumption; compensation; physician subject to arrest, prosecution, or penalty prohibited; marihuana paraphernalia; person in presence or vicinity of medical use of marihuana; registry identification card issued outside of department; sale of marihuana as felony; penalty; marihuana-infused product.
Registered qualifying patient or registered primary caregiver; arrest, prosecution, or penalty, or denial of right or privilege prohibited; conditions.
AN ACT to license and regulate medical marihuana growers, processors, provisioning centers, secure transporters, and safety compliance facilities; to provide for the powers and duties of certain state and local governmental officers and entities; to create a medical marihuana licensing board; to provide for interaction with the statewide monitoring system for commercial marihuana transactions; to create an advisory panel; to provide immunity from prosecution for marihuana-related offenses for persons engaging in marihuana-related activities in compliance with this act; to prescribe civil fines and sanctions and provide remedies; to provide for forfeiture of contraband; to provide for taxes, fees, and assessments; and to require the promulgation of rules.
History: 2016, Act 281, Eff. Dec. 20, 2016 Compiler’s Notes: Enacting section 2 of Act 281 of 2016 provides:”Enacting section 2. The legislature finds that the necessity for access to safe sources of marihuana for medical use and the immediate need for growers, processors, secure transporters, provisioning centers, and safety compliance facilities to operate under clear requirements establish the need to promulgate emergency rules to preserve the public health, safety, or welfare.”
PART 8. MARIHUANA ADVISORY PANEL (333.27801…333.27801)
MARIHUANA TRACKING ACT
Act 282 of 2016
AN ACT to establish a statewide monitoring system to track marihuana and marihuana products in commercial trade; to monitor compliance with laws authorizing commercial traffic in medical marihuana; to identify threats to health from particular batches of marihuana or medical marihuana; to require persons engaged in commercial marihuana trade to submit certain information for entry into the system; to provide the powers and duties of certain state departments and agencies; to provide for remedies; and to provide for the promulgation of rules.
Statewide monitoring system; use as integrated marihuana tracking, inventory, and verification system; requirements; rules; bids; violation; termination of contract.
Detroit — It’s been a year since Detroit put laws in place to regulate medical marijuana shops and as of today, only two have been approved to operate.
The strict set of zoning and licensing requirements adopted in 2015 by the City Council went into effect last March. That’s when all shops — existing and new — seeking to operate lawfully were required to apply online, submit plans, meet rules and obtain licensing, or face closure.
The city has received more than 260 applications for Medical Marijuana Caregiver Centers since that time. But new figures released by the city this week reveal only two prospective centers cleared the required hurdles.
Green Cross on West Eight Mile opened in mid-February as Detroit’s first licensed center. Its operators were the first to apply under the new law and completed the “vigorous” process Feb. 3, said manager Simon Berro.
“We went to the city. We listened to what they said. We followed their rules,” said Berro of the center, operated by the Detroit Caregivers Center Association. “We took all precautions, and it was a vigorous process, but nonetheless, it worked out at the end.”
The Green Genie on McNichols on the city’s west side also has its license. The building and its signage indicate the facility is open, but no staff was there Thursday afternoon.
Meanwhile, 136 shops have been closed down, padlocked and sealed with bright orange stickers by the city’s Building Safety Engineering & Environmental Department. And 115 others remain in various stages of the application process, according to the building department, which has enforcement authority under the code.
“There’s a lot of growing pains that exist,” said Jamaine Dickens, a spokesman for Top Dollar Holdings, which operates a caregiver center, 420 Dank on Gratiot. “It’s been a learning experience for all involved from the city and most certainly from the industry.”
The center, Dickens said, had been in operation prior to the ordinances and has done everything “by the letter of the law.” Top Dollar Holdings is one of only a few operators so far granted a variance by the city’s zoning board after it was deemed too close to a church and liquor store. Its center is now working to obtain its business license, Dickens said.
The rules, aimed at bringing order to what had been an unregulated practice, have cleared the way for Detroit to shut down so-called pot shops failing to seek compliance under the ordinance or dispensing medical marijuana in zones prohibited under federal, state and city statutes.
The federal Drug Free School Zone Act prevents marijuana from being delivered, sold or manufactured within 1,000 feet of a school. State law also factors libraries into the rule. The city’s zoning regulations cover educational institutions and goes beyond that, prohibiting shops from operating near child care centers, arcades and outdoor recreation facilities.
There were 283 dispensaries throughout the city when Detroit began accepting applications under the new laws on March 1, 2016.
Detroit Corporation Counsel Melvin Butch Hollowell said each was sent a letter, warning they were “operating at their own risk” until fully licensed. The shops were also provided a 30-day window to submit applications before enforcement officially began.
Hollowell and the zoning code note shops in operation prior to the laws without licenses are able to continue serving patients so long as they have put in “good faith” applications. The operators who haven’t top a priority list for closure, Hollowell said.
Some medical marijuana advocates contend the city’s zoning laws are unfairly restrictive and applications are being processed too slowly, and they fear patients will suffer.
Robin Schneider, executive director of the National Patient Rights Association, said she’s disappointed with the lack of progress a year in.
“(Detroit) has the most exclusionary zoning practices of anything I’ve ever seen in the state,” said Schneider, who is concerned some applicants have been improperly turned down because they are located near long-closed former schools or child care buildings. “I think the fact that patients still do not have access to licensed facilities is a disservice to patients.”
The zoning legislation will permit about 50 shops overall. Still, Hollowell doesn’t think it will lead to hardships.
“There will be an appropriate number of locations that will be made available for people to sell the medicine,” he said. “We just want to make sure that as they are opened, they are opening in an orderly fashion and meeting needs of patients required for treatment.”
Hollowell added the small number of shops to complete the approvals so far shows “diligence” in the stringent requests for zoning, site and security planning, tax and health code clearances and licensing.
“It’s a new field,” he said. “It’s being processed well.”
Under the code, centers must operate in heavily commercial or industrial areas and are barred from locating in neighborhoods.
That’s welcomed by by Cortez York, who lives off Eight Mile on the city’s east side where centers along the main roadway have been plentiful. The 24-year-old said the marijuana centers “bring a lot of activity.”
Some of it has subsided since the city’s new laws have gone into place, he said.
“Some of them are taking the signs away. I see less cars pulling up all day and pulling out,” he added. “The neighborhood looks more peaceful.”
Hollowell said a mix of about 150 newer and older shops operating in Detroit are still facing closure because they haven’t made bids to legally operate. The city’s Law Department on Thursday said it estimates another 70-80 shops with applications pending are also operating.
About 80 others have been shuttered by neighborhood police officer and building inspector enforcement teams, and 55 closed after Detroit’s legal department filed nuisance abatement lawsuits in Wayne County Circuit Court.
Under city ordinance, centers must submit specific documentation and undergo a site plan review, public hearing over land use and secure a certificate of occupancy, business licensing and inspections, among other things. The requirements also cover site and security plans, insurance, lighting and parking specifications. Licenses must be renewed annually.
Centers can appeal to the city’s Board of Zoning Appeals for variances if they are turned down for being too close to schools, churches, liquor stores or other controlled uses. Challenges beyond that can be argued in circuit court.
Nathan Oakes, managing partner of Greener Crossing, a caregiver center on the city’s east side, said he supports the strict laws, saying they help rid the city of facilities that aren’t running honest business.
Oakes, a U.S. Marine Corps. veteran, said he got into the business to ensure safe access for veterans. He opened the center in October 2015 on a heavily industrial section of Hoover, off Eight Mile.
Oakes’ center is among those the city has allowed to continue serving patients while completing the application process. He’s endured the various steps and is obtaining his certificate of occupancy and inspections. He hopes to get his business license by spring.
“I find (the city) to be strict. I think that’s a good thing,” he said. “There’s a lot of fly-by-night organizations trying to just grab money in this business. Then, there’s the legitimate operations serving the patients. I think the ordinance helps distinguish between those two.”
But Andre Godwin, who represents the Sons of Hemp, a group of herbalists, caregivers and dispensary owners, said the laws have left many in limbo and are “making it bad for everyone.”
Godwin, who formerly filed a legal challenge to the new law, said the city is being “too intrusive” and the group is considering a petition drive to get a measure before voters in hopes of repealing it.
The Detroit News Published 10:50 p.m. ET March 16, 2017
One of the state’s most active medical marijuana specialist attorneys has been honored by the Criminal Defense Attorneys of Michigan (CDAM) with their “Justice For All” Award.
Of the thousands of criminal defense attorneys in Michigan, Komorn’s record of going after the big guy- and winning- propelled him into the top spot.
The award is described by CDAM below:
“The Justice for All award is given to recognize a particular extraordinary contribution of a group of individuals. This contribution can be in the form of legal representation or other extraordinary service.”
Komorn won a dismissal of charges in the Max Lorincz case, which involved a prosecution and removal of a child based on a tiny smear of alleged marijuana concentrate found by law enforcement.
This case, and Komorn Law’s digging into the back story, revealed the scientifically invalid and politically motivated changes in reporting marijuana concentrates as ‘origin unknown’ by the Michigan State Police Crime Lab.
The Lorincz case underscores what Komorn has been fighting for all along: an unyielding pursuit of the truth and exoneration for patients caught in a system designed to capture them.
Although the Lorincz case is the most recent and notable victory for Komorn Law, his other accomplishments stand out as well. Praise for Komorn’s career has been easy to obtain.
Some of Komorn Law’s highlights from 2015 include:
Having the entire Lapeer County Prosecutor’s office tossed off a medical marijuana case for being biased.
Challenging the Michigan State Police Crime Lab as they pervert scientific method to satisfy the political needs of prosecutors
Becoming involved as a Commission Member on the new Marijuana Law Section of the State Bar Association of Michigan
As well as many successful defenses of patients and caregivers registered with the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act (MMMA) in courts across Michigan.
Komorn is joined in his legal efforts by his longtime friend and aide, Chad Carr, who shares in the successes recognized by the Award Committee.
Komorn is also the Executive Director of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association and the host of a weekly radio talk show dedicated to MMMA patients and the attorneys that represent them. The Planet Green Trees Radio Show has received notoriety nationally; interviews with legislators, scientists and attorneys for the past five years have offered revelations and brought clarity to what can be a very confusing medical marijuana program.
In the case of Max Lorincz, Michael was so moved by the unjust treatment of a man and his family, that he took the case pro-bono.
The Criminal Defense Attorneys have already posted the award notice and the dinner details. CDAM offers this description of their organization on the group’s website :
“Michael Komorn’s zealous advocacy and activism in the field of marijuana law has been impressive and has inspired many lawyers, including myself, to do the same through his accomplished example,” said Barton Morris, also a CDAM member.
“Michael is a pioneer and champion in marijuana law in Michigan.”
DETROIT (AP) — Michigan sheriffs are paying for overtime and buying vests, guns, Tasers and vehicles with a little-known pot of state money that was set aside for medical marijuana enforcement.
They’re also leaving a lot of cash on the table, as only 18 of 83 counties this year applied for a slice of the $3 million.
“It’s mind-blowing to think they had this money out there and we had no clue about it,” said Sgt. James Every of the Ingham County sheriff’s office, which was eligible for $114,000 but didn’t apply.
Kent County, which is home to the western Michigan city of Grand Rapids, was eligible for $121,000 but also was unaware, Undersheriff Michelle Young said.
Advertisement
“We could absolutely use it for compliance and enforcement,” she said.
Michigan voters in 2008 approved the use of marijuana to treat certain illnesses. Nearly 225,000 people have state-issued cards, but the law has confused many and has led to significant legal disputes, including over how to obtain and store the drug. Large illegal growing operations have been busted around the state.
Since 2015, lawmakers have set aside money for sheriffs for medical marijuana enforcement and education. It’s administered by the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs. Every county was eligible this year for a portion of the $3 million, based on the number of new cards or renewals in that county.
Seventeen counties spent $823,000 in 2016, according to a state report. The largest, Wayne and Oakland, spent a combined 67 percent of that figure.
Oakland spent $282,661, much of it on training and investigation overtime. The sheriff’s office bought a $31,000 van, a $30,000 pickup truck and a $6,800 cargo trailer.
“We didn’t have equipment,” Sheriff Mike Bouchard said. “We’d come across huge illegal grow operations — hundreds and hundreds of plants — and we’d have to rent trucks or trailers. … The grant helps alleviate some of the costs necessary to do these activities, but it’s just a sliver.”
According to the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office Sept. 1, 2016, submission to the state report, the department:
Executed 59 search warrants,
Executed 19 “knock and talks” with 13 found to be compliant, 2 had no evidence located and 4 found to be non-compliant.
Initiated 19 educational contacts this year, with on criminal actions taken,
Seized 2,961 marijuana plants — or 1,122 pounds — since Jan. 1.
Macomb County has spent about $100,000 over two years, much of it related to investigations and training. The sheriff’s office also bought laptops, vehicles and raid vests.
“I want the guys as protected as they can be,” Det. Sgt. Gary Wiegand said of vests.
Wayne County said it spent $171,618 on wages for dozens of officers conducting surveillance from January through September on 32 marijuana dispensaries in Detroit. More than 600 vehicles were stopped.
The grants were used in smaller counties, too. Sanilac spent $2,850 on five semi-automatic weapons. Antrim spent $479 on night vision binoculars. Cheboygan purchased Tasers.
Young, the Kent County undersheriff, believes the grants haven’t been promoted enough. The Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs declined to be interviewed.
“We have not been surprised by the participation rate as this was and still is a new program,” spokesman Michael Loepp said.
The deadline to apply for the next round of funding is Jan. 1.
Wiegand said Macomb County bought a trailer to haul and store illegal marijuana plants.
“We took more than 100 plants out of a person’s house,” he said. “It’s hard to put all that in the property room.”
One issue reported by the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office is that patients or caregivers are becoming better at cultivating marijuana and the plants are growing big enough to provide one pound of marijuana. With 12 plants per patient, they are going over the 2.5 ounces, the office reports.
“The MMMA does not provide a legal remedy for the patient or the caregiver to address this issue,” Oakland County Sheriff’s Lt. Brent Miles wrote.
The Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) is responsible for the state’s regulatory environment and makes the delivery of services more efficient for consumers and business customers. LARA oversees the licensing and regulation of more than 1.2 million individuals and entities on an annual basis.
