Marijuana Law

MA Legislature Delays Implementation of Recreational Marijuana Sales; Accountability Lacking.

By Matthew Barison|2020-11-01T17:37:58+00:00December 29, 2016|Marijuana Law|

In a move that has upset liberals, conservatives, tokers and teetotalers alike, the Massachusetts Legislature passed a bill yesterday delaying the opening of retail marijuana shops by six months.

As you may recall, this November, Massachusetts voters approved a ballot question legalizing marijuana. The ballot question made possession legal as of December 15, and gave the Commonwealth until January 1, 2018 to devise a regulatory structure governing retail sales. Thus, pot shops were set to open in 2018, thereby eliminating the legal grey-area that now exists, in which the possession of MJ is legal, but the sale of it is not.

You may also recall that the majority of the State Legislature and our Republican Governor were opposed to legalization. Nonetheless, when the ballot measure [Read More…]

SJC Rules that Smell of Unburnt Marijuana DOES NOT Justify Warrantless Searches of Cars.

The Supreme Judicial Court just released an important decision regarding the police’s ability to conduct warrantless searches of automobiles based on the smell of marijuana.

Some background: In 2008, Massachusetts voters decriminalized the possession of one ounce or less of marijuana. This meant that if you were caught with an oz. or less, you would be subject only to a $100 fine and would face no criminal charges. As a matter of Constitutional law, in order for police to conduct a warrantless search of a vehicle, they must have reasonable suspicion of criminal activity. In 2011, the SJC ruled that the smell of burnt marijuana alone was not sufficient to justify a warrantless search of a car. There, the SJC reasoned:

Given [Read More…]