Supreme Court Rejects Challenge to Calif. Pot Law

Court declines to hear case arguing federal drug act is being flouted
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted May 19, 2009 1:52 AM CDT
Supreme Court Rejects Challenge to Calif. Pot Law
Pro-medical marijuana activists demonstrate in downtown Los Angeles. The Supreme Court has rejected two California counties' challenge to the state's medical marijuana law.   (AP Photo/Richard Vogel)

The US Supreme Court has rejected a challenge to California's medical marijuana law from two holdout counties, the Los Angeles Times reports. The court, without giving a reason, declined to hear the case brought by San Diego and San Bernardo counties that argued federal anti-drug laws contradicted the state's authorization of medical marijuana use.

The decision means county residents will likely be able to seek government-issued cards identifying them as eligible to use marijuana, as elsewhere in California. The chief of the ACLU's Drug Reform Law Project said the decision marks "a significant victory for medical marijuana patients nationwide," and clears the way for other states to craft medical marijuana policies. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has said California should begin debating the possibility of making pot legal for other users.
(More California stories.)

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