DOJ to reclassify cannabis to schedule III, drug priors trigger mandatory min., say sorry to a cop.

Justice Department Publishes Proposed Rule to Reclassify Cannabis, Begins Accepting Public Comments

The Department of Justice (“DOJ”) proposes to transfer marijuana from schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act (“CSA”) to schedule III of the CSA. If marijuana is transferred into schedule III, the manufacture, distribution, dispensing, and possession of marijuana would remain subject to the applicable criminal prohibitions of the CSA.

Even if marijuana is rescheduled, it would still be a controlled substance that’s subject to federal rules and regulations. More importantly, rescheduling does not decriminalize marijuana or make it legal for recreational use on the federal level.

Instead, the DEA’s proposal would recognize the medical uses of cannabis and acknowledge it has less potential for abuse than some of the nation’s most dangerous drugs. Becoming a Schedule III drug would make it easier for research to be done on marijuana as well.

https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2024/05/21/2024-11137/schedules-of-controlled-substances-rescheduling-of-marijuana
_________________________________

May 23, 2024 BROWN v. UNITED STATES

The Armed Career Criminal Act mandates a 15-year sentence for being a felon in possession of a firearm if the defendant has been previously convicted of three violent felonies or “serious drug offenses,” and the case dealt with when that mandatory minimum sentence should be applied when it comes to drug crimes.

The parties propose three different answers to the question whether the federal and state definitions of a drug must match when the state crime is committed or at some later point in time.

The Government argues that a prior state drug conviction qualifies if the federal and state definitions of the relevant drug matched when the defendant committed the state crime.

Jackson argues instead that the definitions must match when the defendant violates the federal felon in-possession statute.

Finally, Brown contends that the definitions must match when the defendant is sentenced for the federal felon-in possession offense.

By a 6-3 vote, the justices held that some state drug convictions can trigger a federal sentencing enhancement even if the drug involved is later reclassified under the Controlled Substances Act.

https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/23pdf/22-6389_6537.pdf
__________________________

Alabama driver ordered to say sorry or face jail for telling officer ‘get your ass out of the way’

https://www.al.com/news/2024/05/alabama-driver-ordered-to-say-sorry-or-face-jail-for-telling-officer-get-your-ass-out-of-the-way.html