Medicinal Marijuana Patient May Lose Marijuana ID Card for... Smoking Pot? - Polidicks

[quote]A Colorado college student with a medical marijuana I.D. card has been found guilty of smoking in her car. Now, because she was smoking marijuana in public, she may lose her medical marijuana card as a result of her "drug conviction." Jessica Voden, 22, had filed the paperwork for her card at the time of her ticket and trial, but had not received her official card until the day after the trial, reports Deb Stanley at 7News. Voden was sitting in her parked car at Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colo., in February when a parking attendant noticed her smoking pot and called campus police, reports Shane Benjamin at The Durango Herald. Police issued Voden a ticket for smoking marijuana in public, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia. Voden decided to defend herself at her half-day jury trial in La Plata County Court last week, and was found guilty on all three counts. She will have to pay almost $500 in fines and court costs, complete 32 hours of community service and serve 15 days of monitored house arrest. It is illegal to smoke marijuana, even medical marijuana, in public, and Voden was seen toking from outside her car, said Deputy District Attorney Aaryn Richardson. In a Monday interview, Voden said she lived more than an hour away at the time, and commuted five days a week to attend college. She left her house at 6:30 a.m., and was at Fort Lewis College from 8 a.m. until p.m. It is illegal to smoke marijuana while driving, she said, and the college does not provide a place for students who are cannabis patients to medicate. She said it is ironic that the college plans to open a bar and grill on campus, but it shuns the use of medical marijuana. "So I can go get drunk on campus, but I can't medicate," Voden said. "I find something wrong with that." "I really think that it's not right that Fort Lewis doesn't provide a place to do that," she said. Although patients aren't allowed to smoke in public, it's unfortunate that Voden was left with virtually no other option, according to Durango lawyer Stuart Prall, who represents marijuana dispensaries and patients. It was unrealistic for her to go home because she lived more than an hour away in Pagosa Springs, Prall said. The most private location where she could medicate wasx in her her, he said. "What a gray area," Prall said Monday. "She should not have been smoking it in public, but she was in a difficult position as a patient." "I think we've lost sight of what's important -- that these patients need to get affordable meds, and we need to stop prosecuting people for using them," Prall said. According to spokesman Mitch Davis, the college does not take a position on medical marijuana. "We're simply following the law," Davis said. "It's not legal to smoke medical marijuana or any kind of marijuana in public, and that's the law, so that's what the college will uphold." Voden said she applied for her medical marijuana certification nine months ago, but it took until last Friday for Colorado to send her an official card. Voden said she is considering an appeal because jurors were unable to see her official medical marijuana certification. According to Voden, who has suffered from irritable bowel syndrome since the age of 16, she gets her medical marijuana from Nature's Medicine in Durango -- where she is now employed full time.[/quote] [url=http://www.tokeofthetown.com/2010/06/patient_may_lose_medical_marijuana_id_card_-_for_s.php]Source[/url] If she was smoking in her car, I really don't see what's the problem. She wasn't disturbing anyone or anything, and she was just medicating herself. Pretty ridiculous.

Nice going, US government.

smoke weed erry day

Oh for the love of God just legalize it already.

She did break the law, she wasn't smoking it in the place she was meant to be smoking it.

You enter a grey area, someone is bound to say you're breaking the law. Which she has.

"in public"

Also, smoking/possessing marijuana is still illegal on a federal level. It's illegal for her to have it anyways.

I'm all for medical, but she should know she can't do that in public, and she did it before she even had her card. she broke the law, she pays the price.

The only solution is legalization.

I wonder when the government will realize that all of their marijuana problems will go away if the just fucking legalize it?

Sigh, i can see why they're getting on her about it. You shouldn't be smoking a joint in your fucking car anyway or in a public area. It's just common sense. What she did is no different then drinking in public, which you can get arrested for. hell you can get arrested for having an open container of alcohol in public.

Guys, are we forgetting that Marijuana makes people homicidal maniacs, who will stop at nothing to get their next fix? even if it means killing their whole family?

[QUOTE=MR-X;22758991]Sigh, i can see why they're getting on her about it. You shouldn't be smoking a joint in your fucking car anyway or in a public area. It's just common sense. What she did is no different then drinking in public, which you can get arrested for. hell you can get arrested for having an open container of alcohol in public.[/QUOTE] So people shouldn't be able to take any medicine in public? I can understand not smoking in a car if you are about to drive, but if not then it is no different than taking some pain relievers or any other type of medicine.

they should legalize it and put high tax on it it works similar (but not exactly the same) here in The Netherlands and you never see anyone complaining about marihuana, only a few politicians who have nothing better to do than complain. Politicians/government doesn't complain mostly because they also get tax money out of it. I remember The Netherlands got like 40 million euros of tax money just out of weed, and that'd be a lot higher in America because America is like 23 times bigger and has almost 19 times a higher population.

[QUOTE=yawmwen;22759203]So people shouldn't be able to take any medicine in public? I can understand not smoking in a car if you are about to drive, but if not then it is no different than taking some pain relievers or any other type of medicine.[/QUOTE] So if you saw someone injecting his or herself with a syringe you wouldn't be suspicious at all

[QUOTE=strong_bad;22759388]So if you saw someone injecting his or herself with a syringe you wouldn't be suspicious at all[/QUOTE] It could be insulin.

[QUOTE=yawmwen;22759427]It could be insulin.[/QUOTE] It could also be heroin

my 420th post in a Marijuana related thread.

[QUOTE=strong_bad;22759475]It could also be heroin[/QUOTE] Yea so if it's found to be insulin he should be arrested for making people think he was taking heroin right?

[QUOTE=yawmwen;22759427]It could be insulin.[/QUOTE] They'd also be questioned as to why they just did that. If they were just walking along shooting up then chances are they didn't actually need it.

[QUOTE=strong_bad;22759475]It could also be heroin[/QUOTE] Yeah, let's assume the worst in every situation in life.

This about what the law is, not what it should be. [editline]02:27PM[/editline] broke mah automerge

[QUOTE=T.F.W.O.;22759489]my 420th post in a Marijuana related thread.[/QUOTE] post about weed every day :350:

Why are you guys bitching about this? She broke the law, like it or not, weed is still illegal and smoking it in public (whether you're allowed to smoke it in private or not) is illegal. [editline]02:39PM[/editline] [QUOTE=yawmwen;22759203]So people shouldn't be able to take any medicine in public? I can understand not smoking in a car if you are about to drive, but if not then it is no different than taking some pain relievers or any other type of medicine.[/QUOTE] This is different, unlike most medicines this is a widely used recreational drug that is illegal.

Anyways, why should she get special treatment because she's smoking pot? You can't even inject yourself with insulin in public legally.

[QUOTE=Gummylamb;22759786]This is different, unlike most medicines this is a widely used recreational drug that is illegal.[/QUOTE] Hahahahahaha. Actually most medicines [i]are[/i] used recreationally. If it can intoxicate you, even a little, chances are someone is abusing it.

[QUOTE=yawmwen;22759948]Hahahahahaha. Actually most medicines [I]are[/I] used recreationally. If it can intoxicate you, even a little, chances are someone is abusing it.[/QUOTE] And I'm sure using those illegally is...illegal in public too. Except no one can tell the difference, or no one notices.

[QUOTE=Gummylamb;22759786]Why are you guys bitching about this? She broke the law, like it or not, weed is still illegal and smoking it in public (whether you're allowed to smoke it in private or not) is illegal. [editline]02:39PM[/editline] This is different, unlike most medicines this is a widely used recreational drug that is illegal.[/QUOTE] People are bitching because this is stupid as hell, she had no other place to smoke unless she drove about an hour to smoke at home. She can't smoke on the campus or anywhere else. How about reading next time?

[QUOTE=bunguer;22760577]People are bitching because this is stupid as hell, she had no other place to smoke unless she drove about an hour to smoke at home. She can't smoke on the campus or anywhere else. How about reading next time?[/QUOTE] How about that doesn't change the fact that it's illegal to smoke in public?