California Proposition 215 (1996)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Proposition 215 was a proposition in the state of California on the November 5, 1996 ballot. It passed with 5,382,915 (55.6%) votes in favor and 4,301,960 (44.4%) against.

Also known as the Compassionate Use Act of 1996, the proposition was a state-wide voter initiative authored by Dennis Peron, Valerie Corral (http://wamm.org), Dale Gieringer, William Panzer, Steve Kubby [1], San Francisco oncologists Richard Cohen and Ivan Silverberg, and by nurse Anna Boyce of Orange County, and approved by California voters. It allows those with a valid doctor's recommendation to possess and cultivate marijuana for personal medical use. The Act added Section 11362.5 to the California Health and Safety Code. This law has caused much conflict in the United States between states' rights advocates and those who support a stronger federal presence.

Todd McCormick was the first person to be arrested for medical marijuana related charges after the passage of California Proposition 215.

Although "Compassionate Use" is now protected in California law, the federal government continues to effect prosecutions under the Controlled Substances Act. The constitutionality of the act was recently challenged, but subsequently upheld by the Supreme Court (cf. Gonzales v. Raich). Upon announcement of the Supreme Court decision, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger briefly suspended the operation of programs related to compassionate use, but was compelled to resume after Attorney General Bill Lockyer issued a memo stating the Supreme Court ruling does not change any laws involving medical marijuana in California, it only confirmed that federal raids by the DEA was in fact legal and can continue to take place.

Arizona approved a relatively similar proposition on the same date.[2]