Arizona Governor Jan Brewer killed Arizona’s medical marijuana dispensaries before the dispensaries even got to the starting gate.  The six lawsuits involving Arizona’s medical marijuana dispensary industry and cannabis clubs are slowly proceeding in court.  What happens in each of the lawsuits is not as important as the elephant in the medical marijuana room, which is that the United States has now made it clear even to the blind who will not see that the U.S. will prosecute people involved in selling medical marijuana any where in the U.S., including in states that have legalized it.  Here is the evidence:

The U.S. Justice Department has said in no uncertain terms that it will do the following in all fifty states:

  1. Prosecute people involved in selling medical marijuana to medical marijuana patients or caregivers.
  2. Prosecute people involved in growing medical marijuana for the purpose of selling to medical marijuana patients and caregivers.
  3. Prosecute landlords who lease real property to people or businesses that grow or sell marijuana on the premises.
  4. Prosecute lenders who loan money to people or businesses that grow medical marijuana for distribution or that sell  marijuana to medical marijuana patients or caregivers.

It does not matter if the parties who want to establish medical marijuana dispensaries and cannabis clubs are successful in all six of the Arizona lawsuits.  Even if the six lawsuits authorize medical marijuana dispensaries and cannabis clubs in Arizona, the federal government will prosecute anyone involved in growing and selling marijuana – medical or recreational.

People involved  in the cannabis club industry should also be very afraid.  The only people who have any comfort from the U.S. Justice Department’s current medical marijuana policies are state approved medical marijuana patients and caregivers who do not sell marijuana.  Cannabis clubs do not fall in that category.  It is clear to me that the U.S. Justice Department’s policy is to prosecute everybody involved in growing, selling and distributing marijuana except patients and caregivers.