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• Reputation: 39 Q&A: 1 0 0 20 1 0 Classifieds: 0 0 what's this? Expert: 1 topic 420: The Straight Dope About Pot Follow Following 0 cdc

  0 0 Alison's response is a good legal analysis of the situation. From a practical standpoint, I think your greatest concern is the pot laws of the state you're flying into. There is generally not reciprocity in state medical marijuana laws, meaning that if an Oregon patient is busted in Washington, they are just as screwed as if they had no medical marijuana recommendation at all, and vice versa. The Transportation Security Administration is pretty much okay with medical cannabis. We recommend carrying one's medical cannabis in a plastic prescription bottles (despite plastic being a horrible storage vessel for pot), sealed up well. Like any other advice we give, it's important to know that, as a medical marijuana patient in this state, you can be fucked by a law enforcement official at any time for any reason, so you are taking a pretty serious risk. Nonetheless, I have been on flights with patients who have carried cannabis and paraphernalia on the plane, who have been questioned discretely by TSA, and who have been allowed access to their terminal with said contraband. I know other patients who have flown with pot as well. If a medical pot airport scenario plays out in another state, you are in trouble. If you are a Washington patient and have trouble at a Washington airport, feel free to contact the CDC to see if our membership is willing to activate around your case. (In either case, you'll want to contact a good lawyer first.) cdc answered in 420: The Straight Dope About Pot over 2 years ago | Report Comment on this answer Enter your comment or ask a new question New comments are not being accepted at this time.

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• Reputation: 68 Q&A: 2 0 0 29 1 0 Classifieds: 0 0 what's this? Expert: 2 topics 420: The Straight Dope About Pot Weed Week Follow Following 0 Alison Holcomb

  0 0 From a legal perspective, you've got three sets of laws and political climates you need to consider: those of the jurisdiction you're departing, those of the jurisdiction in which you're arriving, and those of the feds (since you're getting on an airplane). Most of the clients I represented who were busted at SeaTac with misdemeanor amounts of pot and no evidence suggesting dealing had their pot confiscated, were allowed to fly, and were prosecuted in the local district court the same as anyone caught in a location other than the airport. In other words, my experience was consistent with the Port of Seattle police spokeswoman's statement. I would suspect that a patient authorized under Washington's law would have the same experience except that he or she might not be prosecuted. I doubt the patient would be allowed to take the cannabis with him or her onto the airplane. Flying with contraband (which cannabis remains under federal law) might be treated differently if the fact you were carrying were discovered mid-flight rather than at the security gate. I have not heard of this happening to anyone, so I can't advise you as to what you might expect. I would hope that a small amount of cannabis being carried by an authorized patient would not merit federal investigation or prosecution, especially in the wake of the U.S. Dept. of Justice issuing a written policy last October directing that federal resources should not be expended on individuals in clear compliance with state medical marijuana laws. Finally, the state where you arrive may not have its own medical marijuana law, and even if it does, it might not include a provision that extends reciprocity to patients authorized in another state. Be sure to look into that before you travel. The best advice is always to consult with an attorney who practices in the destination state and has familiarity with how that jurisdiction treats visiting patients. Out-of-state patients have had different experiences in Washington, depending on the county where their medical use of cannabis has been discovered. Alison Holcomb answered in 420: The Straight Dope About Pot over 2 years ago | Report Comment on this answer Enter your comment or ask a new question New comments are not being accepted at this time.

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