West Virginia Supreme Court: Probationers Cannot Access Medical Cannabis Program

The West Virginia Supreme Court has upheld a judge’s ruling that prohibiting a man on probation from accessing medical cannabis in the state did not violate his rights, WV News reports. The attorneys for Kyle John Schober, who is serving probation for possession of cocaine with intent to deliver, argued the state’s medical cannabis law superseded the judge’s imposing restrictions on medical cannabis use, while attorneys for the state contended that cannabis use remains illegal federally and probationers, under state law, cannot violate federal law.

In the majority opinion, authored by Justice Haley Bunn, the court determined that “Probation conditions generally focus on goals such as rehabilitation, deterring criminal behavior, and protecting the public. The consequences of violating a probation condition are not based solely on the conduct that caused the violation.”

“That conduct also must violate a parole condition, and the resulting penalty often relates back to the probationer’s underlying crime. … Because any sentence of confinement imposed for violating a probation condition by using or possessing marijuana would not be ‘solely for lawful used of medical cannabis,’ such a condition of probation does not violate the Cannabis Act.” — Bunn, in the opinion, via WV News

Under the plain language of West Virginia law, probationers “may not, during the term of his or her probation, violate any criminal law of this or any other state or of the United States.” The opinion concludes that allowing a probationer to access medical cannabis would violate both federal and West Virginia law.