Federal scheduling of marijuana

While cannabis is legal for adult consumption in Washington and a growing number of states, make no mistake that federally, it is still illegal in the US. Additionally, it is still listed as a Schedule I drug, the most severe classification for a drug.

DEA stealing someone's marijuana

Schedule I

Schedule I drugs, substances, or chemicals are defined as drugs with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse. Schedule I drugs are the most dangerous drugs of all the drug schedules with potentially severe psychological or physical dependence.

Some examples of Schedule I drugs are:

  • heroin
  • lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD)
  • marijuana (cannabis)
  • 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (ecstasy)
  • methaqualone (quaaludes) and
  • peyote   

- DEA.gov Links to an external site.

 

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Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who has been outspoken in his opposition to legal marijuana, was named in a lawsuit in July 2017 Links to an external site.in a New York court by plaintiffs claiming to have been harmed by this policy. Plaintiffs include a former NFL player, children who benefit from medical marijuana and an Iraqi War veteran suffering from PTSD. The courts will determine the outcome of this suit.

In August 2017, Senator Cory Booker introduced a bill to deschedule marijuana and completely remove it from the list of controlled substances. Jimmy Carter, Bernie Sanders and other politicians have attempted to lead this change before but have been unsuccessful. Could it be that, with a majority public support for legal marijuana Links to an external site., that the time has finally come?

You can see Senator Booker's brief video HERE Links to an external site..

 

Last updated 8/8/17