Holder Indicates End to Medical Pot Raids, But US Atty. Memos Less Clear

Attorney General Eric Holder indicated a few weeks back that the Drug Enforcement Administration will end raids on medical marijuana clinics, but the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles appears unclear about the effects of the pronouncement.

An aide to U.S. Attorney Thomas O'Brien sent a confidential memo ordering a halt to prosecutions of medical pot dispensaries, but the office abruptly reversed course and ended the ban last Friday, the Los Angeles Times reports.

O'Brien didn’t comment, but a Justice Department official told the newspaper that the attorney general did not direct any U.S. attorneys to change their marijuana prosecution policies.

Holder didn’t specifically say the DEA raids would end. He was asked at a press conference whether the DEA raids would continue. Holder responded: "What the president said during [the] campaign … is now American policy." Barack Obama had made several comments on medical marijuana, but generally said DEA raids on the state-backed dispensaries would not be a priority.

California was the first state to legalize the sale of marijuana to those with a doctor’s prescription. It is now one of 13 states allowing such sales. Federal law trumped the states, however, and the DEA raided marijuana dispensaries during the Bush administraiton.

The Wall Street Journal reports (sub. req.) that Holder’s statement is being cheered not only by the dispensaries but also those who support legalizing and taxing marijuana.