SJC | MassCann

Massachusetts High Court: Sale Not Necessary for Intent to Distribute

Feb 13, 2012 | Archives

Police don’t need to observe a sale for distribution charge, just individually packaged bags of marijuana – even if it’s under an ounce. The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Council ruled Monday that the Bay State’s 2008 voter-approved marijuana...

LETTER: With our liberty at stake, evidence should not be gathered by shortcutB

Apr 27, 2011 | Archives, Published LTE's

IT IS not surprising that the state Supreme Judicial Court’s decision in Commonwealth v. Cruz dismays police and prosecutors (“SJC limits response by police to marijuana,’’ Page A1, April 20). That is probably because the decision will make it more difficult for them...

Boston Globe: Ruling on marijuana searches leaves behind a strange odor

Apr 25, 2011 | Archives

THE PASSAGE of an ill-considered 2008 state ballot question decriminalizing small amounts of marijuana has proved to be disorienting for the legal system. The latest example is a ruling by the Supreme Judicial Court that the odor of marijuana emanating from a parked...

Boston Globe: SJC limits response by police to marijuana; Declares odor not evidence of crime; decision dismays chiefs, prosecutors

Apr 20, 2011 | Archives

The state’s highest court, overturning precedent and denying police a crime-fighting tool, ruled yesterday that the odor of marijuana smoke is not enough for officers to order a person out of a parked car, now that possession of less than an ounce of marijuana is no...

STAFF EDIT: Supremely disappointed

Apr 19, 2011 | Archives

The Massachusetts Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that police officers are no longer allowed to enforce exit orders on drivers whose cars smell of marijuana, based on the marijuana decriminalization law passed in 2008. While the ruling may signify a much-needed attitude...