State of Washington v. Kurtz

This court case is completed

The ACLU filed a friend of the court brief arguing that a common law medical necessity defense for medical marijuana use still exists in Washington, despite the fact that we also have a separate medical marijuana statute. The brief focused on the narrow issue of Washington’s strong deference to common law and the absence of clear legislative intent to abrogate the common law medical necessity defense in this context. The Washington Supreme Court agreed with this analysis in a 5-4 opinion holding that “medical necessity remains an available defense to marijuana prosecution and that the Washington State Medical Use of Marijuana Act…does not abrogate common law.”