University of New Hampshire Scholars\u27 Repository
Abstract
[Excerpt] “Marijuana has been used for medicinal purposes for at least five thousand years. In fact, it was used medicinally in the United States up until the twentieth century when antidrug zealots managed to prohibit it. Prohibition was the status quo until 1996 when California became the first state to adopt a law allowing medicinal marijuana use. Since then, thirteen additional states, along with the District of Columbia, have enacted similar laws. More states are now lining up with their own laws, which are in various stages of adoption. In addition, the Supreme Court has impacted the issue, both with decisions made as well as those not made. The state of the law is rapidly evolving, and this article addresses its history, recent changes, and future. Part II examines the past, from the third millennium B.C. to the 1990s. Part III examines the present, including California’s trailblazing law and its imitators. Part IV examines case law and court challenges to medical marijuana laws, as well as currently pending medical marijuana laws. Part V looks to the future to determine the likely legality and impact of medical marijuana laws.
