Got Trouble? We can help.

• Alabama
• Alaska
• Arizona
• Arkansas
• California
• Colorado
• Connecticut
• Delaware
• District of Columbia
• Florida
• Georgia
• Hawaii
• Idaho
• Illinois
• Indiana
• Iowa
• Kansas
• Kentucky
• Louisiana
• Maine
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• Michigan
• Minnesota
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• Montana
• Nebraska
• Nevada
• New Hampshire
• New Jersey
• New Mexico
• New York
• North Carolina
• North Dakota
• Ohio
• Oklahoma
• Oregon
• Pennsylvania
• Rhode Island
• South Carolina
• South Dakota
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Utah
• Vermont
• Virginia
• Washington
• West Virginia
• Wisconsin
• Wyoming

Home >  Criminal >  Marijuana Law

For thousands of years, the Cannabis plant was thought to possess powerful healing and regenerative properties. The people of India had long used Cannabis for pleasure, as well as a valued medicinal remedy in the relief of pain. As far back as 2800 BC, Cannabis was regularly used in regions of the Orient to treat illnesses such as rheumatism, gout, and malaria, as well as to expand the creative perception and expression among many of its people.

In 1546 AD, the Spanish brought "marajuana" (Castilian spelling and pronunciation) to the shores of America hoping to trade the plant for traditional agricultural products such as cotton and tobacco. Later in 1890, hemp became so popular as a raw textile, in the southern part of the United States, hemp actually replaced cotton as the South's most dominant cash crop.

In the late 1800's, major American pharmaceutical companies began to include and promote "THC," the active ingredient in marijuana, in a variety of their drug products and actively merchandized it as a remedy for chronic pain.

In 1914, the United States Congress effectively criminalized the use of marijuana by enacting the Harrison Act, which, ironically, was expressly intended to prohibit the sale of opium and morphine and its derivatives such as cocaine. Nowhere in the Harrison Act however did it ever mention marijuana, nor was marijuana ever considered a derivative of either morphine or opium. Notwithstanding, the umbrella of prohibition covered the use of marijuana, and it wasn't until 1937 that Congress passed the Marijuana Tax Act, which effectively prohibited the use or sale of marijuana for any purpose – including medical. This was the beginning of the second greatest American prohibition and perhaps the last.

In the late 1920's the illegal use of marijuana became more widespread among the underground cultures and among much of the youth. Musicians played jazz in small clubs and used marijuana as a way of stimulating their creativity. As the 1960's rocked the music world, a strong counter culture was forming against the establishment and against America's war with Vietnam.

While thousands of US soldiers returned home from Vietnam, many of them more high on pot then when they first left for the war, it became clear that the widespread use of marijuana was gaining momentum not only in the jungles of Vietnam but also on the streets of the Height in San Francisco and on college campuses across the nation. In the 1960's, marijuana had become associated with the peace movement of the 60's and it stayed in the American psyche ever since.

In 2003, Canada became the first nation to legally dispense medical marijuana to patients through its socially funded national healthcare system. Other countries viewed it as an official acknowledgement of the medicinal value of marijuana from a leading free world nation. American wanted to know why this policy was not being pursued at home.

In 2007, California, under the Compassionate Use Act, patients were guaranteed safe access to medical marijuana, so long as the patients use was medically documented and approved by a physician in consultation with the patient. As a result, patients in California, and in thirteen other states, no longer have to fear arrest or the threat of prosecution arising out of their use of medical marijuana.

In late 2009 the federal government radically shifted its position relative to its continued raids and prosecution of medical marijuana dispensaries, stating that it will no longer prosecute dispensaries and medical marijuana clinics so long as they are in complete compliance with their own states laws.

No matter what you think about marijuana, no matter how you pronounce it or spell it, one thing is certain, medical marijuana has a broad range of support from both the citizens and their legislators. The momentum for legalization is growing quickly, so much so, it is starting to feel like the end of prohibition.

Find out the marijuana laws in your state by going to:
State and Federal Marijuana Laws and Resources

In partnership with JustGive.org, GotTrouble facilitates charitable contributions to nonprofit organizations that can serve a positive social interest while being innovative in their organizations practices. Many of these organizations provide support in education, career training and financial opportunity to millions of people in need every year.