Kelly Case, Court of Appeal regarding SB 420
CERTIFIED FOR PARTIAL PUBLICATION*
IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT
DIVISION THREE
THE PEOPLE,
Plaintiff and Respondent,
v.
PATRICK K. KELLY,
Defendant and Appellant.
___________________________________
In re
PATRICK K. KELLY
on
Habeas Corpus.
B195624
(Los Angeles County
Super. Ct. No. VA092724)
B201234
APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County,
Michael L. Schuur, Temporary Judge. (Pursuant to Cal. Const., art VI, § 21.) Reversed
and remanded.
PETITION for writ of habeas corpus. Denied.
Gloria C. Cohen, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and
Appellant.
* Pursuant to California Rules of Court, rules 8.1100 and 8.1110, this opinion is
certified for publication with the exception of part II of the Discussion.
2
Edmund G. Brown Jr., Attorney General, Dane R. Gillette, Chief Assistant
Attorney General, Pamela C. Hamanaka, Assistant Attorney General, Lawrence M.
Daniels and Ana R. Duarte, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent.
INTRODUCTION
In 1996, California voters approved Proposition 215, the Compassionate Use Act
(CUA). The CUA provides that a patient who possesses or cultivates marijuana for his or
her personal medical purposes upon a doctor’s recommendation is not liable for certain
marijuana-related offenses. Although the CUA states that the marijuana possessed or
cultivated must be for the patient’s “personal medical purposes,” the CUA does not place
a numeric cap on how much marijuana a patient may possess or cultivate. The
Legislature, however, thereafter enacted, without the voters’ approval, Health and Safety
Code section 11362.77.1 That section caps the amount of marijuana a patient may have
at eight ounces of dried marijuana and six mature or twelve immature marijuana plants,
unless the patient has a doctor’s recommendation that the specified quantity does not
meet the patient’s needs.
Defendant, appellant, and petitioner Patrick Kelly had a doctor’s recommendation
to use marijuana. But he did not have a doctor’s recommendation to have more than
eight ounces of dried marijuana. After getting a search warrant, law enforcement officers
searched defendant’s home. Officers found about 12 ounces of dried marijuana and
marijuana plants. At defendant’s trial for sale and cultivation of marijuana, the
prosecutor, relying on section 11362.77, argued that because defendant possessed 12
1
All further undesignated statutory references are to the Health and Safety Code.
3
ounces of dried marijuana but lacked a recommendation to possess more than eight
ounces, defendant was guilty of the charged offenses.
The prosecutor’s argument was improper. It was improper because the CUA can
only be amended with voters’ approval. Voters, however, did not approve the eight-
ounce limit and other caps in section 11362.77; hence, section 11362.77
unconstitutionally amends the CUA. It was prejudicial error therefore to allow the
prosecutor to argue that defendant could be found guilty of the charged crimes if he had
more than eight ounces of dried marijuana and did not have a doctor’s recommendation
to have more than that amount.
Defendant is entitled to a retrial because it was error to admit evidence and
argument regarding section 11362.77. He is not, however, entitled to suppression of
evidence, an issue he raises in his petition for writ of habeas corpus, consolidated with
the appeal and addressed in the nonpublished portion of this opinion. We therefore
reverse the judgment and remand for further proceedings.
FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
I. Factual background.
A. A doctor gives a recommendation to defendant to use marijuana.
Defendant suffers from, among other things, hepatitis C, chronic back problems
(including ruptured disks), nausea, fatigue, mood problems, cirrhosis, and loss of
appetite. Defendant has tried to treat the pain his ailments cause with epidurals, pain
therapy, hot and cold braces, nerve simulators, and medication. Dissatisfied with this
treatment plan, in part due to the cost of pain management pills,2 defendant sought a
recommendation to use marijuana. On February 20, 2005, Dr. Eve Elting at Medicann, a
physician-owned organization that evaluates patients who want cannabis for medical
reasons, saw defendant. Dr. Elting reviewed his medical records, had him fill out a 15-
page form, and talked to him. After evaluating defendant, Dr. Elting gave him a written
2
The medication costs $1,387 per month; defendant receives $1,034 per month in
social security.
4
recommendation, good for one year, to use marijuana. The recommendation was
renewed on January 16, 2006. Dr. Elting did not recommend a dosage.
Unable to afford marijuana from a dispensary, defendant began growing it at home
for his personal use. He consumes between one and two ounces of marijuana per week.
It lessens his nausea, although its effectiveness has decreased over time. Defendant
denied ever selling marijuana.
B. Defendant’s home is searched.
In October 2005, a confidential informant told a law enforcement officer that he or
she suspected defendant of growing marijuana. Deputy Michael Bartman went to the
informant’s home, from where he could see marijuana plants growing in defendant’s
backyard. Law enforcement officers, after getting a warrant, searched defendant’s home.
They found marijuana plants3 and vacuum sealed baggies containing a total of
approximately 12 ounces of dried marijuana. Attached to a marijuana plant was a
homemade trip wire constructed from Christmas wrapping and bells. Defendant
explained that the homemade alarm system was for general protection rather than
specifically to protect the marijuana plants, because his backyard is accessible from the
driveway. Deputies also recovered a scale and a loaded gun from a nightstand in the
master bedroom. No pagers, cell phones, pay-owe sheets, money, safes or elaborate
growing systems were found.
The doctor’s original recommendation to use marijuana was in the master
bedroom. A copy of the recommendation was taped to the garage. A deputy called the
phone number on the note and was told that defendant had a “prescription” to use
marijuana.
C. Expert testimony at trial.
Deputy Michael Bartman testified that the marijuana recovered from defendant’s
home was possessed for sale. Despite the absence of nickel and dime bags, the deputy
3
It is unclear whether defendant had seven potted plants plus additional plants
alongside the garage or just seven plants total.
5
believed that defendant packaged the marijuana in larger quantities to supply other
sellers. The deputy, however, has minimal experience concerning marijuana used for
medicinal purposes.
Christopher Conrad, the defense’s medical marijuana expert, testified that storing
marijuana in baggies is consistent with medicinal use. One-ounce baggies are consistent
with sale, but not two-ounce baggies, such as were found at defendant’s home. If
defendant used the marijuana at a rate of two ounces a week, the 12 ounces of dried
marijuana found at his home would last him a little over six weeks.
II. Procedural background.
An information charged defendant with count 1, possessing marijuana for sale
(§ 11359) and with count 2, cultivating marijuana (§ 11358). A jury, on October 31,
2006, found defendant guilty of the lesser offense of possessing more than 28.5 grams of
marijuana (§ 11357, subd. (c)) and of count 2. On December 6, the trial court sentenced
defendant to three years’ probation under the term and condition, among others, he serve
two days in jail. This timely appeal followed.
DISCUSSION
I. Section 11362.77 is unconstitutional because it amends the CUA.
At defendant’s trial, the prosecutor, over defendant’s objection,4 was allowed to
argue that defendant could not possess more than eight ounces of dried marijuana unless
he had a physician’s recommendation he needed more than that amount. But the Health
and Safety Code section the prosecutor relied on in making this argument—section
11362.77—unconstitutionally amends the CUA. Therefore, allowing the prosecutor to
make this argument was prejudicial error, as we explain.
A. Proposition 215 and the Medical Marijuana Program.
At the November 5, 1996, General Election, voters approved Proposition 215,
which added section 11362.5, the CUA. The CUA ensures that “Californians who obtain
4
Defendant moved in limine to exclude testimony and argument regarding
section 11362.77, subdivision (a), on the ground it is unconstitutional.
6
and use marijuana for specified medical purposes upon the recommendation of a
physician are not subject to certain criminal sanctions.” (People v. Wright (2006) 40
Cal.4th 81, 84.) To that end, the CUA provides, in part: “Section 11357, relating to the
possession of marijuana, and Section 11358, relating to the cultivation of marijuana, shall
not apply to a patient, or to a patient’s primary caregiver, who possesses or cultivates
marijuana for the personal medical purposes of the patient upon the written or oral
recommendation or approval of a physician.” (§ 11362.5, subd. (d).)5 The CUA does not
grant immunity from arrest. (People v. Mower (2002) 28 Cal.4th 457, 468-469.) It
grants a limited immunity from prosecution. Thus, a defendant may move to set aside an
5
The CUA provides in full: “(a) This section shall be known and may be cited as
the Compassionate Use Act of 1996. [¶] (b)(1) The people of the State of California
hereby find and declare that the purposes of the Compassionate Use Act of 1996 are as
follows: [¶] (A) To ensure that seriously ill Californians have the right to obtain and use
marijuana for medical purposes where that medical use is deemed appropriate and has
been recommended by a physician who has determined that the person’s health would
benefit from the use of marijuana in the treatment of cancer, anorexia, AIDS, chronic
pain, spasticity, glaucoma, arthritis, migraine, or any other illness for which marijuana
provides relief. [¶] (B) To ensure that patients and their primary caregivers who obtain
and use marijuana for medical purposes upon the recommendation of a physician are not
subject to criminal prosecution or sanction. [¶] (C) To encourage the federal and state
governments to implement a plan to provide for the safe and affordable distribution of
marijuana to all patients in medical need of marijuana. [¶] (2) Nothing in this section
shall be construed to supersede legislation prohibiting persons from engaging in conduct
that endangers others, nor to condone the diversion of marijuana for nonmedical
purposes. [¶] (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no physician in this state
shall be punished, or denied any right or privilege, for having recommended marijuana to
a patient for medical purposes. [¶] (d) Section 11357, relating to the possession of
marijuana, and Section 11358, relating to the cultivation of marijuana, shall not apply to a
patient, or to a patient’s primary caregiver, who possesses or cultivates marijuana for the
personal medical purposes of the patient upon the written or oral recommendation or
approval of a physician. [¶] (e) For the purposes of this section, ‘primary caregiver’
means the individual designated by the person exempted under this section who has
consistently assumed responsibility for the housing, health, or safety of that person.”
(§ 11362.5.)
7
indictment or information before trial or raise a defense under the CUA at trial. (Id. at
pp. 470-475.)
To “ ‘[c]larify the scope of the application of the [CUA] and facilitate the prompt
identification of qualified patients and their designated primary caregivers in order to
avoid unnecessary arrest and prosecution of these individuals and provide needed
guidance to law enforcement officers[,]’ ” the Legislature, in 2003, introduced Senate
Bill No. 420, the Medical Marijuana Program (MMP), which added section 11362.7
et seq. (People v. Wright, supra, 40 Cal.4th at p. 93.) The MMP seeks to “ ‘address
additional issues that were not included within the [CUA], and that must be resolved in
order to promote the fair and orderly implementation of the [CUA]’ [Citation.]” (Ibid.)
To those ends, the MMP, among other things, establishes a voluntary program for the
issuance of identification cards to “qualified patients”—patients entitled to protection
under the CUA but who do not have an identification card. (§§ 11362.7, subd. (f),
11362.71.) Participation in the program is not mandatory. But there is an advantage to
participating in it: participants are not subject to arrest for possession, transportation,
delivery or cultivation of medical marijuana “in an amount established” under the MMP.
(§ 11362.71, subd. (e).)
Section 11362.77, subdivision (a), establishes the amount of marijuana a qualified
patient or primary caregiver may possess; namely, no more than eight ounces of dried
marijuana plus six mature or twelve immature marijuana plants.6 If a qualified patient or
6
Section 11362.77 provides in full: “(a) A qualified patient or primary caregiver
may possess no more than eight ounces of dried marijuana per qualified patient. In
addition, a qualified patient or primary caregiver may also maintain no more than six
mature or 12 immature marijuana plants per qualified patient. [¶] (b) If a qualified
patient or primary caregiver has a doctor’s recommendation that this quantity does not
meet the qualified patient’s medical needs, the qualified patient or primary caregiver may
possess an amount of marijuana consistent with the patient’s needs. [¶] (c) Counties and
cities may retain or enact medical marijuana guidelines allowing qualified patients or
primary caregivers to exceed the state limits set forth in subdivision (a). [¶] (d) Only the
dried mature processed flowers of female cannabis plant or the plant conversion shall be
considered when determining allowable quantities of marijuana under this section. [¶]
8
primary caregiver has a physician’s recommendation that this quantity does not meet the
patient’s medical needs, the patient or caregiver may possess an amount of marijuana
consistent with the patient’s needs. (§ 11362.77, subd. (b).) These quantity limits apply
to people who are not voluntarily participating in the identification cardholder program.
(§§ 11362.77, subds. (a) & (f).) Therefore, defendant, who is not a cardholder but is a
qualified patient, must comply with section 11362.77. 7
(e) The Attorney General may recommend modifications to the possession or cultivation
limits set forth in this section. These recommendations, if any, shall be made to the
Legislature no later than December 1, 2005, and may be made only after public comment
and consultation with interested organizations, including, but not limited to, patients,
health care professionals, researchers, law enforcement, and local governments. Any
recommended modification shall be consistent with the intent of this article and shall be
based on currently available scientific research. [¶] (f) A qualified patient or a person
holding a valid identification card, or the designated primary caregiver of that qualified
patient or person, may possess amounts of marijuana consistent with this article.”
7
The Attorney General argues that the limits in section 11362.77 apply only to
cardholders. Because defendant is not a cardholder, the Attorney General argues that we
need not reach the constitutional issue. The argument is meritless. It is meritless
because, first, section 11362.77, subdivision (a), plainly states its quantity limits apply to
“qualified patients.” A “[q]ualified patient” is “a person who is entitled to the protections
of [the CUA], but who does not have an identification card issued pursuant to this
article.” (§ 11362.7, subd. (f), italics added.) Also, section 11362.77, subdivision (f),
states, “A qualified patient or a person holding a valid identification card, or the
designated primary caregiver of that qualified patient or person, may possess amounts of
marijuana consistent with this article.”
Although these provisions of the MMP make it clear that the quantity limits in
section 11362.77 apply to noncardholder qualified patients and to cardholders, the
Attorney General cites to statements in the MMP’s legislative history that indicate the
quantity limits were intended to apply only to people who voluntarily participate in the
identification program. Here is an example of such a statement: “Nothing in this Act
shall amend or change Proposition 215, nor prevent patients from providing a defense
under Proposition 215 for their possession or cultivation of amounts of marijuana
exceeding the limits in this article, whether or not they qualify for the exceptions in
Section[] 11362.77(b) or (c). The limits set forth in Section 11362.77(a) only serve to
provide immunity from arrest for patients taking part in the voluntary ID card program,
they do not change Section 11362.5 (Proposition 215), which limits a patient’s possession
9
B. Section 11362.77 amends the CUA, and therefore it is unconstitutional.
Legislative acts, such as the MMP, are entitled to a strong presumption of
constitutionality. The Legislature nonetheless cannot amend an initiative, such as the
CUA, unless the initiative grants the Legislature authority to do so. (Cal. Const., art. II,
§ 10, subd. (c);8 People v. Cooper (2002) 27 Cal.4th 38, 44; Amwest Surety Ins. Co. v.
Wilson (1995) 11 Cal.4th 1243, 1251-1253, 1256.) The CUA does not grant the
Legislature the authority to amend it without voter approval. Therefore, if section
11362.77, which was enacted without voter approval, amends the CUA, then it is
unconstitutional.
“An ‘amendment’ is ‘ “ ‘any change of the scope or effect of an existing statute,
whether by addition, omission, or substitution of provisions, which does not wholly
terminate its existence, whether by an act purporting to amend, repeal, revise, or
supplement, or by an act independent and original in form, . . .’ [Citation.] A statute
which adds to or takes away from an existing statute is considered an amendment.
[Citation.]” ’ [Citation.]” (Knight v. Superior Court (2005) 128 Cal.App.4th 14, 22; see
or cultivation of marijuana to that needed for ‘personal medical purposes.’ ” (Sen. Rules
Com., Off. of Sen. Floor Analyses, analysis of Sen. Bill No. 420 (2003-2004 Reg. Sess.)
Sept. 9, 2003, p. 6.)
Such expressions of legislative intent in the MMP’s drafting history cannot be
relied on to contradict the plain, express meaning of a statute clear on its face. “While
certain legislative reports may be indicative of legislative intent [citation], ‘they cannot
be used to nullify the language of the statute as it was in fact enacted.’ [Citation.] Nor
can the understanding of individual legislators who cast their votes in favor of a measure
be used for this purpose. [Citation.]” (Planned Parenthood Affiliates v. Swoap (1985)
173 Cal.App.3d 1187, 1193.)
Moreover, even if we assumed that section 11362.77 applies only to voluntary
cardholders, it was, in this case, applied to defendant, a noncardholder.
8
Article II, section 10, subdivision (c), of the California Constitution provides:
“The Legislature may amend or repeal referendum statutes. It may amend or repeal an
initiative statute by another statute that becomes effective only when approved by the
electors unless the initiative statute permits amendment or repeal without their approval.”
10
also People v. Cooper, supra, 27 Cal.4th at p. 44.) Whether an act amends existing law is
determined “ ‘by an examination and comparison of its provisions with existing law. If
its aim is to clarify or correct uncertainties which arose from the enforcement of the
existing law, or to reach situations which were not covered by the original statute, the act
is amendatory, even though in its wording it does not purport to amend the language of
the prior act.’ [Italics in original.]” (Franchise Tax Bd. v. Cory (1978) 80 Cal.App.3d
772, 777.)
When deciding whether a legislative act amends an initiative, we must keep in
mind that “ ‘[i]t is “ ‘the duty of the courts to jealously guard [the people’s initiative and
referendum power]’ . . . . ‘[I]t has long been our judicial policy to apply a liberal
construction to this power wherever it is challenged in order that the right [to local
initiative or referendum] be not improperly annulled.’ ” [Citation.]’ [Citations.] Any
doubts should be resolved in favor of the initiative and referendum power, and
amendments which may conflict with the subject matter of initiative measures must be
accomplished by popular vote, as opposed to legislatively enacted ordinances, where the
original initiative does not provide otherwise. [Citations.]” (Proposition 103
Enforcement Project v. Quackenbush (1998) 64 Cal.App.4th 1473, 1485-1486.)
In this case, we do not think that section 11362.77 may amend the CUA. It clearly
does. The CUA provides that the offenses of possession and cultivation of marijuana
shall not apply to a patient who possesses or cultivates marijuana for his or her personal
medical purposes upon the recommendation or approval of a physician. (§ 11362.5,
subd. (d).) The CUA does not quantify the marijuana a patient may possess. Rather, the
only “limit” on how much marijuana a person falling under the Act may possess is it
must be for the patient’s “personal medical purposes.”9 (Ibid.)
9
Nevertheless, the CUA does not give patients a free pass to possess unlimited
quantities of marijuana. (People v. Trippet (1997) 56 Cal.App.4th 1532, 1549.) Rather,
the “rule should be that the quantity possessed by the patient or the primary caregiver,
and the form and manner in which it is possessed, should be reasonably related to the
patient’s current medical needs.” (Ibid.)
11
Ballot materials make clear that this is the only “limitation” on how much
marijuana a person under the Act may possess. An argument against the CUA was it
“allows unlimited quantities of marijuana to be grown anywhere . . . in backyards or near
schoolyards without any regulation or restrictions. This is not responsible medicine. It is
marijuana legalization.” (Ballot Pamp., Gen. Elec. (Nov. 5, 1996), argument against
Prop. 215, p. 61.) San Francisco District Attorney Terence Hallinan responded,
“Proposition 215 does not allow ‘unlimited quantities of marijuana to be grown
anywhere.’ It only allows marijuana to be grown for a patient’s personal use. Police
officers can still arrest anyone who grows too much, or tries to sell it.” (Ibid., rebuttal to
argument against Prop. 215, p. 61.) According to these ballot statements, the CUA does
not place a numeric cap on how much marijuana is sufficient for a patient’s personal
medical use.
Section 11362.77, however, does just that. It specifies that a qualified patient may
possess eight ounces of dried marijuana plus six mature or twelve immature marijuana
plants. (§ 11362.77, subd. (a).) A qualified patient may possess a greater quantity if the
patient has a doctor’s recommendation that the quantity in subdivision (a) does not meet
the qualified patient’s medical needs. (§ 11362.77, subd. (b).) In other words, section
11362.77, subdivision (a), has clarified what is a reasonable amount for a patient’s
personal medical use, namely, eight ounces of dried marijuana.
But clarifying the limits of “reasonableness” is amendatory. (See, e.g., California
Lab. Federation v. Occupational Safety & Health Stds. Bd. (1992) 5 Cal.App.4th 985.)
California Lab. Federation concerned an unconstitutional amendment to Code of Civil
Procedure section 1021.5, which codifies the private attorney general-attorney-fee
doctrine. Code of Civil Procedure section 1021.5 contains no express limit on the size of
a fee award, although the statute necessarily implies that a party may recover only a
“reasonable” fee. (5 Cal.App.4th at pp. 993-995.) The Legislature’s Budget Act,
however, imposed a $125 per hour cap on fee-award payments under Code of Civil
Procedure section 1021.5. The cap was impermissibly amendatory even if it aimed
12
merely to clarify or to correct uncertainties in existing law. (5 Cal.App.4th at p. 995.)10
By imposing substantive conditions where there were none, the challenged provision was
amendatory. (Ibid.)
The Legislature’s imposition of quantity limits in section 11362.77 similarly
amends the CUA. Section 11362.77 imposes a numeric cap where the CUA imposed
none. Indeed, the Legislature itself recognized it had overstepped its bounds in imposing
the cap. In 2004, Senator John Vasconcellos, who introduced the MMP, authored and
introduced Senate Bill No. 1494. Senate Bill No. 1494 would have amended section
11362.77 by, among other things, deleting the eight-ounce and plant limits as follows:
“A qualified patient, a person with an identification card, or any designated primary
caregiver may possess any amount of marijuana consistent with the medical needs of that
qualified patient or person with an identification card.”11 (Italics added.)
10
The Budget Act provision was struck down under the single subject rule of
section 9 of article IV of California Constitution. The analysis of what constitutes an
amendment is the same as under section 10 of article II.
11
Section 11362.77 would have also provided: “(b)(1) A person with an
identification card or a primary caregiver with an identification card shall not be subject
to arrest for possessing eight ounces or less of dried marijuana per person with an
identification card, and maintaining six or fewer mature or 12 or fewer immature
marijuana plants per person with an identification card. [¶] (2) Nothing in this section is
intended to affect any city or county guidelines to the extent that the amounts contained
in those guidelines exceed the quantities set forth in paragraph (1). [¶] (c) If a physician
determines that the quantities specified in subdivision (b) do not meet the medical needs
of the person with an identification card, that person or that person’s primary caregiver
with an identification card may possess an amount of marijuana consistent with those
medical needs and shall not be subject to arrest for possessing that amount. [¶] (d) Only
the dried mature processed flowers of female cannabis plant or the plant conversion shall
be considered when determining allowable quantities of marijuana under this section. [¶]
(e) The Attorney General may recommend modifications to the possession or cultivation
limits set forth in this section. These recommendations, if any, shall be made to the
Legislature no later than December 1, 2005, and may be made only after public comment
and consultation with interested organizations, including, but not limited to, patients,
health care professionals, researchers, law enforcement, and local governments. Any
recommended modification shall be consistent with the intent of this article and shall be
based on currently available scientific research.”
13
In introducing Senate Bill No. 1494, Senator Vasconcellos acknowledged the
MMP’s constitutional flaw when he said, “ ‘[Senate Bill No. 1494] is a clean-up bill . . .
intended to correct a drafting error in my medical marijuana bill signed into law last year.
. . . [The MMP’s] language may be problematic because it states that all qualified
patients (with or without identification cards) are subject to guidelines provided in [the]
statute. Despite intent language in our bill stating that the program is intended to be
voluntary, many advocates argued that it amends the initiative by making the guidelines
mandatory—therefore making it unconstitutional. In order to avoid any legal challenges,
it is important to make a distinction between “qualified patient” (which applies to all
patients) and “persons with identification cards.” ’ ” (Assem. Com. on Pub. Safety on
Sen. Bill No. 1494 (2003-2004 Reg. Sess.) June 8, 2004; see also Sen. Health and Human
Services, com. on Sen. Bill No. 1494 (2003-2004 Reg. Sess.) Mar. 24, 2004 [the change
effected by the MMP “could be viewed as an unlawful amendment to Proposition 215, an
initiative that did not provide a mechanism for amendments”].)
Deleting the quantity limits in the manner suggested by Senate Bill No. 1494
would have corrected the constitutional problem created when the Legislature enacted the
MMP without voter approval. Governor Schwarzenegger, however, vetoed the bill,
citing a concern that the bill removed “[r]easonable and established quantity guidelines.”
(Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, letter to the Members of the California State Senate
re Sen. Bill No. 1494, July 19, 2004.) That may be a valid concern. Nevertheless, it is a
concern that cannot be addressed by the Legislature acting without the voter’s approval.
We therefore now hold that section 11362.77 unconstitutionally amends the CUA, and it
must be severed from the MMP.12
12
The MMP has a severability clause: “If any section, subdivision, sentence, clause,
phrase, or portion of this article is for any reason held invalid or unconstitutional by any
court of competent jurisdiction, that portion shall be deemed a separate, distinct, and
independent provision, and that holding shall not affect the validity of the remaining
portion thereof.” (§ 11362.82.)
14
The Attorney General urges us to avoid this outcome by finding that, in any event,
defendant has not demonstrated prejudice because he was allowed to and did present a
defense under the CUA. The Attorney General points out that the jury instructions did
not reference the eight-ounce or other quantity limits. Rather, the jury was instructed on
the CUA defense as follows: “Possession or cultivation of marijuana is not unlawful if
authorized by the Compassionate Use Act. The Compassionate Use Act allows a person
to possess or cultivate marijuana for personal medical purposes when a physician has
recommended or approved such use. The amount of marijuana possessed or cultivated
must be reasonably related to the patient’s current medical needs. The People have the
burden of proving beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant was not authorized to
possess or cultivate marijuana for medical purposes. If the People have not met this
burden, you must find the defendant not guilty of this charge.”
This instruction is consistent with the CUA, and, by itself, raises no constitutional
problem. The problem, however, is not with the instruction. It is with the prosecutor’s
references to section 11362.77 while examining witnesses and in argument. The
prosecutor asked Christopher Conrad and Dr. Elting to confirm that section 11362.77,
subdivision (a), says that a qualified patient can possess no more than eight ounces of
dried marijuana, unless they have a medical recommendation to exceed that amount. The
prosecutor then repeatedly argued that defendant did not have a recommendation to
possess more than eight ounces of dried marijuana: “The facts are that the defendant has
[a] physician’s statement that he can use marijuana for medical purposes. That’s not in
dispute, . . . But, what’s also clear is that the law says he can only have eight ounces of
dried mature female plant. And testimony by the defense expert Mr. Conrad stated that
the amount that was recovered which was about . . . 12 ounces. [¶] Well, guess what?
Twelve ounces is still more than eight ounces of marijuana . . . . So what happens if the
defendant has more than eight ounces of the dried marijuana stuff? Then, there has to be
some evidence to show that the doctor recommended more than that. And there is no
evidence, . . . It’s not disputed that there is no evidence presented to show that the
defendant has any medical recommendation that exceeds the eight ounces.” The
15
prosecutor continued, “If, for example, you decide, well you know what? I don’t think he
intend[ed] to possess for sale. But, you know what? What he can possess is only eight
ounces. . . . So, the excess that he possess[ed], the other four ounces you can consider
that in the possession charge. . . .”
After reading section 11362.77, subdivision (a), to the jury, the prosecutor said,
“What does that mean? He can have eight ounces of the dried stuff. We know he has 12
at least, he can have eight ounces of the stuff or he can have six immature plants.
Evidence was that they found seven plants in this particular case. But you know what?
We’re not saying, no, you can’t have what you need. That’s not what the law says. The
law says before you can have more than that you need a doctor’s recommendation. He
doesn’t have a doctor’s recommendation, Ladies and Gentleman.” “[Y]ou can’t have
more than eight ounces, unless he has [a] recommendation and he doesn’t have that.”
Therefore, although the jury was properly instructed that defendant could possess
an amount of marijuana reasonably related to his current medical needs, the prosecutor
improperly argued that eight ounces—but no more—was “reasonable” in the absence of a
doctor’s recommendation, which defendant did not have. This was prejudicial error. We
cannot conclude that the jury found defendant guilty because they believed the amount of
marijuana he possessed and cultivated was not reasonably related to his medical needs, as
opposed to believing defendant was guilty because he had more marijuana than section
11362.77 says he may have. Defendant therefore is entitled to a reversal of the judgment.
II. The petition for writ of habeas corpus.
Notwithstanding our reversal of the judgment and remand of this matter, we still
must address the petition for writ of habeas corpus filed by defendant and petitioner and
consolidated with the appeal. Defendant asserts in the petition that his trial counsel was
ineffective because he failed to move to suppress the evidence. On this point, we
disagree.
To prevail on an ineffective assistance of counsel claim, a defendant “must show
both that trial counsel failed to act in a manner to be expected of reasonably competent
attorneys acting as diligent advocates, and that it is reasonably probable a more favorable
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determination would have resulted in the absence of counsel’s failings. [Citations.]”
(People v. Price (1991) 1 Cal.4th 324, 440; see also People v. Ledesma (1987) 43 Cal.3d
171, 216-218.) There is a presumption trial counsel’s performance comes within the
wide range of reasonably professional assistance and that counsel’s actions were a matter
of sound trial strategy. (Strickland v. Washington (1984) 466 U.S. 668, 689-690; People
v. Lewis (1990) 50 Cal.3d 262, 288.)
Defendant premises his contention that his trial counsel was ineffective for failing
to move to suppress evidence on People v. Mower, supra, 28 Cal.4th 457. In Mower,
officers recovered 31 marijuana plants from the home of the defendant, whose doctor
recommended he use marijuana. At his trial for possession and cultivation of marijuana,
the defendant argued that the CUA provides a “ ‘complete’ ” immunity from prosecution
and arrest, thus obligating law enforcement officers to “ ‘investigate first, arrest later.’ ”
(Id. at p. 468.) The court rejected this argument, but nevertheless noted that law
enforcement officers, before they may lawfully arrest a person for any crime, must have
probable cause, which includes all of the surrounding facts such as “those that reveal a
person’s status as a qualified patient” under the CUA. (Id. at pp. 468-469.)
Relying on this language, defendant argues that probable cause did not support the
search warrant because law enforcement officers did not investigate first whether
defendant was a qualified patient under the CUA. Mower does not support such a notion.
Mower briefly alludes to the relevancy a doctor’s recommendation to use marijuana may
have on whether there is probable cause to arrest a person for a marijuana-related crime.
Mower does not discuss or impose any requirement on officers to investigate the
existence of a doctor’s recommendation to use marijuana before a search warrant may be
issued. Here, a confidential citizen informant told a deputy that defendant was possibly
growing marijuana at his home. From the informant’s property, the deputy saw several
marijuana plants growing in defendant’s backyard. These facts established probable
cause to issue the search warrant, and the existence of a doctor’s recommendation to use
marijuana—whether or not the deputy knew about it—did not negate probable cause to
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issue the search warrant. Defendant’s trial counsel therefore did not render ineffective
assistance by failing to move to suppress evidence.
DISPOSITION
The judgment is reversed and the matter is remanded for further proceedings.
The petition for writ of habeas corpus is denied.
CERTIFIED FOR PARTIAL PUBLICATION
ALDRICH, J.
We concur:
CROSKEY, Acting P. J.
KITCHING. J.
