NH jury nullifies religious cannabis conviction

Incarceration rates in South Dakota are jaw-dropping.

From Reason:

A jury unanimously acquitted Doug Darrell, a 59-year-old Rastafarian charged with marijuana [sic] cultivation, after his lawyer, Mark Sisti, argued that a conviction would be unjust in light of the fact that Darrell was growing cannabis for his own religious and medicinal use. More remarkably, Judge James O'Neill instructed the jury that "even if you find that the State has proven each and every element of the offense charged beyond a reasonable doubt, you may still find the defendant not guilty if you have a conscientious feeling that a not guilty verdict would be a fair result in this case." "Cases like this shouldn't be brought," Sisti says. "And when they are brought, I think that safety valve, that nullification safety valve, is very important. Other states had better start waking up, because without it, people are going to be convicted of very serious charges through hypocrisy. The jury's going to think they can't do anything else, and that's wrong." --Jacob Sullum

The future of the business should be a combination synthesizing the cannabis equivalents of organic microbreweries, vintners, and greenhouses beginning as cottage industries that can withstand fiduciary and insurance requirements.

We are a litigious society: ways to generate revenue for states can be hammered out in committee in each state legislature to head off some of the torts likely following enactment and to guide law enforcement using most of the same language that governs alcohol use. Patients that seek cannabis as medicine can be seen by a health care provider and be excused from paying the excise taxes.

Home growing law should look just like home-brewing and wine making.