Possession Of A Small Amount Of Marijuana For Personal Use

Though laws surrounding the use, possession and distribution of marijuana continue to evolve around the United States and often vary significantly from state to state, the unlicensed possession of Marijuana for personal use remains illegal under Pennsylvania law. Nowhere is this more true than here in State College, Pennsylvania which, because of the large number of young college students, is often viewed by local police and prosecutors as a hotbed of marijuana use. Unlike some jurisdictions where attempts are being made to decriminalize the possession of marijuana for personal use– even within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania– the possession of a small amount of marijuana is not tolerated by law enforcement in Centre County. Parents and students unaccustomed to local policies surrounding marijuana possession are often taken aback by the seemingly intolerant approach employed by local law enforcement—particularly in light of Pennsylvania’s Medical Marijuana Act which has seen the proliferation of marijuana dispensaries here in State College, PA and permits licensed individuals to purchase and possess small amounts of marijuana . Unfortunately, as I often tell my clients, if you do not have a medical card and have been charged in connection with the possession of a small amount of marijuana for personal use, now is not the time for political activism. I have heard far too many Pennsylvania judges address the indignation of individuals charged with possessing small amounts of marijuana by saying “if you don’t like it, move to Colorado.”

While the Pennsylvania legislature has created a separate offense for the Possession of a Small Amount of Marijuana which carries lesser penalties than Simple Possession of a Controlled Substance or Possession With the Intent to Distribute marijuana, it is important to note that the marijuana possessed must be for personal use. In other words, an individual may still be charged and convicted of the far more serious crime of distribution even if the amount of marijuana possessed is under 30g. For example, in In re R.N., 951 A.2d 363 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2008), a case decided by the Pennsylvania Superior Court, the court found that the evidence was sufficient to sustain a conviction for Possession with the Intent to Distribute marijuana where a juvenile defendant was only in possession of 5.6g of marijuana, but the marijuana was individually wrapped in separate packages, the defendant did not possess any paraphernalia for using marijuana and he was also in possession of a firearm. The appeals court upheld the jury’s finding that the totality of the evidence suggested the defendant intended to distribute the 5.6g of marijuana in his possession.

Moreover, even when a person has a medical marijuana license here in Pennsylvania, there are certain restrictions—most notably, a person is not legally allowed to smoke marijuana under the Pennsylvania Medical Marijuana Act (as ridiculous as that may seem). Under the PA medical act, marijuana must be ingested orally or vaporized. For this reason, it occasionally happens that when a person is found in possession of a small amount of marijuana, if they are also found in possession of smoking devices (grinders, pipes/bowls, rolling papers), law enforcement occasionally charges the person because they are not using their marijuana “correctly” under the Medical Marijuana Act.