--- title: Marijuana Legalization's Final Battleground description: In some states, there's an untenable mismatch between the crime and the time, but does anyone think that pot—medical or recreational—will still be illegal in 10 years? canonical: https://time.com/109830/where-the-war-on-pot-will-go-to-die/ author: Nick Gillespie article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-05-23T13:31:13.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T08:02:28.627Z article:section: Ideas og:title: Where the War on Pot Will Go to Die og:description: In some states, there's an untenable mismatch between the crime and the time, but does anyone think that pot—medical or recreational—will still be illegal in 10 years? og:url: https://time.com/109830/where-the-war-on-pot-will-go-to-die/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt967f91f2877fed0a/698690a2810bbb38d4c91b7a/474347423.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4270 og:image:height: 2402 og:image:alt: Republican lawyer and marijuana advocate. og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Where the War on Pot Will Go to Die twitter:description: In some states, there's an untenable mismatch between the crime and the time, but does anyone think that pot—medical or recreational—will still be illegal in 10 years? twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt967f91f2877fed0a/698690a2810bbb38d4c91b7a/474347423.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Where the War on Pot Will Go to Die > Sponsored content. 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A paid TIME subscription is separate and available at time.com/subscribe-agent. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/newsletters?i=b2f6eb65-edb8-45f6-849c-50979c1d64af&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Inside A Christian Pot Shop [Watch (HLS stream): Inside A Christian Pot Shop](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/vz4fpqkC.m3u8) (5:22)  _Published 2014-04-03. Bryan and Lanette Davies run a Christian medical marijuana dispensary in Sacramento. After God told Bryan to open a cannabis shop, the couple say they have been doing God's work in providing natural care to the sick._ by [Nick Gillespie](https://time.com/author/nick-gillespie/) ## Nick Gillespie May 23, 2014 1:31 PM UTC  Some pot and a pipe from one of the first medical marijuana stores in California. Some pot and a pipe from one of the first medical marijuana stores in California. The Washington Post—The Washington Post/Getty Images by [Nick Gillespie](https://time.com/author/nick-gillespie/) ## Nick Gillespie May 23, 2014 1:31 PM UTC Now that a majority of Americans—54% and climbing, according [to Pew Research](http://www.people-press.org/2014/04/02/americas-new-drug-policy-landscape/)—believe that marijuana should be treated like beer, wine and liquor, it’s time to ask: Where does the war on pot go to die? What episode will trigger that final skirmish that kicks over the hollowed-out edifice of marijuana prohibition like the Berlin Wall? What will be the final outrage against common sense and common decency that triggers an Arab Spring for weed in these U.S.? Twenty-one states and the District of Columbia already have medical marijuana (with more to come), and full legalization has gained 13 percentage points in just the past five years. Ironically, whatever ends the war on pot won’t happen in Colorado or Washington, which have already legalized recreational pot and have received vague promises from Attorney General Eric Holder that the feds won’t bust people and businesses who comply with state laws. Colorado is further along in the retail process than Washington (where pot shops won’t open until mid-July), and so far the only problem of note is that the state is raking in [40% more tax revenue](http://www.businessinsider.com/r-colorado-legalized-marijuana-tax-revs-ahead-of-expectations-moodys-2014-11) than originally projected. Look instead to places such as Round Rock, Texas, where 19-year-old Jacob Lavoro faces [a sentence between five and 99 years](http://abc13.com/news/central-texas-teen-could-face-life-after-cops-find-pot-brownies/69858/) for allegedly selling a 1.5-lb. slab of hash brownies. [Under state law](http://norml.org/pdf%5Ffiles/state%5Fpenalties/NORML%5FTX%5FState%5FPenalties.pdf), selling up to five pounds of plain old pot is punishable by no more than two years in the clink and a $10,000 fine. But hash, a concentrated form of pot, is considered a controlled substance, and even the tiny amount in Lavoro’s brownies qualifies him for what amounts to a potential life sentence. Through [a convoluted rationale](http://www.cbsnews.com/news/life-in-prison-for-pot-brownies-its-possible-in-case-of-texas-teen/), you see, the law can count all the brownie ingredients—the eggs, butter, flour, cocoa—as hash. Oh well, everything’s bigger in Texas, including the unconscionable mismatch between the crime and the time. If he were only a couple of states away, Lavoro wouldn’t be facing jail, he’d be a successful entrepreneur. That sort of mind-blowing disjuncture is exactly the sort of thing that takes the fight out of the war on pot. Or look [to recent comments](http://reason.com/blog/2014/05/21/fbi-director-chastised-for-pot-comments) made by FBI director James Comey, who admitted that he can’t hire the 2,000 cybercrime fighters the bureau needs to protect America because of workplace drug tests. “I have to hire a great workforce to compete with those cybercriminals, and some of those kids want to smoke weed on the way to the interview,” Comey said. He was upbraided by Senator Jeff Sessions (R., Ala.) for providing yet “one more example of leadership in America dismissing the seriousness of marijuana use.” Whatever you can say about Comey, he’s in good company in acknowledging the ubiquity of pot smoking in today’s America. According to the latest [government data](http://www.samhsa.gov/data/NSDUH/2012SummNatFindDetTables/DetTabs/NSDUH-DetTabsSect1peTabs1to46-2012.htm#Tab1.1B), 43% of Americans—including the three most recent Presidents—have tried pot at least once. And [when asked whether](http://www.people-press.org/2014/04/02/section-2-views-of-marijuana-legalization-decriminalization-concerns/) alcohol or marijuana is more harmful to society, fully 63% say booze and just 23% say pot. How much longer can the Jeff Sessionses of the world hold back the tide of public opinion? And, finally, look to California, which passed the nation’s [first medical-marijuana ballot initiative](http://norml.org/legal/item/california-medical-marijuana) way back in 1996 and saw [46.5% vote](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California%5FProposition%5F19%5F%282010%29) in favor of recreational pot in a 2010 proposition. In 2011, federal agents raided the operations of business of dispensary owner and medical grower Aaron Sandusky. This came after repeated promises by the Obama Administration that it wouldn’t go after medical-pot providers who were operating within state law. And even though officials from the city of Upland, which had tipped off the feds, later [admitted in court](http://reason.com/reasontv/2012/08/13/10-years-to-life-for-medical-marijuana-t) that Sandusky was operating properly within state law. Sandusky refused on principle to cop a plea because he thought he was in the right. Tried in federal court, he was unable to offer a defense based on California state law. Sandusky ended up pulling a 10-year sentence. In March of this year, he lost his final appeal. If he’s lucky and stays on good behavior, [he’ll be out in 2021](http://www.dailybulletin.com/general-news/20140318/medical-marijuana-purveyor-aaron-sandusky-loses-appeal-will-remain-in-federal-prison). Does anyone think that pot—medical or recreational—will still be illegal by then? As it happens, Sandusky is doing time in Texas’ Big Spring Federal Correctional Institute, which is only a four-hour drive from Jacob Lavoro’s hometown of Round Rock. As Lavoro ponders whatever deal prosecutors might offer him, he’d be smart to visit Sandusky and ask what life behind bars is like. Because while the war on pot is surely in its final stage, there will still be plenty of casualties before peace is declared. **MORE:** _Inside a Christian Pot Shop_ ## Transcript Good morning, Sacramento. This is Bryan Davies and Lanette Davies. [ INAUDIBLE ] I normally just pray, thank you lord, thank you lord, thank you lord. Thank you lord, for this chance. Thank you, lord, for everything. Thank you lord that it's a blessing that Lanette is. I have a fear of praying and asking for something. Since you're praying against his will, you're praying for evil. Well at this point in time I start praying, please help me, Lord. Help me, Lord. Tell me what to do. I need to get back in the business. I need to do something to be able to earn money. He said, open up a pot shop. And the Lord said, who are you not to do my will? [ MUSIC ] This has absolutely has been a ministry that has been ordained by God. So it is a christian dispensary, however, it is run by christians. Not all my employees are necessarily christian. It is not something that I require from them. Many people will stop because they are offended not by the marijuana but by the christianity. And it's a strangest thing. I was pissed that they open it up. It was not only embarrassing to me, it was this is, this is wrong, what are you doing? LIke I don't wanna be a part of it. When God told me to open up a cannabis shop, I go on the internet. [ SOUND ] They told us to target men between the ages of 20 and 30 years old because they'll spend the most on cannabis. We had a competitor, who used to have Bikini Wednesday. [ LAUGH ] Instead, I have a huge amount of elderly that are coming by and, you know, they've been taking handfuls, poundfuls of pharmaceuticals and getting sicker off of the pharmaceuticals! And they come over and say, do you have anything on this disease, or this disease. Or, are there any studies on this, and how do I get a cannabis recommendation? This has been, the whole time, has been an education process, so that people could take a look at a patient, and not see a stoner. Oh, you work there, that means that you get high all the time. It's like actually, no, we don't. We have people that come in here and they have cancer, and some of the people die. A lot of 'em were Christians and believers who were pissed at God. Yeah. So that's my whole Sunday Prayer started here. In the name of my lord, Jesus Christ, if any evil is in this room, may the lord rebuke it. I'm always watching the clock like, is it six o'clock yet? Cuz I'm eager to pray. And we pray for everyone. Even patients join in on our prayer. We wanna thank you for Lanette, Teva, Joe, Jeff, Ronnie [ CROSSTALK ] We've actually had employees that didn't want to participate for whatever reason [ UNKNOWN ], and it's okay. We're not here to judge you, one way or another. Hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come. I've been coming here for four years, and I'm a very satisfied customer. [ INAUDIBLE ] You know what I'm saying, you cannot judge people for sinning differently than you. Amen. Amen. Thank you. [ CROSSTALK ] And that one lady, and what she said was, God's God and you know what, I've got cancer and I need all the prayers I can get. [ MUSIC ]. I think our court case is something that God has provided for us as an opportunity. We did keep completely clean records. Everything was absolutely done correctly, to the point that we did pass that audit with flying colors. Cana Care owes the IRS more than $ 800, 000 in income taxes. At issue is this 1982 law, that bans the deduction of expenses for trafficking and controlled substances. They allow you to take the cannabis as your deduction, but they disallow you all the legal expenses. So the IRS came back and said give us 194, 000 and they will drop everything, and I said no, I wanna go to court. But then they make this deal with you, if you give us a couple extra percent of gross sales, this all goes behind you. [ MUSIC ]. So is it illegal federally or is not illegal federally? Because you'll allow us to stay in business if we give you more money. [ MUSIC ] Crusaders For Patients Rights is my organization. It's kinda my, basis of what I do. Remove federal barriers for medical and scientific cannabis research, and create [ CROSSTALK ]. We have no problems putting together a protest. And we actually have done protests at the federal court building and we've done candlelight vigils. But even now, churches have even come on board. There are several of them that have actually said, you know, we don't have a problem with medicinal cannabis. They have none. As a matter of fact, they wanna have those options open. I use cannabis at night. I usually use a pipe, a small amount, and it usually is, you know, a couple of tokes and I go to bed. He has a pretty gnarly disease. He have [ UNKNOWN ]. I had never seen him sleep through a night until Cannabis. Until he used Cannabis. I had never seen him sleep through a night. And we were married 25 years. I go straight back to, you know, God created this as a man made herb. It is a medicine. And it works as a medicine. And when it comes down to it, God's commandment to us is to take care of the sick and ill. Let me ask you this, did God create pot? I know he did. [ CROSSTALK ] Created everything. And you know what I know about God? He is still working with you. I would not do, it if I didn't endorse what we were doing here. If I thought for one minute, that this was not the way that he wanted us to go. I would not be here. I'm always worried about being a negative reflection on christianity, because it's not what we wanna do, but at the same point, I would be negatively not following God's commandments. If I didn't take this stance and work it. 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