“States are changing marijuana laws across the country, certainly that’s true, but federal law has not changed,” U.S. District Judge Paul Maloney said.
The sentence upset several family members and pro-marijuana activists who attended the sentencing in Grand Rapids.
He said it was difficult to reconcile what he called a harsh sentence in a state where marijuana is legal.
He was not allowed to use the state’s medical-marijuana law as a defense to the federal charges.
He said that every single sale of medical marijuana at his businesses would have been legal under laws in 33 states and the District of Columbia that allow medical or recreational marijuana.
McGraw said Trevino acted as though marijuana – legalized in 2018 for recreational use in Michigan – was always legal.
He noted that Congress has eliminated the mandatory minimum prison sentence for crack cocaine but has not acted on marijuana. »
