What about Weed laws

Do you want to know the background of weed laws and which states are not weed-friendly in the eyes of Johnny law?

There are so many existing weed laws that prohibit marijuana in the United States and these laws differ from one state to another. However, before 1900, the legal history of Cannabis in the United States was related to the lawfulness of weed use for medical or recreational purposes.

The prohibition only arose in some states from 1906 and onward. History would tell that the first drug law that regulates marijuana was made effective in the middle of 1930’s. The law named Uniform State Narcotic Drug Act.

In the 1970s, many places in the United States started to decriminalize cannabis. A new law was enacted titled  Controlled Substances Act of 1970, which has classified cannabis as having high potential for abuse, no medical use, and not safe to use under medical supervision.

There were various weed laws that has been enacted since then up to date. Each weed laws vary from one state to the other.

However the general US law defines Marijuana as all parts of the plant Cannabis sativa L., whether growing or not; the seeds thereof; the resin extracted from any part of the plant; and every compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture, or preparation of the plant, its seeds, or resin.

Weed Laws according to the government

According to the U. S. Enforcement Drug Administration, marijuana is a Schedule I substance under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). Schedule I drugs are those drugs being classified as that have a high potential for abuse. It is also a drug that has no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States.weed laws

Marijuana has also been distinguished to lack of the accepted safety for use of the drug or other substance under medical supervision. As of April 2006, there are eleven states that have declared illegal certain marijuana use are Arizona, Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington.

However, Maryland has enacted legislation that recognizes a “medical marijuana” defense.

You should take note that marijuana was made illegal through some kind of process involving scientific, medical, and government hearings; that it was to protect the citizens from what was determined to be a dangerous drug. Hence, weed laws are not there for nothing. They were enacted to protect the people from the life threatening effects of marijuana.

Although legalization activists and weed users claimed that smoking pot has no negative effects, scientific research indicates that marijuana use can cause many different health problems. The active ingredient in marijuana, delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol or THC, acts on cannabinoid receptors on nerve cells and influences the activity of those cells.

Research has shows that the use of marijuana does not only have effects on the brain, but also in the hart and lungs of the users. When high doses of marijuana are used, usually when eaten in food rather than smoked, users can experience the following symptoms: hallucinations, delusions, impaired memory, and disorientation.

Researchers also found that users’ risk for a heart attack is four times higher within the first hour after smoking marijuana, compared to their general risk of heart attack when not smoking. The most dangerous part is, it has been proven that there is an increased risk of lung cancer for marijuana smokers.


If you are a user, for sure you would hate these entire weed laws that the government implements. However, if you think about it, all laws are made for public safety and public good. You might just be grateful these weed laws exist to help you avoid destroying your future because of marijuana.