Ohioans buying Michigan medical cannabis before Ohio sales start

Ohioans wanting medical marijuana have been crossing the border into Michigan, where some Detroit-area dispensaries will sell to out-of-staters who are issued recommendations for cannabis use months ahead of the drug becoming available in their home state, according to officials from a company providing the recommendations. The move is giving a boost to Michigan MMJ businesses before the launch of Ohio’s own medical cannabis program in 2018.

The MMJ recommendations, given by doctors working for a Toledo business or any other Ohio physician, won’t necessarily help someone in court if they are arrested for having cannabis in Ohio. Possession of less than 100 grams (about 3.5 ounces) is a minor misdemeanor in Ohio with a maximum $150 fine but could lead to someone losing driving privileges for six months.

While it’s a violation of federal law to cross state lines with marijuana, legally obtained or not, the likelihood of someone being prosecuted federally for carrying smaller amounts of marijuana is negligible.

Ohio’s medical law, approved last year, requires that dispensaries open by September 2018. The Ohio Attorney General’s Office says marijuana possession, medical or otherwise, remains illegal while state agencies write the rules and regulations on how cannabis can be grown and sold.

The Associated Press found no reports that anyone has been arrested for bringing medical marijuana into Ohi0 from Michigan.

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