DEA investigates Montana state legislator for medical marijuana views

Yahoo News
Eric Pfeiffer

A member of Montana's state legislature says the Drug Enforcement Agency began investigating her over support for medical marijuana laws.


State House Democrat Diane Sands tells the Missoulian she was contacted by a defense attorney with some unusual news: The attorney had been approached by the DEA who wanted to know whether Sands might be connected to one of the attorney's clients who had been charged with distributing marijuana.

"So now, if you're a state legislator who has been working on medical marijuana laws, you are somehow part of a conspiracy," said Sands. "It's ridiculous, of course, but it's also threatening to think that the federal government is willing to use its influence and try to chill discussion about this subject."

Medical marijuana is legal in Montana, but the practice is still illegal under federal drug laws. The ATF recently stepped into Montana's medical marijuana laws as well, banning firearm sales and ownership from anyone with a medical pot card.

The ACLU has stepped in to defend Sands, though both say they don't expect any actual charges from the DEA. "When you hear this sort of thing, there's a part of you that just gets irritated, but there's a part of you that knows you have to, as an organization, make sure you've dotted the I's and crossed the T's," the ACLU's executive director, Scott Crichton, told the Missoulian.


"It's chilling, and it dredges up darker days from the '50s and '60s," said Crichton.

Neither the DEA nor the U.S. Attorney's Office have said why Sands' name came up in the investigation.

Who is Trying to Undo Montana’s Century-old Clean Elections Law?

Center for Media and Democracy

Montana’s law states, “A corporation may not make a contribution or expenditure in connection with a candidate or a political committee that supports or opposes a candidate or a political party.” The law was passed in 1912 to curb the influence of the notorious mining interests, known as the “Copper Kings.” Now, a right-wing, 501(c)(4) group based out of Colorado called Western Tradition Partnership, has teamed with the local Bozeman, Montana Champion Paint store to challenge the constitutionality of that law in the aftermath of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Citizens United. The suit was filed in the Helena District Court.

In their own words, “Western Tradition Partnership (WTP) is a "no-compromise grassroots organization dedicated to fighting the radical environmentalist agenda.” Their commitment to “the responsible development of natural resources” actually means support for drilling, coal-mining, and other environmentally destructive behavior. Former Congressman Ron Marlenee (R-Montana) and former State Representative John Sinrud (R-Bozeman) helped found the Montana affiliate of Western Tradition Partnership in 2008. WTP and Champion Paint are being represented by Margot Barg of the Wittich Law Firm, based in Bozeman, Montana.

Montana Attorney General Steve Bullock, one of the defendants named in the lawsuit, is a strong defender of the state law, and has testified before the U.S Senate that overturning the law would be catastrophic for Montana politics. The winning State Senate candidate in the last Montana elections spent an average of only $17,000. Corporations, particularly out-of-state corporations that do business in Montana could easily drown out the voices of regular citizens if this law was overturned.
You can see a copy of WTP/Champion Paint’s complaint here (pdf).