CRS 12-43.3-307(1) (h) states that a license shall not be issued to a “person who has discharged a sentence in the five years immediately preceding the application date for a conviction of a felony or a person who at any time has been convicted of a felony pursuant to any state, federal law regarding the possession, distribution, manufacturing, cultivation or use of a controlled substance.” This change added “manufacturing” and “cultivation” to the license prohibiting offenses and did not limit the lifetime prohibition.
However, the state may grant a license to “an employee if the employee has a state felony (not federal) conviction based on possession or use of a controlled substance that would not be a felony if the person were convicted of the offense on the date he or she applied for licensure.”
I anticipate this was amended to:
(1) ensure that employees were specifically included in the prohibition portions of this section; and
(2) to recognize the reclassification of marijuana charges from felonies to misdemeanors.
I assume that the reclassification would have to be in the state where the conviction was entered. This means that if the conviction was in Florida and is still a felony in Florida, but not in Colorado, it is still a felony for purposes of licensure.
Finally, I want to take the opportunity to re-clarify the “35 day” rule based on ongoing confusion. Up to this point, the State prohibited selling to new patients who were not in possession of their card (see, MMED’s 9/27/10 Memorandum regarding its position on the 35 day rule).
CRS 12-43.3-402(5) was changed to state that “the employee of the medical marijuana center making the sale shall verify that the purchaser has a valid registration card… or a copy of a current and complete new application for the medical marijuana registry administered by the Department of Public Health and Environment that is documented by a certified mail return receipt within the preceding 35 days and a valid identification card that matches the name on the registration card.” The “certified mail return receipt” is the green postcard that is signed by the Department mailed to the sender, not the USPS receipt for paying the certified mail postage fee. Also, in such a case, the employee must contact the Department of Public Health and Environment to determine whether the purchaser’s application has been denied. This section does not apply to license renewal applications and these patients must have their card.