Pennsylvania probation officers can’t prohibit use of medical marijuana

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court just struck down Lebanon County’s ban on the use of medical marijuana by people who are on probation. Many other Pennsylvania counties, including Montgomery County, have the same rule, so the decision will have a significant impact. The Court’s reasoning was that the legislature has permitted medical marijuana so the probation department can’t simply implement a wholesale ban on it. However, the opinion clearly states that nothing in the law prohibits prosecution of someone who uses marijuana while on probation without doing so lawfully pursuant to the medical marijuana enactment. In other words, probationers need to have a lawful medical marijuana card and be utilizing that marijuana or they are at risk of being found in violation of their probation.