On September 4, 2009, Professor Lyle Craker, Ph.D.s ACLU Drug Law Reform Project lawyers filed the third Status Update with the U.S. Court of Appeals, First Circuit. The update reports on the DEAs lack of response to the witness and document list filed with the DEA on June 5, 2009, in support of Prof. Crakers Motion to Reconsider the DEAs Final Ruling. The lawyers are asking the Court to hold the appellate proceedings in abeyance until we learn the DEAs final decision. The DEAs final order was scheduled to go into effect July 1, 2009, but the DEA lawyers have previously indicated that it is not unusual to have a Motion to Reconsider still pending after the effective date of a final agency order.
For the first time since we began this court case in 2001, we are in alignment with the DEAs tactic of delay. We have read rumors that Obama is considering appointing new leadership at the DEA from outside of the current DEA. Hopefully, any new leadership replacing the Bush-holdovers who are still running the DEA will reverse the rejection of the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ)s recommendation to license Prof. Craker.
Crakers lawyers are required to file a status report with the Court of Appeals every 60 days until a decision is finalized by the DEA. These status report filings preserve Crakers right to appeal should the DEA deny him a license to grow marijuana for research purposes at UMASS Amherst, under contract to MAPS.
