Sueing the Federal Law

[Cneckar]

Hello. My name is Casey and I am 17 and a senior in high school. I am in AP Government and we have been talking about courts and federal law. I have been thinking about something but I'm not sure if I could go through with it.

Federal law says that Marijuana is a schedule 1 drug and that means a doctor can't prescribe it to anyone. Of course Marijuana doesn't compare to heroin or meth or anything else labeled under schedule 1.
I was just wondering what I could do to sue the federal government for not enforcing federal law or sue the states that have Marijuana legal medical or not.

Any advice would be great

Thank you
-Casey

 

[Zigner]

Hello. My name is Casey and I am 17 and a senior in high school. I am in AP Government and we have been talking about courts and federal law. I have been thinking about something but I'm not sure if I could go through with it.

Federal law says that Marijuana is a schedule 1 drug and that means a doctor can't prescribe it to anyone. Of course Marijuana doesn't compare to heroin or meth or anything else labeled under schedule 1.
I was just wondering what I could do to sue the federal government for not enforcing federal law or sue the states that have Marijuana legal medical or not.

Any advice would be great

Thank you
-Casey

If you are unsure of how to research this, please ask your teacher for some pointers. I'm sure your teacher wouldn't want you running to an internet forum to get the answer to homework questions.

 

[Cneckar]

If you are unsure of how to research this, please ask your teacher for some pointers. I'm sure your teacher wouldn't want you running to an internet forum to get the answer to homework questions.

It's not a homework question. It's a legitimate question.

 

[quincy]

It's not a homework question. It's a legitimate question.

What is the name of your state, Casey?

 

[Cneckar]

What is the name of your state, Casey?

The name of my state is Texas

 

[Zigner]

It's not a homework question. It's a legitimate question.

If that's the case then, no, you can't sue the federal government for not enforcing federal law.

 

[Cneckar]

If that's the case then, no, you can't sue the federal government for not enforcing federal law.

Why not? They aren't enforcing federal law in California, Colorado, and Washington etc. Am I not entitled to sue the federal government for not enforcing federal law?

 

[quincy]

Thank you for providing your state name, Casey.

Here is a link to the Federal Practice Manual for Legal Aid Attorneys on Enforcing Federal Rights Against States and State Officials: http://federalpracticemanual.org/chapter8/section1

As a note: This same question has been asked a lot on various sites on the internet.

 

[Zigner]

Why not? They aren't enforcing federal law in California, Colorado, and Washington etc. Am I not entitled to sue the federal government for not enforcing federal law?

These are great questions for a bright AP Government student to research the answers to. Really. In fact, I would bet that your teacher would be happy to guide you in your research. Heck, you might even get some extra credit out of it

 

[Cneckar]

These are great questions for a bright AP Government student to research the answers to. Really. In fact, I would bet that your teacher would be happy to guide you in your research. Heck, you might even get some extra credit out of it

Thank you and everything but quite frankly he's not a lawyer. I am really thinking about doing this because it's a big topic. If I couldn't sue the federal government then could I sue the states for not complying with federal law?

 

[quincy]

Thank you and everything but quite frankly he's not a lawyer. I am really thinking about doing this because it's a big topic. If I couldn't sue the federal government then could I sue the states for not complying with federal law?

You first need standing to sue. How have you been harmed?

 

[Zigner]

Thank you and everything but quite frankly he's not a lawyer. I am really thinking about doing this because it's a big topic. If I couldn't sue the federal government then could I sue the states for not complying with federal law?

Most folks here aren't lawyers. Lawyers, generally, get paid for their time. Again, your teacher can help you understand the points you need to research. Quincy is being very nice to you, but the simple fact of the matter is that being fed the information really won't help you learn it.

 

[quincy]

... the simple fact of the matter is that being fed the information really won't help you learn it.

I think if people are open to learning, they can learn by being fed information. Teachers feed students information but teachers leave it to the students to absorb and apply what has been presented. The benefit to having an attorney help with legal matters is that an attorney has already been fed the information and absorbed it and has learned how to apply it.

I try to direct posters to the sources where they can find the information they are requesting. What they do with the information after that, and how they do it, is left up to them.

Following, for Casey's benefit, are two additional links to information, this time to sources on the Federal Tort Claims Act.

The 'Lectric Law Library: http://www.lectlaw.com/def/f071.htm

The US DOJ: https://www.justice.gov/civil/federal-tort-claims-act-litigation-section

 

[HighwayMan]

There are many laws on the books that are not enforced, on the local, state, and federal level.

If you use Twitter I suggest you follow @CrimeADay to get an idea of the many silly federal laws that exist.

Just because a government entity chooses not to enforce a particular law is no reason to sue that entity. Police officers tend to have both pet peeves as well as certain (mostly traffic) laws that they feel should not be enforced. That's their discretion and unless someone gets hurt or damaged by their inaction there's not much that can be done, no matter how much you disagree with that.

 

[quincy]

There are many laws on the books that are not enforced, on the local, state, and federal level.

If you use Twitter I suggest you follow @CrimeADay to get an idea of the many silly federal laws that exist.

Just because a government entity chooses not to enforce a particular law is no reason to sue that entity. Police officers tend to have both pet peeves as well as certain (mostly traffic) laws that they feel should not be enforced. That's their discretion and unless someone gets hurt or damaged by their inaction there's not much that can be done, no matter how much you disagree with that.

I think what surprises me the most about Casey's question is that he is a 17 year old senior in high school who wants to sue the government for NOT enforcing federal marijuana laws.