Colorado Supreme Court Rules You Can Be Fired For Off-Duty Pot Use

… And even when it’s for medical use.

The surprisingly unanimous decision comes nine months after the state’s highest court dealt with the case of Brandon Coats. Brandon, who smoked medical weed to control his debilitating muscle spasms, had been fired by his employer Dish Network after he failed a random drug test.

He challenged Dish’s zero-tolerance drug policy in court on the grounds that marijuana use was legal under Colorado state law, but his firing was upheld in both trial court and the Colorado Court of Appeals.

The reason? An outdated clause in Colorado’s Lawful Off-Duty Activities Stature that says something has to be legal both under state and federal law to be considered kosher for off-duty use. Since both medical and recreational weed us still federally illegal, neither qualify as an acceptable off-duty activity even in states where its legal.

We guess that means this granny is getting fired from her position as “World’s Best Grandma.” The world is sad.

Ugh. How is Colorado simultaneously the most liberal and Draconian marijuana state? Honestly, we’d rather lawmaker’s just pick one extreme or the other. All this contradictory legislation has got us more confused and paranoid than if we’d got into a bad batch of edibles.

It’s time to update our pre-legal weed statutes and clauses and whatnot, because the longer we hold off on bringing that legislation into the modern era, the more people like Brandon get fucked over in the interim.

Brandon’s attorney Michael Evans called the decision “devastating,” and we’d agree. There’s really no telling how much of a precedent the court’s decision could set for these kinds of firings.

“For people like Brandon Coats, there really isn’t a ‘choice,’ as MMJ is the only substance both he and his (Colorado-licensed) physicians know of to control his seizures due to his quadriplegia,” Evans said. “He has to have it.

“Today’s decision means that until someone in the House or Senate champions the cause, most employees who work in a state with the world’s most powerful MMJ laws will have to choose between using MMJ and work,” Evans added.

Although … the one good thing in this shit-storm is that the court will not make a new law regarding this ruling … it’s still up to individual businesses to decide how to handle their employee’s drug use.

Source: The Rooster