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New Mexico Guard Sues Over Termination for Medical Marijuana Use

New Mexico Guard Sues Over Termination for Medical Marijuana Use

A former New Mexico jail guard and veteran of the Iraq war is suing the county where he was employed after being fired for a positive drug test, even though he had a prescription to use medical marijuana to treat his Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

Augustine Stanley, 32, was terminated from his job as a lieutenant at the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Albuquerque after testing positive for marijuana in 2013. But his lawyer, who is representing him in a federal lawsuit against Bernalillo County, said he was prescribed medical marijuana for PTSD and has a legal medical marijuana card.

“It’s demonstrative of a lot of people’s cases,” said Stanley’s attorney, Paul Livingston. “And a lot of people work for the state or the county or the city and need to have or want to have a medical marijuana card.”

Jail officials claimed it was a violation of MDC’s anti-drug policy for an employee to use marijuana. They added that Stanley did not report any prescription medication prior to the drug test as required by policy.

However, Livingston said Stanley did not have to report his medical marijuana prescription because New Mexico state law recognizes the medical use of marijuana and protects the privacy of medical marijuana card holders.

“They guarantee him confidentiality, and what’s ironic is then they give him a test that’s designed to break that confidentiality to show that he is using marijuana and therefore can be fired, and that’s what’s wrong with this,” Livingston said.

MDC officials argued that any drug use is inappropriate due to the safety sensitive environment at the jail. Guards need to be “100% aware” because life and death situations could happen very quickly, noted then-MDC Chief Ramon Rustin.

In response, Livingston contended that simply using medical marijuana does not automatically mean the user’s judgment or abilities are impaired.

“They’re not impaired in any way, the only thing that impairs them is the drug test that says they’re impaired and the conclusion or the presumption that the government makes, which is that if you test positive for marijuana you must be impaired,” he said.

In Stanley’s termination letter, a jail official wrote that his “actions and conduct were inappropriate, unprofessional and inconsistent with your obligations as a Bernalillo County employee.”

MDC spokeswoman Nataura Powdrell insisted that Stanley was fired because he did not notify his supervisor about his use of a controlled substance, not due to the medical marijuana itself. “He’s a lieutenant, and he understands the policy and should have informed his supervisor,” she said.

The jail’s policy states that “No employee shall ingest any controlled substance unless prescribed directly to them. When taking any prescribed medication ... [an] employee must notify their immediate supervisor when taking any prescribed medication that may impair their ability to perform the essential functions of their job or may cause the employee to be inattentive or drowsy.”

Stanley countered that his work performance was not impaired because he smokes medical marijuana off duty and before bed; thus, he was not obligated to inform his supervisor what he was doing on his own time.

The case raises serious questions for other prison and jail guards, as well as police officers, fire fighters and federal, state, county and city employees who are authorized to use medical marijuana but must also undergo random drug testing.

“It seems that it is not appropriate under state law because the State of New Mexico has recognized the right of patients to use medical cannabis for various reasons, in consultation with their doctor and under their doctor’s supervision,” said attorney John McCall, who helped write New Mexico’s medical marijuana statute. “People are going to have to consult with lawyers, unfortunately.”

Stanley began working as a guard at MDC in 1999 and, after serving in the military, was promoted to sergeant in 2006 and then to lieutenant. He was a member of the jail’s Corrections Emergency Response and Tactical Team, and said his record at the facility was unblemished.

“I served my country, and I served my county,” Stanley stated. “But it feels like that meant nothing. It feels wrong.”

His federal lawsuit, filed on June 13, 2014, remains pending. See: Stanley v. County of Bernalillo, U.S.D.C. (D. N.M.), Case No. 1:14-cv-00550-JB-KBM.

Sources: www.kob.com, www.krqe.com, www.abqjournal.com

 

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Related legal case

Stanley v. County of Bernalillo