About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline

LOG IN
LOG IN


7 Lincoln Mem'l U. L. Rev. 1 (2020)

handle is hein.journals/lmulr7 and id is 1 raw text is: LINCOLN MEMORIAL UNIVERSITY LAW REVIEW VOLUME 7 SPRING 2020 ISSUE 1 CAPTURING CANNABIS DECRIMINALIZING POSSESSION IN TENNESSEE PURSUANT TO A VALID PRESCRIPTION Brennan E. Parrish' I. INTRODUCTION Before diving into an abyss of drug history, certain key points and terms of art must be clarified. First, cannabis, marijuana, and marihuana (cannabis unless historical context uses otherwise) are the same substance, occurring in natural form as Cannabis Sativa L.2 Second, cannabis is a Schedule VI controlled substance--not a narcotic drug.3 While all narcotics are controlled substances, 4 not all controlled substances are narcotics, and it is incorrect (under Tennessee law) to categorize naturally grown cannabis (in plant form) as 1 Brennan E. Parrish is an associate with his father, J. Gilbert Parrish Jr., Attorney at Law, in Savannah, Tennessee. He would like to thank his wife, Ann Elizabeth Parrish, for listening to countless cannabis discussions and Professors M. Akram Faizer, Melanie M. Reid, Ann W. Long, Brennan Wingerter, and William Gill for their excellent guidance and assistance while studying medical cannabis regulations at Lincoln Memorial University School of Law. 2 Compare TENN. CODE ANN. § 39-17-402(16)(A) (2019) ('Marijuana' means all parts of the plant cannabis); with The Tennessee Drug Control Act of 1971, §2(n) (defining marihuana as all parts of the plant CANNABIS SATIVA L); and 21 U.S.C.A. §802 (Westlaw 2019) ('marihuana' means all parts of the plant Cannabis saliva L.). 3 TENN. CODE ANN. § 39-17-402(4) (2019) (providing, 'Controlled substance' means a drug, substance, or immediate precursor in Schedules I through VII of §§ 39-17-403 -- 39-17-416). 4 Id.