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RT.com said:Bringing more than 3.4 ounces of liquid on an airplane is still prohibited, but attorneys say sneaking pot past TSA checkpoints might not be as problematic as with other contraband.
Medical marijuana is now permitted in nearly half of the United States, with Illinois recently becoming the twentieth state in the US to allow doctors to legally prescribe pot to patients. But while federal law still considers weed to be illegal, attorneys say bringing marijuana onboard airlines for some domestic travel shouldn’t necessarily raise any red flags.
Aaron Kase, a freelance reporter and blogger for Lawyers.com, noted recently that Transportation Security Administration agents in some states may choose to look the other way if they stumble upon certain contraband that may be illegal on a federal level but allowed locally.
“Although it’s a try-it-at-your-own-risk scenario, airplane passengers in certain situations are being permitted to carry marijuana on board, even if TSA agents sniff out the drugs,” Kase wrote last week for the legal website.
According to Kase, boarding a commercial airliner with any federally-prohibited drug is still a no-no in the eyes of Uncle Sam, but the TSA — indeed a federal agency — isn’t obligated to scour luggage for marijuana and arrest every airport patron possessing a little bit of pot.
A statement on TSA’s official website acknowledges that the federal agents staffed at security checkpoints at airports across America do not search for any drugs, and if they discover contraband then they “will refer the matter to a law enforcement officer.”
“Whether or not marijuana is considered ‘medical marijuana’ under local law is not relevant to TSA screening because TSA is governed by federal law and federal law provides no basis to treat medical marijuana any differently than non-medical marijuana,” the official statement continues.
Elsewhere, though, the TSA admits “the final decision rests with TSA on whether to allow any items on the plane,” and nothing explicitly instructs those agents to detain or arrest anyone traveling with marijuana, medicinal or otherwise.
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