Get state ID card before growing marijuana, says Court of Appeals

LANSING (AP) -- The Michigan appeals court says people who want to grow marijuana for medical use should wait until they have a state-issued card. The ruling published Wednesday from a three-judge panel means a man will face charges for manufacturing marijuana in Montmorency County. Investigators conducting surveillance by air spotted six marijuana plants growing at Brian Reed's residence in August 2009. He wasn't arrested until October. At that time, Reed had a state card to use medical marijuana. But the appeals court says it doesn't prevent authorities from prosecuting him for what they found a few months earlier. Reed says he has chronic back pain due to a degenerative disk. Published: Fri, Sep 2, 2011