Indiana NORML

Michigan Supreme Court limits judges’ power to ban ma*****na use during probation

Lansing, MI - Friends Community News Group, July 24, 2026 - Michigan judges may not automatically prohibit adults on probation from using recreational ma*****na merely because cannabis remains illegal under federal law, the Michigan Supreme Court has ruled.

The unanimous decision in People v. Danielle Heaven-Leah Hess was issued July 6. A July 8 memorandum from the State Court Administrative Office subsequently instructed trial judges across Michigan to review the ruling and adjust their probation-sentencing practices when necessary.

The ruling does not establish an unrestricted right for every probationer to smoke or possess ma*****na. Instead, the court held that judges cannot impose a blanket ma*****na ban based solely on the federal Controlled Substances Act. The justices left unresolved whether a judge may impose an individually tailored ma*****na restriction for another legitimate reason tied to a defendant’s crime, rehabilitation or public safety.

The case began after Danielle Heaven-Leah Hess pleaded guilty in Montcalm County’s 64B District Court to third-degree retail fraud for stealing clothing from a Meijer store. District Judge Adam Eggleston sentenced Hess to 12 months of probation under the Holmes Youthful Trainee Act, commonly known as HYTA.

HYTA allows certain young defendants to avoid a public criminal conviction if they successfully complete their sentence. Hess’ probation order prohibited her from possessing or using ma*****na, although the district court did not state why the condition was necessary in her particular case.

Hess later tested positive for ma*****na and pleaded guilty to a probation violation. After another test detected what the Supreme Court described as a “very small amount” of ma*****na, she was charged with violating probation a second time.

She asked the district court to amend her probation order, erase the first violation and dismiss the second. Hess argued that Michigan’s voter-approved recreational ma*****na law protected conduct that complied with state law, including possession and use by adults age 21 or older.

The district court rejected her argument, revoked her HYTA status and sentenced her to 10 days in jail. Montcalm County Circuit Judge Suzanne Hoseth Kreeger stayed the jail term while Hess appealed but otherwise upheld the district court’s ruling.

In October 2024, a three-judge Michigan Court of Appeals panel sided with the lower courts. The panel reasoned that state probation law requires probationers to obey federal criminal law and that ma*****na remains prohibited under the federal Controlled Substances Act. The appellate court concluded that Michigan judges were therefore permitted — and arguably required — to ban recreational ma*****na use during probation.

The Supreme Court rejected that interpretation.

Justice Elizabeth Welch, writing for the entire seven-member court, said Michigan’s Regulation and Taxation of Ma*****na Act protects state-law-compliant ma*****na activity from arrest, prosecution, penalties and the denial of rights or privileges. Voters approved the law in 2018, legalizing recreational ma*****na for adults 21 and older within specified limits.

Although federal authorities may continue enforcing federal ma*****na law, the justices said the federal prohibition does not override Michigan’s decision to withhold state penalties. The state’s probation statute is itself a Michigan law, the court explained, and Michigan’s ma*****na initiative expressly provides that conflicting state laws do not apply to conduct protected by the initiative.

“When the MRTMA and the probation act conflict, the MRTMA controls,” the court concluded. Judges therefore may not ban otherwise lawful ma*****na use solely on the grounds that it violates federal law.

The justices reversed the Court of Appeals and sent Hess’ case back to the trial court. The district judge must reconsider her request to amend her probation terms, vacate the first ma*****na violation and dismiss the second.

The ruling’s limits are important. The Supreme Court declined to decide whether ma*****na could be restricted through a discretionary probation condition supported by the specific circumstances of a case. A court might later be asked to consider restrictions involving crimes connected to ma*****na, impaired driving, substance-abuse treatment or other individualized concerns. The Hess decision addressed only automatic bans based on ma*****na’s federal status.

State Court Administrator Thomas Boyd emphasized that distinction in his July 8 memorandum to Michigan’s district, municipal and circuit judges. Boyd warned that media coverage could cause confusion and directed courts to review the opinion and modify sentencing practices where needed.

The ACLU of Michigan, which filed a friend-of-the-court brief, praised the decision as recognition that people on probation remain protected by the recreational ma*****na law enacted by Michigan voters.

By: Tom Manke

Indiana NORML will have its canopy and table with T-shirts, hats, gold, leaf pins, buttons, memberships, books, socks, and other items at the Saturday, June 13, 2026 Indy pride festival at military park near downtown Indianapolis. The festival begins at 11 AM. There is no charge for admission this year although there is a $16 charge if you wish to have access to the concerts.