Sacramento jury convicts man with marijuana in luggage of a felony
A Sacramento jury convicted Matthew Zugsberger, left, of attempting to take 3 pounds of marijuana onto a flight to New Orleans. His attorney, Grant Pegg is at right.
In a test of how much marijuana reasonably can be carried for personal medical needs, a Sacramento jury Tuesday convicted a man of felony transportation for attempting to take 3 pounds of pot through Sacramento International Airport.
The case of Matthew Zugsberger, 34, a deep sea diver injured in an oil rig accident, left jurors saying they were confused by California's hazy medical marijuana laws and troubled by the case they had to decide.
Earlier in the day, jurors had told Sacramento Superior Court Judge Roland Candee that they were "hopelessly deadlocked" on a felony charge of possessing marijuana for sale.
The judge ordered them back into deliberations. A few hours later, they found Zugsberger innocent of possession of marijuana for sale but guilty of simple possession, a misdemeanor.
They also convicted him of illegally transporting marijuana, a felony that could land him in prison for four years.
Zugsberger, who has been free in lieu of $100,000 bail, was taken into custody. Candee scheduled sentencing for April 8.
Zugsberger, 34, had a Mendocino County physician's recommendation saying he could possess up to 5 pounds of pot and 25 plants.
He testified that he packed his luggage and clothing with marijuana for a flight to New Orleans so that his ex-wife and another master chef could meld it into food products for his personal use.
He said he was hoping his case would be bolstered by a Jan. 21 California Supreme Court decision which found that the state cannot impose limits on how much pot medical marijuana users can grow or possess.
In that case, the high court voided the conviction of cannabis patient Patrick Kelly of Long Beach, finding that the Legislature improperly amended Proposition 215 – the 1996 ballot measure that legalized medical pot use in California – by restricting medical users to 8 ounces of dried pot and six mature or immature plants.
The 2003 legislation, Senate Bill 420, also allowed local governments to approve standards exceeding the state possession limits.
The attorney for Zugsberger, who looked crushed as the verdict was read, said his client will appeal.
"Obviously, this was the first case to interpret the Kelly decision," said defense lawyer Grant Pegg. "So it is going to be heavily monitored."
Prosecutor Satnam Rattu argued that the amount of pot Zugsberger had – and its packaging – suggested possession for sale.
Before Tuesday's verdict, Zugsberger said outside court that he considered himself a test "for all our medical rights and freedoms."
His trial took only a day and a half. But the jury – which requested the text of Proposition 215 – took more than three days to render a verdict.
"His (physician's) recommendation said he was allowed to carry 5 pounds," said juror Laura Pope of Sacramento. "But the law says it (medical marijuana use) is for current medical needs.
"The way the laws were written, we really had to struggle."
She said the jurors had particular difficulty deciding whether the amount of marijuana Zugsberger was carrying constituted possession for sale or simple possession. She said the panel more readily agreed that he was illegally transporting pot.
"That was easiest for us – because he checked his bags. And he was going," she said.
Zugsberger was preparing to board his flight when airport security officers found marijuana in a metal dominoes container – and also wrapped in a scuba suit – in his checked baggage.
He presented a copy of his marijuana recommendation from Dr. Milan Hopkins, a former general practitioner who runs a Mendocino County "alternative medi-spa" featuring herbal treatments and laser hair removal.
Hopkins' standard medical pot recommendation reads: "Any one of my patients may need to grow 25 mature plants and possess 5 pounds of cannabis for their yearly medical needs."
Prosecutors argued that the recommendation didn't spare Zugsberger from charges of illegally possessing and transporting pot.
"I struggled with that," said juror Vera Nichols of Sacramento. She was unwilling to convict Zugsberger on the felony count of possession for sale.
"There needs to be changes in the marijuana laws," she said, "because it's not clear."