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Current D.Ct. clerk. Heading to CO this summer with some friends. I'm guessing they'll take advantage of the recreational marijuana while we're there. Am I wrong in thinking I should avoid smoking/being around marijuana, given the federal laws?

Not sure if it's different rules for clerks, but DOJ attorneys are not permitted to use marijuana anywhere without a prescription.

I'm guessing you don't smoke weed "recreationally" where you live then?

I can't imagine you'd be at risk for anything unless someone could prove possession in a state where possession is criminalized. In California, for example, if police were to arrive while people were getting high, as long as you didn't claim possession of the substance and you weren't literally ripping the bong while they walked in, you wouldn't be in any trouble. Weed isn't a big deal. In CO or Oregon where it's protected by law, I can't imagine why you would ever worry about getting high (and especially not about being around people getting high). You can relax

Do you want to work in government someday? Marijuana use on its own isn't usually a problem if you need to get a security clearance, but any drug use *while in federal government service* is a much bigger problem. Potentially an auto-ding, depending on the agency and the kind of clearance.

Anonymous User wrote:Not sure if it's different rules for clerks, but DOJ attorneys are not permitted to use marijuana anywhere without a prescription.

Wait, are people in DOJ really allowed to use marijuana with a prescription?

I get that the state of Colorado decriminalized it, but isn't it still a schedule 1 controlled substance under federal law? More to the point, isn't using or possessing marijuana still a federal crime?

Anonymous User wrote:Current D.Ct. clerk. Heading to CO this summer with some friends. I'm guessing they'll take advantage of the recreational marijuana while we're there. Am I wrong in thinking I should avoid smoking/being around marijuana, given the federal laws?

I'm sure you're breaking several laws—including federal laws—every week. What are you worried about, exactly?

I interviewed at the USAOs in SDNY and DDC. Both required me to disclose all the drugs I've ever used and when I used them, and then asked in another section if I had ever used drugs since I became an attorney. IIRC, I had to sign a declaration under penalty of perjury. The disclosure said they'd be doing a background check if I got an offer, and would fire me if it turned out I had lied. That's enough incentive for me to not smoke pot. But if you don't care about potential USAO employment, or if you're cool with lying on their application, then I guess that doesn't matter too much.

(OP) No, not a pot smoker. I thought it would be fun to try it in a state where it's legal under state law, but I don't want to rule out future government employment.

Anonymous User wrote:(OP) No, not a pot smoker. I thought it would be fun to try it in a state where it's legal under state law, but I don't want to rule out future government employment.

You wouldn't be ruling out future government employment.

I would argue that for a law clerk, especially in District Court, that marijuana is actually a performance enhancing drug.

rpupkin wrote:

Anonymous User wrote:(OP) No, not a pot smoker. I thought it would be fun to try it in a state where it's legal under state law, but I don't want to rule out future government employment.

You wouldn't be ruling out future government employment.

So just disclose?

kellyfrost wrote:I would argue that for a law clerk, especially in District Court, that marijuana is actually a performance enhancing drug.

Is it that stressful or that boring?

No. It was a joke.

A. Nony Mouse wrote:No. It was a joke.

Yes, Nony is correct. It was a joke.

I would be more concerned about how intentionally breaking a federal law, even a dumb federal law, reflects on your employer and the court system more generally.

2012LawGrad wrote:I would be more concerned about how intentionally breaking a federal law, even a dumb federal law, reflects on your employer and the court system more generally.

???

Why not just ask your judge OP?

Nobody on TLS can give you a real answer and you seem very concerned about making sure you live your life to the letter of the law

rpupkin wrote:

2012LawGrad wrote:I would be more concerned about how intentionally breaking a federal law, even a dumb federal law, reflects on your employer and the court system more generally.

???

When a judge is in the business of sentencing folks for federal criminal violations (including marijuana related ones), it reflects poorly on the judge and the court system when his or her staff smoke pot. Why is this difficult to understand? And just because DOJ may not be enforcing the law and the law is a dumb one does not mean that smoking pot in CO is no longer a federal offense.