Well, first of all, the judge can do whatever the hell he wants for the most part. Whether the guy had cancer or not, he was growing marijuana illegally. Just because you have a disease doesn’t mean you get to break the law, no matter how stupid you may think that law is.
“A terminal cancer patient who says he grew marijuana to treat his tumors…”
Weed doesn’t “treat” tumors. It can be used to alleviate nausea from chemo and pain (I suppose), but there’s no evidence that it actually cures cancer.
“Mackenzie said prison may kill him as his health worsens.”
Pretty sure it’ll be the cancer that kills him.
“Iowa voters overwhelmingly support the legalization of medical marijuana. A recent poll found 81 percent favor legalization.”
Yet it’s still illegal. It doesn’t matter what people support. You break the law, you face the repercussions. Simple. It doesn’t matter if the law is unpopular.
“Marijuana in any form remains illegal under federal law.”
And there’s that.
The judge probably didn’t want to jury to be swayed by some pity party. Since what he did was illegal either way, the information about his illness was irrelevant to the case. Although, showing up in a blanket and hospital ID bracelet was probably enough to earn some sympathy.
Those tumors are horrible, and I don’t completely lack human emotion, so I feel bad for the guy. However, being sick doesn’t allow you a free pass. Sorry, dude.