Before you light up a joint, read here
Constitutional Court first has to ratify ruling.
A local law expert, who wants to remain anonymous, has warned residents who wish to smoke dagga to think twice before lighting up.
According to him the Western Cape High Court’s ruling that users can smoke dagga in the privacy of their homes is binding only on that province. A judge or magistrate in a another province, such as Gauteng, is able to cite the ruling in favour of an accused but is not obliged to do so. Only once the ruling has been ratified by the Constitutional Court, judges and magistrates in other provinces are obliged to follow it. Then it must go to Parliament to have the laws amended.
This past Friday (31 March) the Western Cape High Court made the ruling that being arrested and convicted for smoking dagga in one’s home is a violation of one’s constitutional right to privacy.
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