Order Michigan Supreme Court
Lansing, Michigan
June 11, 2014 Robert P. Young, Jr.,
Chief Justice
148444 Michael F. Cavanagh
Stephen J. Markman
Mary Beth Kelly
Brian K. Zahra
PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN, Bridget M. McCormack
Plaintiff-Appellee, David F. Viviano,
Justices
v SC: 148444
COA: 312308
Oakland CC: 2012-240981-FH
RICHARD LEE HARTWICK,
Defendant-Appellant.
_________________________________________/
On order of the Court, the application for leave to appeal the November 19, 2013
judgment of the Court of Appeals is considered, and it is GRANTED. The parties shall
include among the issues to be briefed: (1) whether a defendant’s entitlement to
immunity under § 4 of the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act (MMMA), MCL 333.26421
et seq., is a question of law for the trial court to decide; (2) whether factual disputes
regarding § 4 immunity are to be resolved by the trial court; (3) if so, whether the trial
court’s finding of fact becomes an established fact that cannot be appealed; (4) whether a
defendant’s possession of a valid registry identification card establishes any presumption
for purposes of § 4 or § 8; (5) if not, what is a defendant’s evidentiary burden to establish
immunity under § 4 or an affirmative defense under § 8; (6) what role, if any, do the
verification and confidentiality provisions in § 6 of the act play in establishing
entitlement to immunity under § 4 or an affirmative defense under § 8; and (7) whether
the Court of Appeals erred in characterizing a qualifying patient’s physician as issuing a
prescription for, or prescribing, marijuana.
We direct the Clerk to schedule the oral argument in this case for the same future
session of this Court when it will hear oral argument in People v Tuttle (Docket No.
148971).
Persons or groups interested in the determination of the issues presented in this
case may move the Court for permission to file briefs amicus curiae.
I, Larry S. Royster, Clerk of the Michigan Supreme Court, certify that the
foregoing is a true and complete copy of the order entered at the direction of the Court.
June 11, 2014
p0604
Clerk