Gov. Bill Walker To Defend Alaska's Marijuana Laws

JUNEAU, AK — Pledging to uphold the will of Alaska voters, Gov. Bill Walker said Thursday that he plans to fight against any attempts by the federal government to interfere with the state's 2014 decision to legalize recreational pot use.

U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced an end to an Obama-era policy Thursday that allow legalized marijuana to flourish in states like Alaska despite a continued federal ban. Residents in states that had legalized the drug then began to worry that the status quo they had taken for granted may be more fragile than it appeared.

Walker said in a statement that he would work with the Justice Department and the state's Republican congressional delegation — which has cast pot as a states' rights issue — to prevent federal overreach.

Spokesman Jonathon Taylor said Walker and state Attorney General Jahna Lindemuth were evaluating possible options for doing that. Lindemuth said her office has a duty to uphold and implement state law.

Alaska's senior U.S. senator, Lisa Murkowski, said she had asked Sessions to work with states and Congress if he thought changes were needed. The Republican called his announcement "disruptive" and "regrettable."

The state, in setting up its marijuana industry, drew guidance from a memo from President Barack Obama's administration that limited federal enforcement of the drug, as long as states prevented it from getting to places it was still outlawed and kept it from gangs and children. Marijuana remains illegal at the federal level.

Sessions said the previous guidance "undermines the rule of law" and said U.S. prosecutors in the states where pot is legal could decide which marijuana activities to prosecute.

It was not immediately clear how Alaska U.S. Attorney Bryan Schroder would respond. His office referred questions to the Department of Justice press office.

Marijuana industry advocates said Sessions' decision creates confusion and flies in the face of a growing legalization movement.

Chris Lindsey, senior legislative counsel with the Marijuana Policy Project, said prosecutors previously had discretion. But there is a new attorney general, "who I guess wants to reverse the course of history or something," he said.

Jane Stinson, a part owner of the retail marijuana shop Enlighten Alaska in Anchorage, worries about the potential effect on her business, which had been looking to grow and is negotiating a lease for another building.

Sessions' decision feels vindictive and unreasonable, she said.

By BECKY BOHRER, Associated Press

AP Photo/Mathew Sumner