The ‘Cole’ memo

The Cole Memorandum was a United States Department of Justice memorandum issued August 29, 2013, by United States Deputy Attorney General James M. Cole during the presidency of Barack Obama. The memorandum, sent to all United States Attorneys, governed federal prosecution of offenses related to marijuana.

The memo stated that given its limited resources, the Justice Department would not enforce federal marijuana prohibition in states that “legalized marijuana in some form and implemented strong and effective regulatory and enforcement systems to control the cultivation, distribution, dispensing, and possession of marijuana.”

The Cole Memorandum was rescinded in January 2018 by Attorney General Jeff Sessions. However, many states have continued to legalize and regulate marijuana, and the legal cannabis industry has continued to grow.