A U.S. Navy veteran that is prescribed and uses marijuana for medical reasons and post-traumatic stress is at risk of losing his job if he refuses to stop using it. 48-year-old Don DeZann, the senior operations manager of campus dining at Princeton University says he's been told he has to quit using marijuana or he will lose his job.
DeZarn has spoken with human resources in an attempt to see if there's anything they can do under the Federal Americans for Disabilities Act. This, however, only led to be told it's best if he just doesn't come to work for the time being.
As a marijuana activist, he's surprised at the ultimatum given to him. Let's face it, in a time when marijuana is being legalized in state after state and people can use a weedseedshop to easily grow their own, it does seem like the university is being hard-handed. Especially since DeZarn uses it legally for medical reasons.
He's says he's never used it while on the job. But he doesn't hide the fact that he uses it as-needed, as is his right since it's prescribed to him. He informed the university of this just so they would be aware of the situation if there was ever an emergency case where he'd need to use it at work.
Of course, state law doesn't mandate that employers have to allow the medical use of marijuana at work. But what's unclear is whether they have the right to terminate employment for using it outside of work.