Former Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox agrees with his successor: The state's medical marijuana law needs clarification.

But unlike current Attorney General Bill Schuette, Cox believes the law should be clarified to legally allow for medical marijuana dispensaries.

"Instead of browbeating and trying to make ordinary citizens into criminals, we should allow ways for ordinary citizens to avoid being criminals," Cox said Friday at Wayne State University in Detroit, where he served as the keynote speaker at a symposium on marijuana reform.

Cox, who was in office when voters approved the 2008 Medical Marihuana Act but is now practicing law at a private firm, made it a point to avoid direct critique of Schuette, who has promoted a statewide crackdown on so-called "pot shops" in the wake of an appeals court ruling deeming them illegal. 

But the former gubernatorial hopeful also expressed a believe that dispensaries are consistent with voter intentions, even if they weren't directly referenced in the referendum they approved.

"The people said that 'if I'm eligible for medical marijuana, I should have access to it.' I would like to see the legislature pass a law that makes way for dispensaries so we don't have these fights."

While Cox questioned the current statewide campaign to legalize marijuana outright, his position on dispensaries found favor with many pro-medical marijuana advocates at the symposium.

Read more http://www.mlive.com/news/detroit/index.ssf/2012/01/former_ag_mike_cox_michigan_le.html