Epis ordered back to slammer

It’s been a roller-coaster ride through the judicial system for Bryan Epis (pictured in a file photo from 2007) ever since the Chico man made history of sorts in June 1997 by becoming the first person in California arrested for growing marijuana for use by medical-marijuana patients. That ride plunged sharply downward recently.

A three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has turned down Epis’ appeal of his original 10-year federal prison sentence, of which he has already served two years, ordering him to finish his term.

According to news reports, the judges ruled that Epis should have known that Proposition 215, the state’s med-pot law, would not protect him from federal law. Epis, who is out on bail, said he would appeal further. He could not be reached by the CN&R for comment by press time.