WASHINGTON – The Justice Department says that marijuana dispensaries and licensed growers in states with medical marijuana laws could face prosecution for violating federal drug and money-laundering laws.

In a policy memo to federal prosecutors, U.S. Deputy Attorney General James Cole said a 2009 memo by then-Deputy Attorney General David Ogden did not give states cover from prosecution.

In 2009, the Justice Department told prosecutors they should not focus investigative resources on patients and caregivers complying with state medical marijuana laws.

The new memo says that view has not changed.

“There has, however, been an increase in the scope of commercial cultivation, sale, distribution and use of marijuana for purported medical purposes,” said the new memo by Cole.

The deputy attorney general said within the past 12 months, several jurisdictions have considered or enacted legislation to authorize multiple large-scale, privately operated industrial marijuana cultivation centers.

“Some of these planned facilities have revenue projections of millions of dollars based on the planned cultivation of tens of thousands of cannabis plants,” Cole wrote.

Cole said that the Ogden memorandum “was never intended to shield such activities from federal enforcement action and prosecution, even where those activities purport to comply with state law.”

Justice Department spokeswoman Tracy Schmaler said that the medical marijuana statement by Cole does not represent a new policy, but rather clarifies the policy, as reflected in recent letters by U.S. attorney’s offices to officials in a number of states.