Can a charge of possession of a small amount of cannabis be brought as a felony or a misdemeanor?

One problem is that separate offenses may arise out of a single act, one of which is a felony, and the other a misdemeanor that is not an included offense. In such case the superior court would be without jurisdiction to try the misdemeanor. (People v. Kennedy, 133 Cal.App.2d 693, 284 P.2d 898.)

The fact that one offense is a misdemeanor and the other a felony has been mentioned as a basis for two separate prosecutions in People v. Rodriguez, supra, 202 Cal.App.2d 191, 196, 20 Cal.Rptr. 556. People v. Ayala, 167 Cal.App.2d 49, 334 P.2d 61, relied upon in People v. Rodriguez, supra, does not mention that point. Both cases had to do with felony prosecutions for possession of narcotics following judgments and sentences for narcotic addiction when that condition was punishable as a misdemeanor.