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  Judge Appears Unswayed by Marijuana Arguments
Posted by FoM on April 19, 2002 at 20:19:46 PT
By Paul Elias, Associated Press Writer 
Source: Associated Press  

medical Medical marijuana advocates who lost their case before the U.S. Supreme Court returned to federal court Friday, asking a judge to remove an injunction that bars an Oakland cannabis club from selling pot to the sick if they have a doctor's recommendation.

U.S. District Court Judge Charles Breyer took no action Friday, but said he would issue a written opinion on medicinal marijuana. He appeared unswayed by the advocates' pleas.

Mark Quinlivan, the Justice Department's lead attorney, urged Breyer to make his preliminary ban on medicinal pot sales permanent.

Advocates of the drug say that outcome is likely, since Breyer has ruled against them before. A permanent ban could lead to another round of appeals and perhaps another appearance before the Supreme Court.

The high court's May decision addressed only the issue of a so-called "medical necessity defense" being at odds with a 1970 federal law that says marijuana, like heroin and LSD, has no medical benefits and cannot be dispensed or prescribed by doctors. The ruling also left intact Breyer's earlier order prohibiting the Oakland Cannabis Buyers' Cooperative from dispensing marijuana.

Lawyers for the Oakland club said that narrow ruling allows them to argue other issues such as "federalism," which gives states' rights that can't be trumped by federal law.

"This case is very far from over," said Annette Carnegie, a lawyer who represents the Oakland Cannabis Buyers' Cooperative. "There are several other issues still alive."

While the federal government has done little to enforce the high court's ruling, it has spread fear through the nation's medical marijuana community, prompting groups such as the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws to plot ways to defeat federal bans on other pot-related activities and products.

Pot smoke wafted through the lobby of a posh San Francisco hotel at NORML's national convention, where leaders discussed strategies Friday to counter a recent federal clampdown on hemp.

On Thursday morning, San Francisco District Attorney Terence Hallinan, a medical marijuana supporter, told NORML attendees that federal prosecution of marijuana possession laws "makes no sense." Later that day, NORML attendees jammed a conference room to listen to the "legal luminaries of medical marijuana litigation" describe the tack they hopes to take in lifting the federal ban on medicinal marijuana in California.

"The science is on our side, the people are on our side and the states are on our side," marijuana lawyer Bill Panzer told the cheering crowd.

Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Oregon and Washington allow the infirm to receive, possess, grow or smoke marijuana for medical purposes without fear of state prosecution.

California was the first state to approve a medical marijuana law, in 1996. Despite the high court's ruling, many marijuana clubs distribute marijuana to the sick and thousands of people grow and smoke marijuana for medical reasons as the federal government looks the other way.

What little enforcement action the government has taken has been in California.

In October, federal agents shut down a West Hollywood cannabis club that doled out marijuana to the sick. The federal government also recently raided a Ventura County garden operated by patients and seized medical records from a Northern California doctor who is a prominent advocate for the drug's medicinal use.

Taylor Carey, a California assistant attorney general, argued before Breyer on Friday that the state still supports Proposition 215, the ballot measure which made medicinal marijuana use legal in the Golden State.

"We believe it's a viable law that was intended to provide relief for needy patients," Carey said.

The case is United States v. Oakland Cannabis Buyers Cooperative, 00-151.

Complete Title: Judge Appears Unswayed by Renewed Medical Marijuana Arguments

Source: Associated Press
Author: Paul Elias, Associated Press Writer
Published: Friday, April 19, 2002
Copyright: 2002 Associated Press

Related Articles & Web Sites:

NORML
http://www.norml.org/

OCBC
http://www.rxcbc.org/

OCBC Vs US Government News
http://www.freedomtoexhale.com/mj.htm

Marijuana Advocates Cheer on Hallinan
http://www.freedomtoexhale.com/nc.htm

These Guys Inhaled
http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread12580.shtml

California Cannabis Clubs Organize to Fight Feds
http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread12569.shtml


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Comment #11 posted by Jose Melendez on April 20, 2002 at 11:26:36 PT:

Prohibition Arrested
From:
http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/109/metro/Judge_drops_charge_due_to_misconduct_+.shtml
A federal judge yesterday accused the US attorney's office of incompetence as he threw out a case against an alleged drug dealer, three months after declaring a mistrial in the same case and ordering the prosecutor not to withhold exculpatory evidence from the defense.

It was the first time in 17 years on the bench that US District Judge Mark L. Wolf dismissed a criminal case with prejudice, meaning the charges cannot be refiled. He accused federal prosecutors of a pattern of ''extreme misconduct,'' saying US Attorney Michael Sullivan's office did not properly train prosecutors or the FBI agents with whom they build cases, leaving them unprepared to take criminal cases to trial.

''This is not a game,'' Wolf said in pointed comments from the bench yesterday when he ''reluctantly'' dismissed the case and ordered the primary prosecutor to attend a seminar on wrongful convictions at Harvard Law School this weekend. ''I do not believe that I can conduct a fair trial in this case because of the government's failure to provide in a timely way exculpatory information to the defendant,'' Wolf said.

(snip)

Defense lawyers said the rare ruling by Wolf could improve the quality of prosecution. ''Stuff like this has been going on too long in the US Attorney's Office,'' said McBride.



[ Post Comment ]
 
Comment #10 posted by goneposthole on April 20, 2002 at 07:53:32 PT
correction
Forgot the US

[ Post Comment ]
 
Comment #9 posted by goneposthole on April 20, 2002 at 07:44:19 PT
the thot plickens
about all of this stuff.

[ Post Comment ]
 
Comment #8 posted by qqqq on April 20, 2002 at 06:18:24 PT
Oh No!Perhaps that wasn't sufficient to thrust
forth a tournament style Big League Power Barf.?..well ,,I understand,but if this doesnt inspire a fairly good "toss",in a Powerbarfing competition,,then perhaps you should look into SHIT CURLING,or Naked Penis KickBoxing,,,if all else fails,,then you may want to become a dancer,,and participate in an after hours Fire Scrotum-Labia Hot Coal Dance Ceremony!
.http://www.usnewswire.com/topnews/first/0418-110.html


[ Post Comment ]
 
Comment #7 posted by Rambler on April 20, 2002 at 06:00:48 PT
Wanna Power Barf?
http://www.usnewswire.com/topnews/first/0419-114.html

[ Post Comment ]
 
Comment #6 posted by qqqq on April 20, 2002 at 04:14:38 PT
...Breyer....?
....well,,,just wait till ol' Chuck Breyer gets a call from his cousins Gilbert and Virgil Breyer,,who made millions in the ice cream game!...Ice cream sales would take a dive if weed smokers are all in jail...so here's a hint for insiders in the stawk markut!.....buy shares of Breyer,,which is now owned by AOL/TimeWarner/Viacom/NASDAQ....Just call my broker,,Lou Dobbs, at 1-800-666-6668...
..I've always wondered if Breyers,and Dreyers ice creams ,,aren't some weird evil fake-out that is owned by the same ice cream multi-billionaire guys?


[ Post Comment ]
 
Comment #5 posted by E_Johnson on April 20, 2002 at 02:41:57 PT
It's 4/20
Do you know where your freedom is?

http://www.vasilisa.com/420Tribute.mp3



[ Post Comment ]

 
Comment #4 posted by qqqq on April 19, 2002 at 23:36:41 PT
please,,,forgive me....
..If you are of the catholic faith,,,and I offended you with my crude,and careless comments in the previous post,, ,or even if you're not a catholic,,and something I set seemed to upset you,,,,,I'm Sorry!...I apologize to anyone,and everyone who considered my comments to be irreverant.....I myself am a catholic Jew,,that was raised by mormons,,and I decided,,that this religion stuff comes down to one thing.!... Yes,,I hope you will agree,,that when we get down to the raw basics,,,,,,..several things stand true .....Do you know God??,If you do know God,,how well do you know Him/Her?.... ...
..How confident are you,,that God approves of your lifestyle?


[ Post Comment ]
 
Comment #3 posted by qqqq on April 19, 2002 at 23:19:22 PT
...good ideas goneposthole,,,,except
...I think we could hire excommunicated pedophile catholic priests..,,they could be quite effective in repelling the DEA,,and even the ondcp,,,,,,,,I dont know about anyone else,,,but a child molesting catholic priest guy,,who is not yet in prison,,,,is way scarier than any "warlord".....,,,,,catholic priest terrorists are not too common nowdays....I dont think the pope allows priests to be terrorists,,and that's why no one could ever accuse the pope of being an Arafat type of guy!...at least the pope is in charge of an organization that does not do suicide bombings, ,,,but,,the pope may want to be aware of the growing army of molestation victims....
...Naa,,,come to think of it,,molestation victims are not Palestinians..The Vatican will compensate the victims of fondling clergy,,,and the US will continue to "compensate" Isreal for non-suicde bombings of thousands of innocent Palestinians ,just like the US "War on Terror",has done in the fake ghost/witch hunt in Afghanistan!!... .I'm afraid that I dont really understand what the difference is ,in totally innocent people getting KILLED!?...Nope, ,,I do not understand how,,or why ,an innocent,,uninvolved civiliian in the WTC,,is somehow different from some old wrinkled-face Afghani mother,,,who collects weeds,,and sews burkas for the 87 cents a week she makes,,and her guts are splattered about with those of her children,and babies,,by a US bombing raid,,,,,and to think of the pimple faced "top gun",,kid who dropped the hi-tech bomb, that accidently collatterally damaged the screaming ,smoking babies,whos' Mom & Dads brains got splatterred,and all that's left is meat that is no longer throbbing.
..I hope no one is even thinking about being offended by my attempt at a graphic portrayal of mayhem!..
..you wanna know what I think,,?.....well here's what I say;
..,,Who is it,,that says who a "terrorist" is??..?..?. It seems to me,,that a "terrorist",,could be anyone,,or anybody! the neighborhood bully,or,,Kenny Boy Lay,,,, .........I hope that no one will disagree,,when I say that "terrorism, is in the eye of the beholder".....!//??..I mean,,if you are weird enough,,,you can easily imagine Tom Jones ,,or Englebert Humperdink as some kind of terror alert color problem,,with the Office of Geriatric Female Second hand Smoke,Phen-Fen Arabian flight simulator student alert level of homeland security and exchange commission branch of the government ethics oversight commitee.......
...need I say more?...


[ Post Comment ]
 
Comment #2 posted by FoM on April 19, 2002 at 21:30:37 PT
Related Article
Hi Everyone,

The article above is more current then this one but it is important. I posted it directly to the archives and am linking it here for those who want to read it and comment if you like.

Oakland Pot Cooperative Heads Back To Court
http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread12583.shtml


[ Post Comment ]

 
Comment #1 posted by goneposthole on April 19, 2002 at 21:12:49 PT
New Drug War Plan
The California medical marijuana buyer's clubs could hire Afghani warlords to protect the clubs from the DEA. The DEA could hire the Japanese mafia to do a little of their dirty work. Former officers from the North Korean Army could work as assassins for the CIA. FARC would hire Colombian right-wing paramilitary groups to run the drugs through Panama and then North.

I mean, we could have global espionage; the likes of which no one has ever seen. Drug money, drugs, DEA, drug lords, corruption, drug wars, wars ... all that stuff. In the end Chinese and Australian blue helmeted UN soldiers could be called in as 'peace keeping forces' i.e. martial law by foreign nationals. All, I mean everybody, drunk on alcohol all of the time.

On second thought, forget the Afghani warlords and leave pot out of it.

Happy days are here again.

[ Post Comment ]


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