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| Oakland Pot Cooperative Heads Back To Court |
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Posted by FoM on April 19, 2002 at 21:23:46 PT By Josh Richman, Staff Writer Source: Oakland Tribune 
More than 11 months after the U.S. Supreme Court shot down part of its case, the Oakland Cannabis Buyers Cooperative goes back before a federal judge today with other arguments for why it should be allowed to resume dispensing marijuana as medicine. Lawyers for the cooperative and the federal government will flesh out briefs they've filed during the past few months in a hearing this morning before U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer of San Francisco, who issued the 1998 injunction that's keeping the cooperative shut down. The cooperative is arguing that the federal government is overstepping its control of interstate commerce by interfering with an issue completely within California's borders. "Our clients are engaged in wholly intrastate commerce ... and therefore Congress has no power to reach this commerce," said Boston University law professor Randy Barnett, a nationally renowned constitutional law expert who has joined the cooperative's legal team after last May's Supreme Court ruling. The federal government hasn't even tried to show how distributing medical marijuana within California could substantially affect interstate commerce or Congress' control of such commerce, he said. In fact, he added, a well-implemented state medical marijuana law would actually reduce illegal intrastate marijuana smuggling. The cooperative also argues the federal government is violating California's power to enact public health and safety measures, and that it's violating people's rights to have relief from pain, to prolong life and to consult with and act upon a doctor's recommendation under the Fifth and Ninth amendments. These state and individual rights "are well-recognized," Barnett said. The fact that a federal judge in Oregon issued a ruling Wednesday blocking the federal government's attempt to interfere with that state's assisted suicide law bodes well for the cooperative's case, he added. In 1998, the U.S. Justice Department, which doesn't comment on the case, persuaded Breyer to issue a preliminary injunction halting the cooperative's distribution of marijuana to its 2,500 members. In 2000, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled thatthe Oakland cooperative could claim an exception to the federal Controlled Substances Act -- which lists marijuana on its most-restricted "schedule," meaning Congress believes it has no valid medical use -- because its members have a medical necessity for the drug. But last May, the U.S. Supreme Court voted 8-0 to overturn the 9th Circuit Court's ruling, finding there's no medical-necessity exception to the federal drug law. The case was sent back to the 9th Circuit, and the cooperative filed a brief raising these constitutional issues in October. On Dec. 4, the appellate court ordered Breyer to consider them. Barnett and Robert Raich, the cooperative's longtime Oakland attorney, said Thursday that they expect Breyer will take the matter under submission today and issue a written ruling within a few weeks. Whichever side loses will certainly appeal to the 9th Circuit Court, they said. With a long road of appeals ahead, Barnett said he fears a loss before Breyer only because it might embolden the Drug Enforcement Administration to step up efforts against medical marijuana users. Last year, the DEA raided a major Los Angeles medical marijuana club and, in February, raided sites in Oakland and San Francisco. Raich noted the governments of Oakland, Alameda County and California have filed friend-of-the-court briefs on the cooperative's behalf, decrying the federal government's intrusion into what they consider a state and local issue. Their support is crucial, Raich said because nobody can claim those governments are "some kind of drug-crazed hippies who are trying to harm our children," as medical marijuana users and providers sometimes are portrayed. Source: Oakland Tribune, The (CA) Related Articles & Web Sites: OCBC Vs US Government News Judge Appears Unswayed by Marijuana Arguments California Cannabis Clubs Organize to Fight Feds Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help |
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| Comment #3 posted by Patrick on April 20, 2002 at 08:06:23 PT |
| The cooperative also argues the federal government is violating California's power to enact public health and safety measures, and that it's violating people's rights to have relief from pain, to prolong life and to consult with and act upon a doctor's recommendation under the Fifth and Ninth amendments. These state and individual rights "are well-recognized," Barnett said. But last May, the U.S. Supreme Court voted 8-0 to overturn the 9th Circuit Court's ruling, finding there's no medical-necessity exception to the federal drug law. Eighty million Americans have smoked marijuana at some point in their lives, according to government figures. That's one out of three people," noted NORML executive director Keith Stroup, pointing to the same studies the government's Stern used to note that two out of three people haven't used it. STOP THE HORROR THAT IS CANNABIS PROHIBITON. Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation? Is that WHISC? As in whiskbroom? All neat and tidy. Yep, can bounce a quarter off them army cots! [ Post Comment ] |
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Comment #2 posted by Jose Melendez on April 20, 2002 at 07:22:58 PT:
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| from: http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGAQIPQI90D.html WASHINGTON (AP) - Police fanned out on quiet downtown streets Saturday as thousands of demonstrators readied plans to protest monetary policy, the war on terrorism and other issues. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #1 posted by FoM on April 20, 2002 at 07:05:24 PT |
| Judge Hints at Ruling in Medical Pot Case
Saturday, April 20, 2002 URL: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2002/04/20/BA65055.DTL Medical marijuana clubs, trying to revive their challenge to a federal shutdown after last year's U.S. Supreme Court rebuff, got little encouragement from a federal judge yesterday. U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer did not rule immediately on arguments by dispensaries in Oakland and Marin County that enforcement of the federal ban on marijuana violated California's constitutional prerogatives and patients' right to be free of needless pain. But Breyer spent most of the hearing, held in San Francisco, asking lawyers whether the clubs would promise not to distribute marijuana if he ruled in the government's favor, a line of questioning that seemed to signal his intentions. He got no firm commitments, and eventually agreed to issue a written decision first. The clubs have already promised to appeal any unfavorable ruling to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco. In the meantime, an injunction issued by Breyer at the Justice Department's request remains in effect, forbidding distribution of marijuana by the Oakland Cannabis Buyers' Cooperative, the Marin Alliance for Medical Marijuana in Fairfax, and another dispensary in Ukiah. Compiled from Chronicle staff and wire reports Copyright: 2002 San Francisco Chronicle Page A - 18 [ Post Comment ] |
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