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  Federal Judge Snuffs Out Oakland Pot Club Argument
Posted by CN Staff on May 04, 2002 at 09:47:35 PT
By Josh Richman, Staff Writer 
Source: Oakland Tribune 

medical A federal judge on Friday rejected the Oakland Cannabis Buyers Cooperative's remaining arguments for resuming distribution of marijuana as medicine, basically ordering the cooperative closed for good.

U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer of San Francisco granted summary judgment in favor of the U.S. Department of Justice, which has been trying for four years to permanently shutter the cooperative and four other Northern California clubs. Justice Department spokesman Charles Miller said the government is "pleased with the judge's ruling."

It's not over yet, vowed Robert Raich, the cooperative's attorney.

"We will appeal, and we feel confident of a much more favorable outcome in the Court of Appeals," he said Friday.

The cooperative -- claiming validity under California's 1996 medical marijuana law -- already has climbed the judicial ladder once, protesting Breyer's 1998 preliminary injunction against marijuana distribution. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco told him to reconsider, finding the cooperative could claim medical necessity was a valid exception to the federal marijuana ban.

But the U.S. Supreme Court last year said that's not so, finding Congress deemed marijuana to have no valid use -- medical or otherwise -- so no exception is possible. The Supreme Court remanded the case and the cooperative made a new batch of constitutional arguments for resuming its work.

It argued the federal government overstepped its control of interstate commerce by interfering with an issue completely within California's borders, and violated California's power to enact public health and safety measures. The cooperative also argued the government violated 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.

But Breyer rejected those arguments, writing he's heard enough to rule in the government's favor and shut down the club permanently.

Case law the cooperative cited for its interstate commerce claim doesn't support its argument, Breyer wrote, and the club didn't prove it has standing to argue against violation of individual people's rights.

Breyer also wrote that complaints against marijuana's federal ban go to the Drug Enforcement Agency, not a court. "To hold otherwise would allow defendants and others to make an 'end run' around the process Congress implemented to ensure that drugs are properly classified."

Boston University law professor Randy Barnett, a constitutional law expert aiding the cooperative, said Breyer's dismissal of the interstate commerce claim didn't distinguish California's legalized medical marijuana from illegal interstate marijuana trafficking. "We fully expect that the 9th Circuit will be much more interested in this issue than Judge Breyer has proved to be."

And saying the cooperative lacks standing to argue for its members' constitutional rights holds no water, Barnett said, urging people to imagine that logic applied to an abortion clinic. "It's clear that if the federal government tried to shut down abortion clinics, the federal courts wouldn't say the clinics lack standing to represent the rights of their clients."

The cooperative and the government must file briefs in the next five weeks on whether Breyer's still-effective 1998 preliminary injunction should become a permanent injunction. The judge last month said that wouldn't be necessary if the cooperative agrees never to resume distributing marijuana -- something it's unlikely to do.

If a permanent injunction is entered and if appeals of Breyer's ruling ultimately fail, the cooperative's only remaining legal avenue might be to distribute marijuana in violation of the injunction and be held in civil contempt of court, which could bring a jury trial.

Complete Title: Federal Judge Snuffs Out Oakland Pot Club Arguments

Source: Oakland Tribune, The (CA)
Author: Josh Richman, Staff Writer
Published: Saturday, May 04, 2002
Copyright: 2002 MediaNews Group, Inc. and ANG Newspapers
Contact: triblet@angnewspapers.com
Website: http://www.oaklandtribune.com/

Related Articles & Web Sites:

OCBC
http://www.rxcbc.org/

OCBC Versus US Government
http://freedomtoexhale.com/mj.htm

California's Medical Pot Clubs Lose Fight
http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread12727.shtml

Judge Declines To Renew Supreme Court Case
http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread12722.shtml

Marijuana Clubs Lose One in Court
http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread12721.shtml


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Comment #9 posted by Jrichman on May 09, 2002 at 12:34:19 PT:

Judge's order re:OCBC
Judge Breyer's May 3 opinion is now online at:

http://www.druglibrary.org/ocbc/Legal/US_District_Court/2002-05-03_Memorandum_and_Order.pdf

[ Post Comment ]
 
Comment #8 posted by mayan on May 06, 2002 at 04:18:58 PT
p4me...
This has the link to what I believe you are looking for: http://www.indybay.org/news/2002/03/118760.php

[ Post Comment ]
 
Comment #7 posted by Rev Jonathan Adler on May 04, 2002 at 23:21:26 PT:

Compelling Federal Interest?
It is no secret that our Fed is about preserving it's authority. Marijuana has always meant freedom and it is not to our government's liking that we remain free. Why else would they tell us what is good to consume (Tobacco and Alcohol), yet jail or fines are levied on those who use cannabis. Remember, religion started this country and religious use is still the only way to use cannabis legally, other than research. We are educated and religiously protected here in Hawaii. Our courts have tried to stop us and have NOT! I offered to make all OCBC memebers legal. I guess Jeff Jones must have thought I was just blowing smoke.... Maybe I was right????????

[ Post Comment ]
 
Comment #6 posted by FoM on May 04, 2002 at 20:35:43 PT
Hi el_toonces
I've look around and can't find anything. I'll keep my eyes open for it though and post it if I find it.

[ Post Comment ]
 
Comment #5 posted by el_toonces on May 04, 2002 at 18:46:12 PT:

has anyone read the opnion?
if so,is it online?

[ Post Comment ]
 
Comment #4 posted by p4me on May 04, 2002 at 18:28:24 PT
Mayan
I have been reading at http://www.fromthewilderness.com/ All the stories are somewhat shocking if you accept the articles are true.

There is an excellent article talking about the prior knowledge of the 9/11 events. The puts on the stock market were 90 times higher just before the 9/11 events. That is something that should have sent up a red flag. It is best to read for yourself as it is borders unbelievable in the American sense of the word. I am trying to download the video that they claim rocked Canada and am having problems. http://www.fromthewilderness.com/free/ww3/042202_bushknows.html

I hate to say it but you can be sure that I am honest in my belief that things are really screwed up in a very terrible way. I have total disrespect for the three BAHstards.

I agree with you Mayan. It is important to show the government that the people can take back the country and we think them all traitors. The Schedule One Lie is not only a bald-faced lie, it is part of the treason by our elected officials.

Who the hell is asking the DEA to protect us from hemp oil anyway? What a crock of crap.

More than ever I believe the best course of action is to starve the economy. Be a patriot and drive the old car a couple of more years. Cut down on your purchases. Stay at home and have a thrifty meal. Here in North Carolina the state gets six and a half cents sales tax on eating out and purchases while they only get 3% on food sales. Please, the time for action is surely at hand.

Starve the economy and have a thrifty meal. Be sure and vote against as many elected officials running for reelection as you can and when in doubt vote them out.

[ Post Comment ]

 
Comment #3 posted by mayan on May 04, 2002 at 18:02:08 PT
Good-bye Democracy!
The founders would be up in arms.

Unrelated news - Inquiry of Intelligence Failures Hits Obstacles(Imagine That): http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-000031609may04.story?coll=la%2Dheadlines%2Dnation

Demand an investigation: http://bushoccupation.com

How can they prevent another attack unless they investigate how the 9/11 attacks happened in the first place? They already know how it happened - they let it.

[ Post Comment ]

 
Comment #2 posted by p4me on May 04, 2002 at 13:00:11 PT
The fix is in
Breyer also wrote that complaints against marijuana's federal ban go to the Drug Enforcement Agency, not a court. "To hold otherwise would allow defendants and others to make an 'end run' around the process Congress implemented to ensure that drugs are properly classified."

Why didn't the judge just come out and say the fix is in? And since when does the DEA become a legislature passing unconstitutional laws and now we have judges saying they are courts?

Why was hemp legal for Washington and Jefferson and for the next 150 years after the Constitution, and it is illegal today? The answer is corruption.

Why was marijuana recognized as medicine for 5000 years and now recognized by nations and two-thirds of Americans as medicine shouted down as having no medical value by the federal government? The answer is corruption.

And why can smoking a joint get you thrown in jail and growing a plant can get your house seized by the police for use in police budgets? If you do not answer corruption here, you need some help.

Dr Zombie, spelled it out pretty clear in comment 1.

The fix is in. VAAI

[ Post Comment ]

 
Comment #1 posted by xxdr_zombiexx on May 04, 2002 at 10:09:02 PT
Rubber meets Road
Its a war all right.

But cannabis is such a non-violent entity that the battles are waged in the Court room, via constitutioanlly instituted rules.

The violence attributed to "marijuana" is actually due solely to Prohibition. It is fought by the police against the People by surveiilence, harrassment, intimidation, arrest, forfiture, imprisonment and murder, not the other way around.

Walters and the PsychWar Team are at the top of the hierarchy in DC, spreading the age-old BS about pot's carcinogenicty, and ability to cause violence, all of which has been disproved a long time ago. The heavy-handed use of media to spread anti-cannabis propaganda illustrates the ethical bancrupty of the Bush Administration and of Prohibitionists in general. They LIE bald-faced to the People everyday and get away with it on a global scale.

Far from the"potheads are stupid" mythology they try to spread, its VERY clear any discussion of cannabis and cannabis prohibition ends up as a discussion of Canistitutional Law and the Corruption of Government. Not the basic Cheech and Chong banter.

And the more people try to follow all the rules to change the unjust laws, the more we find the Government breaking those laws, lying to the people, misusing the media, thwarting constitutional provisions and geneally meeting the FBI's particular description of Terrorism (whether homegrown or imported, tee hee).

Thus I say the rubber has met the road in California and the issue will likely fall on more receptive ears outside of the Court of the Not-So-Honorable Judge Breyer, Puppet of the White House.

FREEDOM ENDURES

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