Cannabis News Marijuana Policy Project
  Jailed Medipot Activist Withdraws Request
Posted by CN Staff on February 05, 2006 at 07:08:10 PT
By Michelle Miller, Journal Staff Writer 
Source: Auburn Journal  

medical California -- The attorney for incarcerated medical marijuana advocate Steven Kubby pulled his client's motion to have the substance administered to him in jail Friday.

Kubby, who has been in Placer County Jail since Jan. 27, filed a motion requesting marijuana-laced food be served to him in jail. Kubby contends he must have marijuana daily in order to survive and stave off the affects of a rare form of adrenal cancer.

However, at a hearing in a Placer County courtroom Friday, Kubby's attorney Bill McPike told Judge Robert McElhany that he was dropping the motion.

"His blood pressure has stabilized so we're asking to take the motion off the calendar for today," he said.

Kubby's request for marijuana could be put back on the calendar at a later date, McPike said.

The Sheriff's Department, which operates the jail, has opposed that motion in documents filed in Placer County Superior Court. County counsel maintains that Kubby has not provided any support to his claim that only medical marijuana will treat his medical condition and that Kubby is asking the courts to "simply take his word for it."

They also contend existing law does not require medical marijuana be provided to jail inmates.

Kubby is currently receiving the drug Marinol from jail medical staff, who are available to him around the clock.

Kubby, who is currently serving a 120-day sentence for a 2000 drug conviction on charges of possession of mescaline and psilocybin, fled with his family to Canada to avoid incarceration. He now faces increased penalties for violating probation.

His wife, Michele, arrived at the jail Friday with their 8- and 6-year-old daughters. The family made its first appearance in court since being forced out of Canada, where Canadian Border Services had rejected the family's bid for protection.

Michele Kubby hugged supporters outside the jail Friday before addressing numerous TV, print and radio reporters.

She said she saw her husband Thursday night and was encouraged to hear his blood pressure was under control with his Marinol treatment. He looked thin, she said, but his eyes were clear and he was in good spirits.

"This is an experiment that has been forced upon us and I'm grateful it's working," Michele Kubby said. "It is cruel and unusual punishment for a family to have the father die over a minute, innocent crime."

She said her husband's treatment by the Placer County Sheriff's Department was "clearly retaliatory." Sheriff's Department officials have said they are treating Kubby humanely.

Although Friday's court proceedings were very brief, they drew supporters from as far away as San Francisco.

Compassionate-use supporters held a prayer vigil for Kubby before the hearing. Some displayed memorial quilts of people they said died from being denied access to medical marijuana.

The next pre-trial hearing, scheduled for Feb. 15, would set a date for his trial on probation violation charges, Kubby's attorney McPike said.

Kubby could admit to violating his probation and be offered two options for sentencing, said prosecuting Deputy District Attorney Chris Cattran. He did not want to elaborate further on those options Friday.

"If he doesn't want to admit we would have another hearing, which he is entitled to," Cattran said. "The burden of proof would be on my office to present sufficient evident that he in fact violated probation."

Note: Steve Kubby's attorney says symptoms subsiding for now.

Complete Title: Jailed Medipot Activist Withdraws Request To Be Served Marijuana

Source: Auburn Journal (CA)
Author: Michelle Miller, Journal Staff Writer
Published: Sunday, February 5, 2006
Copyright: 2006 Auburn Journal
Contact: ajournal@foothill.net
Website: http://www.auburnjournal.com/

Related Articles & Web Site:

The Kubby Chronicles
http://www.kubby.org/

Kubby No Longer Seeking To Use Marijuana
http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread21562.shtml

Is Kubby's Fight About Medical Marijuana?
http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread21553.shtml

Supporters Flock as Kubby Appears in Court
http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread21547.shtml


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Comment #6 posted by FoM on February 06, 2006 at 16:05:55 PT
Dr Ganj
Thank you for the post. I feel so bad for the Kubbys. This is bad enough and then not having a home to live in makes it so much worse.

[ Post Comment ]
 
Comment #5 posted by Dr Ganj on February 06, 2006 at 15:39:52 PT
Michelle Kubby Speaks Out
Here is the news from Richard Cowan. It explains why Steve has chosen to drop his request for whole cannabis. I understand this perfectly. While I was in jail for cultivation, I had to acquiesce, and go along with the program-for to do otherwise is counterproductive. Steve is now in the jaws of the tyrants, and the only way out is to jump through the hoops. I had 3 years of formal urine testing, and they tested me up to the very last day of my probation! Three whole years-after my jail term, and they just couldn't ease up for a moment. What a total waste of money, both in my case, and now for Steve. Read this: >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Top Story: Moving to The Next Step In Placer “Justice”: House-Arrest for the Homeless; Expensive Medicine for the Impoverished. Kubby and Marinol. Posted by Richard Cowan on 2006-02-05 16:20:00 Source: Posted February 5, 2006 Analysis by Richard Cowan See The Surreal Stupidity Of Placer County. Kubby to Be Held Without Bail Until At Least Friday. Next Hearing At 8:30AM On February 3rd. No Doctor In Four Days. Shame On Canada! Shame On America!

Everyone seems to have missed the point about the last hearing for Steve Kubby on Friday morning.

Both the media and many activists misunderstood the reasons that Steve Kubby withdrew his request for whole cannabis. Very simply, such an application would involve a long battle with Placer County, where the Sheriff's Department has been adamant that he will not be permitted to use whole cannabis in jail.

Right now, Marinol, meaning THC alone without the other cannabinoids, is controlling his blood pressure. However, most patients find that taking that much pure THC is both unpleasant and quickly loses its efficacy. It will also have no effect on the cancer itself, which whole cannabis seems to inhibit. He may soon need more and more, but – if he can get out on house-arrest in the next week or so – it will do as a stop-gap. After all of the public protests, his medical treatment greatly improved. (They even gave him a second blanket!) See Program Notes for the MarijuanaNews World Report for May 19, 2005 Top UK Cop Opposes Change As “Experts” Review. Jamaican Decrim? Marinol Shows Need for Medical Cannabis. Interview with Steve Kubby. and Marinol Was The First Schedule 2 Drug To Be "Down-Scheduled," Boasts Roxanne On Its New Marinol.com Web Site. Doesn’t That Mean That It Should Never Have Been Schedule 2 Anyway?

First and foremost, Steve's lawyer, Bill McPike is trying desperately to avoid a felony probation violation charge that would put Steve in prison for as much as five years. On the other hand, the Placer DA’s office seems to have realized that they don’t want more bad publicity and killing Kubby would really bring heat.

Consequently, McPike is trying to work out a plea bargain to set the clock back five years and let Steve serve his time under house arrest, where he could use whole cannabis. The next hearing is set for February 15th, but McPike indicated that he hopes that an agreement may be reached sooner.

Of course, there is the same problem that the Kubbys encountered previously. House arrest is difficult when someone has been rendered homeless. It is not easy to find a place where a man can live under constant court supervision and still consume cannabis in large quantities.

Oh yes, and the cannabis has to appear magically like manna from heaven because he will not have the time or resources to grow his own, and if he did the Feds could arrest him at any time for growing.

And then the Marinol isn’t free, either. At first, Steve thought that he might be eligible for free Marinol as part of a study. In fact, Steve’s Marinol is costing at least $60.00 per day, and the Kubbys can’t afford that for very long.

The fact remains that Steve Kubby is the victim of an unethical medical experiment in which a treatment that has kept him alive for decades is being replaced with a politically correct pharmaceutical product. It may or may not work, but the ethical problem remains.

In the meantime, Michele and their two daughters are homeless, and don’t know where to settle, because they don’t know what is going to happen to Steve – or when.

Anyone having any ideas about where they can live in California, and/or how they can get Steve sufficient amounts of whole cannabis when he is released, should contact Michele at Michele@kubby.com

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Statement by Michele Kubby:

February 5, 2006

Ten years ago, my husband and I decided we wanted to legitimize the only medicine he knew of that gave relief for his disease ­ marijuana. We thought it was a simple request. I mean the authorities always said, “If you don’t like the law, change it.”

Well, we did change the law along with the help of a majority of Californians. Little did we understand the full weight of the opposition we would encounter. The retribution and anger of those who have a vested interest in keeping the War against those who use marijuana going, has been breathtaking to say the least.

You see, this really is a war against people. This so called ‘War against Drugs’ is actually a war against the people of the earth. Governments around the world are literally waging a war against their own people in order to keep us from using God given plants to improve our lives and health.

But governments must deny that this is a war against people, for to admit that they are warring against their own people would mean that they are tyrannists. And what is tyranny? The definition of tyranny is terrorism\against your own people.

We medical marijuana patients find ourselves taking the brunt of this tyrannical abuse with no relief. We are actuality political causalities of war, but for governments to admit we are political is to ennoble our cause and create an opportunity for change. For governments, this is not an option. There is too much vested interest in keeping this tyranny/War on Drugs going. As ‘polite society’ we accept this War on Drugs and bow down to \the will of the government, rather than to be marginalized and called criminals.

Steve and I have always been and will always be politicians regardless of the labels governments attempt to place on us. We will continue to champion the rights of individuals to choose the medicine of their choice. God gives our bodies to us; we are not the property of the government. Governments have no right or authority under God, to force us to take the medicines or eat the foods they wish us to, but in this day and age, they do believe that they can tell us what to eat, when to eat it, and how.

Steve is suffering the consequences of this governmental policy. Because he is at their mercy in jail, he has decided not to fight, but rather to give in to the path of least resistance placed before him. He has decided to allow Placer to experiment on him with Marinol and Lisinopril.

I can understand his decision. He is helpless in their 'care'. He is also sick and tired of seeing our family suffer because of his marijuana use.

Since he uses such copious amounts of cannabis, our family is virtually a prisoner in our home. We cannot travel due to the illegality, social stigma and stink of cannabis. Worse of all, we are threatened with our children being removed from us.

Frankly, we are beyond frustration. Steve's only wish is to live with us in peace, but so long as he has to produce and use so much marijuana our family is at constant risk. The government believes that marijuana people are not supposed to exist, reproduce, or pretend to be anything but losers and criminals. At some point you bend to this pressure.

Now that Steve is under Placer's control, they are doing what we predicted they would do: they are experimenting on Steve to prove that marijuana is a hoax and a fraud. They are more than willing to put the delicate balance his body has achieved after 30 years into serious jeopardy just to prove that people receive no benefit from cannabis.

Steve has been on Marinol for a week and lisinopril for four days. Yes, this combination has brought down his blood pressure, but it seems to be affecting his judgment. Before Steve was a politician, he was a scientist and took the scientific process seriously. In the ten years I have lived with him, he has always been extremely cautious with his body and approached any new therapy from a scientific point of view. Any new food or supplement he tried, he collected evidence and waited to see what the long term affects would be on his health before he ever made a ringing endorsement.

Now, his is being thrown into an experiment, not of his choice, and he is gleefully extolling the benefits of Marinol before adequately seeing what the long term affects are. This is not normal for him, but is he himself after being thrown into such a stressful situation? We do not know if Marinol will control the growth of his tumors, but we do know from studies by Guzman of Spain that cannabis will definitely control the growth of his tumors. Nor do we know how this combination of drugs is affecting his mind.

Both Bill McPike and myself have been greatly concerned with the decisions he has been making lately and the physical appearance of his eyes and his overall demeanor.

Of course, Steve is under tremendous physical stress. He has been taken off of his medicine of choice as well as denied the special diet he needs to keep his body in balance. Jail does funny things to the mind as well. To be caged like an animal, especially so unjustly eats away at the soul. But Steve is willing put his health and life in jeopardy just to keep his family safe.

What a choice to force on a human. It is a blatant abuse of human rights.

God placed this plant and many others on this earth for a purpose. Who are these government officials to sit in judgment of one of God's creations?

Obviously they believe they are above God and that they may decide which plants deserve to survive and which are a menace to society and must be eradicated from the earth. How presumptuous of them and terrifying for us.

If governments believe they are above God, where is there any accountability?

My family is in an impossible predicament. It seems that in order to have a normal life, we must abandon the only medicine Steve has used for 30 years, or risk continual harassment from the governments of earth. We are only one family against a huge beast that cannot admit it is wrong about a plant because to do so would be to lose control.

It has been 7 years of hard fighting for this family. We tried to make change by passing a law, defending it in court and running for office. We are beaten up and $35,000 in debt from fighting this battle. We had a life in Canada, but now we must start over and I have no idea where we will feel safe. At what point to you decide enough is enough?

I¹m afraid Steve is at that point. He has decided that giving in to the government and pharmaceuticals is the path of least resistance. I just hope that he survives this experiment, But if he does, what kind of a person will he be when he is released from jail? Will his spirit or his mind survive this treatment? I don't know.

Honestly, this whole experience has been worse for me and the kids. We Don’t know where we will go, or what we will do. The only hope that gets me through this unbelievable nightmare is that change is inevitable. The cat is out of the bag about the healing benefits of cannabis. I trust that the future will be different and we as humans will be able to freely chose the foods, plants, and physical activities we need to be in the best health we can achieve, for if we don¹t feel good, we can't do good.

Thank you for your support, my family could not have survived without you.

Our gratitude knows no bounds. I only hope our situation educates and enlightens and this world will be more tolerant place for our children in the future.

Michele Kubby

[ Post Comment ]
 
Comment #4 posted by FoM on February 06, 2006 at 11:40:29 PT
Related Article from Reason.com
The Crimes of Pot Justice

http://www.reason.com/links/links020606.shtml

[ Post Comment ]

 
Comment #3 posted by charmed quark on February 05, 2006 at 12:36:14 PT
Overgrow
That explains why the links to overgrow didn't work. I was trying to do some research for my state's medical cannabis laws. It will have very low limits on the number of plants and the amount of dried cannabis you can hold. Overgrow had some good information on how patients grow their own cannabis, and the amounts they needed.

Too, bad. That was a good information source.

[ Post Comment ]

 
Comment #2 posted by FoM on February 05, 2006 at 08:36:14 PT
Treeanna
Thank you. I sure won't try.

[ Post Comment ]
 
Comment #1 posted by Treeanna on February 05, 2006 at 08:20:47 PT
OT, but important
Just to let everyone know who might not already, Overgrow.com and Cannabisworld.com got busted by the police up in Canada

Dont try to go to those sites.

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