cannabisnews.com: Medical Marijuana Law is Worth Court’s Protection Medical Marijuana Law is Worth Court’s Protection Posted by CN Staff on October 16, 2003 at 09:25:28 PT Editorial Opinion Source: Star-Bulletin Proponents of marijuana for medical purposes have won an important round in the U.S. Supreme Court, but conflicts remain between federal law and statutes in Hawaii and eight other states that have legalized its medical use. Doctors recommending marijuana and patients using it to ease their pain must abide by strange, unwritten rules. Those precautions are necessary for patients to benefit from a worthwhile program and avoid federal prosecution. Patients using marijuana to relieve pain from AIDS, cancer, multiple sclerosis, glaucoma and other illnesses can breathe a sigh of relief because of the Supreme Court's refusal to review an appeals court decision. However, they should not expect the Bush administration to accept the decision without a fight.Attorney General John Ashcroft proposed five months ago that Congress strip federal drug-enforcement money from police in states with medical-marijuana laws. Not only would that make a mockery of the Bush administration's avowed support of states' rights, it could dangerously cut off federal assistance to Hawaii in its battle against crystal methamphetamine. The high court rejected without comment the Justice Department's appeal of a ruling that doctors cannot be punished for recommending or talking about the benefits of marijuana to their patients. The rejection lets stand a ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, whose jurisdiction includes seven of the nine states that have legalized medical marijuana.The ruling does not mean doctors may prescribe marijuana. The 9th Circuit panel of judges said a doctor doing so "would be guilty of aiding and abetting in violation of federal law." Nor does is it mean marijuana may be distributed to patients. The Supreme Court ruled unanimously two years ago that the congressional determination that "marijuana has no medical benefits worthy of an exception" to controlled-substance laws makes its distribution illegal.Instead, patients must obtain marijuana surreptitiously, i.e. illegally, or grow it themselves. Tom Mountain runs the Honolulu Medical Marijuana Patients Co-op, which helps patients grow their own. More than 1,000 patients are registered with the state to use and grow marijuana. The Hawaii law allows a patient using it medically to possess seven marijuana plants, three of which are mature, and an ounce of processed marijuana. In California, Gov. Gray Davis signed into law on Monday a measure that limits a patient or caregiver to a half-pound of dried marijuana and six mature or 12 immature plants. Those limits infuriated California patients, whose marijuana crops had been unlimited.Even with Hawaii's relatively low limits, Mountain and others told the Star-Bulletin's Helen Altonn that Hawaii's law is a godsend to patients. Mountain, who uses marijuana to ease pain and muscle spasms from a spinal cord injury, recommends only that the registration program be shifted from the public safety director to the state Department of Health, a move that seems logical.THE ISSUE: The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to review an appeals court decision allowing doctors to recommend marijuana to sick patients.Complete Title: Medical Marijuana Law is Well Worth Court’s Protection Source: Honolulu Star-Bulletin (HI)Published: Thursday, October 16, 2003 Copyright: 2003 Honolulu Star-BulletinContact: letters starbulletin.comWebsite: http://www.starbulletin.com/Related Articles & Web Site: Drug Policy Forum of Hawaiihttp://www.dpfhi.org/Mendocino Health Official Applauds State ID Law http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread17587.shtmlCourt Hands Victory To Backers of Medical Pothttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread17579.shtml1,039 Register for Isle Pot Use http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread17545.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #1 posted by konagold on October 16, 2003 at 13:19:25 PT: Doctors may now discuss marijuana openly Newshawk: Rev. Dennis Shields Pubdate: Wednesday, Oct 15, 2003 Source: Honolulu Star Bulletin Contact: Website: http://starbulletin.com/2003/10/15/news/index7.html Author: Rod Thompson --------------------------------------------------------------------------------Wednesday, Oct 15, 2003Doctors may nowdiscuss marijuana openlyBy Rod Thompsonrthompson starbulletin.comHILO >> In 1980, the doctor for Kona marijuana advocate Dennis Shields' cancer-stricken, 7-year-old stepson couldn't control the boy's nausea with standard medication. "Dennis, can you get some grass?" the doctor asked.Shields said he stuffed towels under the door to the boy's room at Kapiolani Children's Center to hide the smoke, which stopped the boy's nausea immediately.The question asked by the doctor in semi-secrecy 23 years ago can now be discussed openly, according to a decision yesterday by the U.S. Supreme Court.The court refused to review a 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision that upheld a California law allowing doctors to recommend medical marijuana, thereby letting the appellate court ruling stand.The war on medical marijuana is dead, Shields said.Nine states, including Hawaii, now allow doctors to recommend medical marijuana. With yesterday's Supreme Court decision, many more states are likely to follow, Shields predicted.About half of Hawaii's 1,039 registered medical marijuana patients are on the Big Island.In Kona, medical marijuana patient Kealahoa Wells said it would be "ludicrous" to prevent doctors from recommending marijuana.Wells is in the midst of a two-year treatment for leukemia. She gets hospital chemotherapy once a month and takes medication every day. Every Monday she takes 18 pills. Without marijuana, taking all those pills would be nauseating, she said. And marijuana allows her to sleep at night.In July of last year, police seized medical marijuana from Wells and fellow patients John and Rhonda Robison. Police later gave some of it back because the amounts were within limits provided by law.Wells and the Robisons filed suit against two police officers. Wells is considering a settlement. The Robisons expect to go to trial in a few months.Such problems between medical users and police prompted extra caution during marijuana eradication missions."Because of the uproar, we are extra careful when we do checks of the (medical marijuana) registry," said Capt. Samuel Thomas. Although doctors can now talk about marijuana openly, eradication is still "tyranny," Shields said. It makes patients who could benefit from marijuana fearful, he said. http://TheReligionofJesusChurch.com [ Post Comment ] Post Comment