cannabisnews.com: State Suspends 'Marijuana Doctor' Leveque





State Suspends 'Marijuana Doctor' Leveque
Posted by CN Staff on March 05, 2004 at 16:40:45 PT
By Tim Christie, The Register-Guard
Source: Register-Guard
The state Board of Medical Examiners suspended the medical license of Dr. Phillip Leveque on Thursday, marking the second time in three years the state has come down on Oregon's most prolific endorser of medical marijuana applications.Leveque said he and his attorneys met with the board's investigative committee for nearly two hours in the morning. At 1:15 p.m., he was notified that his license had been placed on emergency suspension pending an investigation by the full board, he said.
"Somebody in Oregon doesn't want Oregon to be known as the medical marijuana state," Leveque said. Board officials could not be reached for comment after business hours Thursday.Leveque is an 80-year-old semiretired osteopath from Molalla who first made a name for himself in 2001 when it came to light that he had signed about 40 percent of all medical marijuana applications.That notoriety drew the attention of the Board of Medical Examiners, which in May 2002 suspended his medical license for 90 days, fined him $5,000 and placed him on 10 years' probation.State medical regulators punished Leveque in the 1980s, as well, for what they described as improper treatment of pain.In imposing discipline two years ago, the board ordered him to follow accepted standards of medical care when signing for medical marijuana patients. Specifically, that means: Reviewing medical records; taking medical histories; conducting physical exams; meeting patients in person to discuss the risks and benefits of treatment options; providing a written treatment plan; and maintaining medical records.After serving his punishment, Leveque resumed his unique practice. Working with Voter Power, a Portland medical marijuana advocacy group, he would appear at regular public clinics in Portland and along the Interstate 5 corridor to see patients and sign their applications. His mug shot appeared in advertisements published in alternative newspapers, publicizing the Voter Power clinics, with the headline, "Dr. Leveque says, `Cannabis gives the best relief.' " Since his suspension, Leveque said, he believes he's followed conditions placed on his practice by the Board of Medical Examiners and by the state medical marijuana office.Based on the questions from investigators, Leveque said he has been suspended because he was not conducting physical exams or doing his own diagnoses. Patients who came to see him were examined by a nurse-practitioner before Leveque reviewed their medical records and asked about their medical history.Leveque estimates that he signed more than 4,000 applications, out of 7,500 total, since the program began in 1999. Asked if he believed he was targeted because he has maintained a high public profile, Leveque said: "I am the only doctor the Board of Medical Examiners knows who is signing applications. There are 1,300 of them, but they only know me."State officials said in January that 1,280 doctors had signed applications, and that five had signed more than 100.Source: Register-Guard, The (OR)Author: Tim Christie, The Register-GuardPublished: March 5, 2004Copyright: 2004 The Register-GuardContact: rgletters guardnet.comWebsite: http://www.registerguard.com/Related Articles & Web Site:Voter Powerhttp://www.voterpower.org/Oregon Doctors License Suspended for Cardshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread18446.shtmlOregon Doctor Stands Out in MMJ Prescriptionhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread11960.shtmlDoctor Offers Relief Through Marijuana http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread11941.shtmlMolalla Doctor Facing Disciplinehttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread11802.shtml 
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Comment #12 posted by FoM on March 06, 2004 at 08:58:42 PT
billos 
I didn't mean it. You're right!
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Comment #11 posted by afterburner on March 06, 2004 at 05:34:48 PT:
Drug Policy Alliance Presents Ram Dass Live Chat
What Would God Smoke? The Spiritual Roots of Drug Reform
March 4, 2004Live Audio Chat,
Wednesday March 10,
3 PM Eastern/Noon Pacific 
Join us for a very special hour with Ethan Nadelmann and renowned thinker, writer and spiritual pioneer Ram Dass. Bookmark this page so that you can join the chat:
http://www.drugpolicy.org/news/dass_chat.cfm . Both Ethan and Ram Dass will be taking email questions from listeners. If you like you can submit a question now, by clicking HERE. mailto:questions drugpolicy.org 
Since suffering a devastating stroke in 1997, friend and ally of the Drug Policy Alliance, Ram Dass, has made few public appearances. Wednesday will be a rare opportunity to connect with this extraordinary man. Working around his disabilities, Ram Dass will draw on his vast knowledge to address the question of spirituality in drug policy reform. A Harvard-educated teacher, philosopher and spiritual seeker, Ram Dass is a living bridge between the wisdom of the East and Western ideals of justice and social action. He has been a life-long champion of social policies based on reason and compassion and has been a key partner in the fight for drug reform.Ethan Nadelmann founder and executive director of the Drug Policy Alliance, the leading organization in the United States promoting alternatives to the war on drugs joins Ram Dass to answer your questions. A professor and author, Nadelmann founded the organization to advocate for drug policies grounded in science, compassion, health and human rights. Described by Rolling Stone as “the point man” for drug policy reform efforts, Ethan Nadelmann is widely regarded as the outstanding proponent of drug policy reform both in the United States and abroad.Submit a question now: questions drugpolicy.org
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Comment #10 posted by billos on March 06, 2004 at 02:25:26 PT:
FOM Please!!!!!!!!
how could you say you guess you could handle another 4 years of bush?? This is what I predict from 4 more years of bush:Patriot Act I becomes permanent..
Patriot Act II becomes law..
federal drug testing mandates hair specimens..
police start to administer random roadside drug tests..
the draft gets resurrected..
goodbye to social security..
3 dollar a gallon gasoline ++..
a constitutional amendment to ban same sex marriage..
another amendment to adjust the separation of church and state..
more war..
more debt..
more enemies made..
more freedoms gone..
O U C H !!....
I know you didn't mean it. :)
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Comment #9 posted by Nuevo Mexican on March 05, 2004 at 23:41:43 PT
Did anyone see this, bush greeted by Wonderwoman!
Here are some wonderful photos to add to C-Newsers natural high! LOL! President Bush was greeted by 300 demonstrators and supporters while attending a Silicon Valley fundraiser in Santa Clara on Thursday.http://sf.indymedia.org/news/2004/03/1683022.phpKennedy: bush lied, in so many words. Go Ted Go!Iraq Threat Deliberately Inflated, Kennedy Says
By DOUGLAS JEHL
 
ASHINGTON, March 5 — Senator Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts today delivered a blistering indictment of President Bush's decision to go to war in Iraq, accusing Mr. Bush of deliberately exaggerating the threat posed by Saddam Hussein's regime.http://www.nytimes.com/2004/03/05/international/05CND-INTEL.html?hp=&pagewanted=print&positionLast but not least:Rumours finally denied, no comment from Gov. Perrys wife:http://buzzflash.com/
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Comment #8 posted by FoM on March 05, 2004 at 22:42:54 PT
BGreen
You're right. This current society wasn't expected. There was a time when most everything seemed to be ok. Discretion was important but no one really was scared of the police or the government. Love of country was strong. Believing we were a great Nation was common among all different ages and classes of people. Things would work out. It was so different then. Hopefully things will change. Anything is possible as long as we don't give up hope!
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Comment #7 posted by BGreen on March 05, 2004 at 22:24:14 PT
1976-1977, My Freshman Year
I was 13 when I "became aware," to quote The Who's "Tommy." I smoked my first joint, saw my first concert (Black Sabbath,) and really began to understand what all of those hippies my parents used to scoff at were about.I saw bands like Kansas, The Marshall Tucker Band, and Lynyrd Skynyrd in Aug. 1977, two months before their plane crash. Joints were passed around to people and from people you didn't know. There was a communal aspect to cannabis that really was associated with peace and love.I had dreams and hopes and really thought the lies would end, cannabis would be freed from the narcocracy and the doctrine of hatred would be replaced with compassion.Now, nearly 28 years later, we live in the prison states thanks to reagan, bush 1, clinton and the clown who currently stole, uhm, I mean holds the office. I never believed it would or even could happen, but they just keep getting WORSE!Anybody that didn't experience the cannabis culture in the 60's and 70's will never know what it's like to trust people. ANYBODY can be your enemy because they can be forced by the pigs to turn on you to save their own ass. I don't say much to anybody because I don't trust anymore.I just had a brief period of freedom, FoM, so I know how you and Stick must feel. I know this isn't what you wanted, either.The Reverend Bud Green
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Comment #6 posted by FoM on March 05, 2004 at 21:52:08 PT
I like What You Said BGreen
I hope that John Kerry beats Bush. When I think of 4 more years of Bush it just doesn't seem like the way I thought life would be when I was older and was looking for peace. I guess I could handle Bush for 4 more years. I'm not one to push too hard but I just go away and don't say much and turn off the tv and tune out the world. You get good at that as you get older. I don't want that for young people though. I know it will be their fight but I want to help as long as I can. When the laws are changed people will be able to grow as much as they want and in a few years people will be able to give it away like people give away tomatoes. Free Cannabis for everyone ( like Virgil says ) will be the way it is. Everyone wins then. 
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Comment #5 posted by BGreen on March 05, 2004 at 21:28:37 PT
They still don't listen to Doctors
Jesse Ventura nearly brought walters' sidekick, tom riley, to tears, but that was the closest thing to a debate we've ever seen.Dr. Ethan Russo could annihilate walters or any of his cronies in a debate. That's why they won't let it happen. They tell us what they want us to believe and silence any opposition.I'd bet you a pound of re-legalized cannabis that 95% of the posters here at CNews could defeat the lying politicians in a debate.President Kerry needs to appoint Dennis Kucinich as Secretary of Compassion, do away with the drug czar and DEAth, and restore decency and humanity to this once-great country.The Reverend Bud Green
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Comment #4 posted by ekim on March 05, 2004 at 21:00:28 PT
thanks FoM i have given many a Emperor away 
"Did Anyone Consult the AMA?"However, even within his controlled Committee hearings, many expert witnesses spoke out against the passage of these unusual tax laws. Dr. William G. Woodward, for instance, who was both a physician and an attorney for the American Medical Association, testified on behalf of the AMA. He said, in effect, the entire fabric of federal testimony was tabloid sensationalism! No real testimony had been heard! This law, passed in ignorance, could possibly deny the world a potential medicine, especially now that the medical world was just beginning to find which ingredients in cannabis were active. Woodward told the committee that the only reason the AMA hadn't come out against the marijuana tax law sooner was that marijuana had been described in the press for 20 years as "killer weed from Mexico."The AMA doctors had just realized "two days before" these spring 1937 hearings, that the plant Congress intended to outlaw was known medically as cannabis, the benign substance used in America with perfect safety in scores of illnesses for over one hundred years. "We cannot understand yet, Mr. Chairman," Woodward protested, "why this bill should have been prepared in secret for two years without any intimation, even to the profession, that it was being prepared." He and the AMA" were quickly denounced by Anslinger and the entire congressional committee, and curtly excused.3 *The AMA and the Roosevelt Administration were strong antagonists in 1937. When the Marijuana Tax Act bill came up for oral report, discussion, and vote on the floor of Congress, only one pertinent question was asked from the floor: "Did anyone consult with the AMA and get their opinion?"Representative Vinson, answering for the Ways and Means Committee replied, "Yes, we have. A Dr. Wharton [mistaken pronunciation of Woodward?] and {the AMA} are in complete agreement!"With this memorable lie, the bill passed, and became law in December 1937. Federal and state police forces were created, which have incarcerated hundreds of thousands of Americans, adding up to more than 14 million wasted years in jails and prisons - even contributing to their deaths - all for the sake of poisonous, polluting industries, prison guard unions and to reinforce some white politicians' policies of racial hatred. (Mikuriya, Tod, M.C., Marijuana Medical Papers, 1972; Sloman, Larry, Reefer Madness, Grove Press, 1979; Lindsmith, Alfred, The Addict and the Law, Indiana U. Press; Bonnie & Whitebread; The Marijuana Conviction, U. of VA Press; U.S. Cong. Records; et al.) 
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Comment #3 posted by Sam Adams on March 05, 2004 at 20:44:50 PT
leveque
Again, no mention of his WW II service, or the fact that his professional attidude is based on his experience treating veterans.  Just "the Marijuana Doctor". Nice work guys. God forbid the police are actually stopped from throwing someone in jail for a plant. It's just like the pre-60's South.  White people walk right in and register to vote. Black people have to pay a poll tax, or take an eligibility exam, or only register on every other Tuesday of a leap year.It's easy to get Big Pharm drugs. But those dirty marijuana patients have to pay fees, fill out forms, wait for registration, get checked by the police, etc, etc, etc.
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Comment #2 posted by FoM on March 05, 2004 at 20:32:38 PT
ekim
I looked but couldn't find a video of The Emperor Wears No Clothes but this might help you.***The Emperor Wears No ClothesThis is the book that started the hemp revolution. More than 600,000 copies have been sold to date. The print version of The Emperor Wears No Clothes is available in Jack's Hemporium. Jack wants this information to be available to everyone, so he has published the text of the book here on the internet for free. This is only half of what is actually in the book. If you want all the source material and graphics, please buy a copy of the book. 
By selling his books, tapes, c.d.s, and movies, Jack has been able to help support the hemp movement for the last 20 years. 
 http://www.jackherer.com/chapters.html
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Comment #1 posted by ekim on March 05, 2004 at 19:47:41 PT
thanks Kap for Shaffer link ibeen lookn for video
Does anyone have the link to Emperor wares no cloths. where Jack says that the Lawmakers mis stated Dr Woodward of the American Medical Assocation.http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/327/screenings.shtml
Screenings! "BUSTED: The Citizen's Guide to Surviving Police Encounters" to Air Around the Country March 29th to April 12th -- Host One in Your Home or Community or School! 3/5/04 
Over the past few months, DRCNet readers have ordered roughly 400 copies from us of the Flex Your Rights (FyR) video "BUSTED: The Citizen's Guide to Surviving Police Encounters." From March 29th to April 12th, civil rights enthusiasts around the country will be holding screenings of BUSTED at homes, campuses and theaters around the country. And the DVD copies that some of you have requested will be ready on time for them, with DVD and VHS copies both having great new cover artwork. In order to encourage you to participate in this nationwide set of events, we are now offering copies of BUSTED with donations of $25, down from the previous $35 level. Also, if you simply can't afford even $25, but will definitely be holding a screening, we will send you a copy for a donation of $15. And if you are with an organization, we can arrange for you to be sent additional copies of BUSTED, to be sold on the occasion of your screening and paid for or returned after it. So please visit http://stopthedrugwar.org/donate/ to make the most generous contribution you can and to order your copies 
http://www.leap.cc
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