cannabisnews.com: Marijuana Decision Expected Any Day










  Marijuana Decision Expected Any Day

Posted by CN Staff on March 02, 2005 at 23:08:58 PT
By Jeff Katz, Aggie Staff Writer 
Source: California Aggie 

Can California have its marijuana and smoke it too? Since voters passed the Medical Marijuana Act in 1996, the state law has been seemingly in contradiction with federal laws that say marijuana is an illegal drug under any circumstances.  The U.S. Supreme Court is now reviewing Ashcroft vs. Raich, in which a decision is expected any day regarding the federal government's authority over the matter.
And according to Americans for Safe Access, a group working for medical marijuana rights, now may be as good a time as any for a ruling to be made.  "Right now, the Supreme Court is definitely oriented towards state rights," said campaign director Hilary McQuie. "I don't want to make a bet, but that more than any other factor could be in favor of the Reich decision."  California resident Angel Raich, a prescribed medical marijuana user, sued the federal government in 2002 to challenge federal laws that banned her from using the substance under the Medical Marijuana Act.  After the act passed, federal agents began periodic raids in California to break up marijuana cooperatives, saying that the federal Controlled Substance Act (CSA) does not recognize medical marijuana.  While the US Constitution grants policing power to states, it stipulates that the federal government may intervene when the situation involves commerce between states.  According to court documents, the federal government believes it can override the state law using the CSA because there are sales taking place.  But a Dec 16, 2003 ruling by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decided that using "the CSA is an unconstitutional exercise of Congress' Commerce Clause authority." The government's appeal of that decision landed the case in the Supreme Court in April of 2004.  Patrick Murphy, a California drug policy expert, says that the case could easily go either way at this point; regardless, Californians who support medical marijuana shouldn't panic if the court rules in favor the government.  "The notion of an individual in possession is now a question that a state can make a judgment on and this decision won't overturn that," Murphy said. "More likely, this could settle the question of whether state law is trumped by federal."  The Drug Free America Foundation, an umbrella group that filed a brief in favor of the government's position, did not return calls from The California Aggie for comment.  Despite the assurance that medical marijuana users would still be protected under state law, some wonder whether the federal government could use a win to conduct more frequent raids.  Murphy said the likelihood of such action is low, although the government may still decide to target doctors in an effort to make an example of them.  "But you have to have someone out there willing to make the arrest, and then you also have to have someone willing to prosecute it, and it's just not a very good use of resources," he continued. "Frankly, drugs just aren't a priority for the federal government anymore."  Even a ruling in favor of Raich, although viewed as a big boost for medical marijuana advocates, is something McQuie said is only a minor protection in the larger picture.  "It doesn't end the fight for medical marijuana if it wins because we need to have it rescheduled at the federal level," McQuie said. "But it is a move in the right direction."Source: California Aggie, The (UC Davis, CA Edu)Author: Jeff Katz, Aggie Staff WriterPublished: March 3, 2005Copyright: 2005 The California AggieContact: editor californiaaggie.comWebsite: http://www.californiaaggie.com/ Related Articles & Web Sites:Americans For Safe Accesshttp://www.safeaccessnow.org/Angel Raich v. Ashcroft Newshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/raich.htmI Really Consider Cannabis My Miraclehttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20078.shtmlHigh Expectations - San Francisco Bay Guardianhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20069.shtmlCannabis and The Constitutionhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20027.shtml

Home    Comment    Email    Register    Recent Comments    Help





Comment #31 posted by ekim on March 03, 2005 at 19:59:51 PT
tell all those you knoooow its truuuuuuue---------
today on Diane Rehm she had on a author from Singapore. His book was on how the rest of the world see's the U.S. Just as the rest of the world is waking to the fact that the people can vote and be heard so to are we here in the U.S. doing the same. I could not help thinking about the time i heard that Singapore was canining a young man for a crime of vandalism. While the case was in all the papers and on the TV news i got a glimpse of a sign on a building it showed a picture of a cigarette i guess a joint and a noose made in a rope.
I have heard that one can and has been killed from Cannabis use. If in fact that is the case we here would have to use the noose on over 7 hundred and 50 thousand US humans last year alone. That leaves out the Millions that are Adults using and Millions that have found Med value of the herb.On this fact alone the people should be shown respect and given all the natural rights protected by these very Judges for the whole world to see. Oil is going out of site it is clear to all that cutting the Renewable Energy Bill that was set up by Jimmy Carter and voted down when Raygun took over -- the congress was heard cheering when the Energy act finally had a stake driven thru its heart. Now some of the same congressmen and women are calling for more drilling and lying about the value of Hemp. wonder if Gov of Alaska
voted as he started under Raygun.With the defeat of the DEA in the use of Hemp it is clear that lies about the benefits to Farmers and hundreds of industries that will profit from this Plant has cost the Country Billions of dollars and Millions of jobs. The U.S. must push forward in the development of vital new industries for the new bio-degradable parts and packaging and fuels, and above all foods. 
http://www.leap.cc/events
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #30 posted by Hope on March 03, 2005 at 19:56:49 PT
Haven't seen much evidence of that logic.
But...on a lighter note, while exploring RadicalRuss's blog (Nice blog, Russ) I ran on to a link to this.http://www.theonion.com/news/index.php?issue=4109&n=1
 
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #29 posted by FoM on March 03, 2005 at 19:24:24 PT
Hope
I'll tell you what I think. Because of the war and terrorism money is becoming an issue. The drug war becomes less significant if that makes sense.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #28 posted by Hope on March 03, 2005 at 19:18:14 PT
What do you suppose Murphy means?
"Frankly, drugs just aren't a priority for the federal government anymore."
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #27 posted by FoM on March 03, 2005 at 17:59:52 PT
Mayan
You said: The war on cannabis is the foundation of the entire war on drugs.I sure agree!
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #26 posted by mayan on March 03, 2005 at 17:55:38 PT
Win/Win
Even if we lose we will keep fighting on as always. Plus, all Americans will see firsthand that all three branches of our government have sold them out. This issue will not die unless we let it.If we win, we win big! I have to agree with WW on this one because the war on cannabis is the foundation of the entire war on drugs, which has piggybacked on top of it - the war on terror. I'm sure the supremes fear for their political/judicial futures...if not their very lives.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #25 posted by global_warming on March 03, 2005 at 16:30:56 PT
re:comment 24
Welcome RadicalRuss,You have a very good perspective of this current argument, yet, there is something that you never mention, the twists and turns of all these historical decisions, and what has been the guiding force behind these decisions.You speak for the legal community, but no word for the people, those people that are participating in our social studies, our social experiments, that are the foundation that supports your premise.Somewhere in your world view, there must be some inkling, that the masses, those ignorant and ignored are starting to wake up, and all these eloquent arguments in your legal perspective may not accept your premise or starting point.The sharp blade of the guillotine, was but only a short time before you were born.When such complexity and cruelty cannot be resolved to the common people, the ignorant masses, there will be consequences.Let us hope that these Supreme Judges, can see how their decisions will effect the lives of the common man, for many generations into our modern world.gw
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #24 posted by RadicalRuss on March 03, 2005 at 15:31:01 PT:
Slam Dunk
WolfgangWylde, I believe you are entirely correct. Despite our position being morally, legally, ethically, and Constitutionally correct, the Court will decide in favor of the feds.When the case first surfaced, I wrote this in my blog, Radical Writ (click link below for full post):The issue seems clear. The facts obviously seem to favor a decision for Raich, affirming the right of the states to self-govern. That's why I fully expect the Supreme Court to rule in favor of Ashcroft.Yes, I predict that the court will conjure up some extra-judicial mumbo jumbo to justify the government's continued war on medical marijuana states. Too many powerful interests depend on keeping marijuana illegal. You can be sure that the huge pharmaceutical companies don't want to see state after state legalizing the use of a drug that grows for free everywhere and cannot be patented, advertised, and sold for a 10,000% markup. If that's too conspiratorial for you, look at the prescription drug package offered by the Bush Administration that lines Big Pharma's pocket by preventing Medicare from negotiating for lower drug prices or importing cheaper drugs from Canada. Moreover, if you think the court is above tailoring decisions against precedent and Constitutional consideration solely for the political ramifications of a single case or issue, you need look no further than the Bush v. Gore decision that trampled the state of Florida's right to handle what was a case solely in their jurisdiction.
Medical Marijuana and States Rights
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #23 posted by global_warming on March 03, 2005 at 15:30:11 PT
Lets Hope that this same outlook will apply..
towards incarcerating young people for that thimble full of marijuana..(Knight Ridder) - The briefs read like doctoral theses on adolescent development, with charts and graphs and references to longitudinal studies. They're as much about science as they are about the law - and in the Supreme Court's decision to outlaw executions for child killers, they played a pivotal role. As much as Justice Anthony Kennedy relied on constitutional analysis to reach the court's ruling in Tuesday's landmark decision, he also banked on volumes of research - much of it recent - that was submitted to the court by the scientific community to persuade the justices that youthful minds are fundamentally different.
Supreme Court Ends Death Penalty for Minors
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #22 posted by Richard Paul Zuckerm on March 03, 2005 at 14:32:07 PT:
HOPE THEY RESPECT OUR FREEDOM!
Hope that the U.S. Supreme Court respects our freedom in this case. 
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #21 posted by FoM on March 03, 2005 at 14:18:27 PT
For Those Interested
This is Patrick Murphy's bio.http://www.ppic.org/main/bio.asp?i=238
[ Post Comment ]

 


Comment #20 posted by FoM on March 03, 2005 at 11:57:29 PT

Hope
Today in BC the Supreme Court is hearing an argument. There hasn't been any news articles about it and I also believe that sometimes silence is golden since we don't know who is reading CNews. Hopefully something good will come out of it for Canadians. In time we will know. Say a little prayer for the Kubbys today.
[ Post Comment ]


 


Comment #19 posted by Hope on March 03, 2005 at 11:51:49 PT

Amen, Fom!
"No matter what we will continue on and probably with more gusto then ever before. We know we are right and being right must still account for something."

[ Post Comment ]


 


Comment #18 posted by FoM on March 03, 2005 at 11:39:13 PT

Taylor121
I was talking to an e-mail friend about how nervous I am and even though he isn't from the U.S. he is nervous too. This has implications at every turn. No matter what we will continue on and probably with more gusto then ever before. We know we are right and being right must still account for something.
[ Post Comment ]


 


Comment #17 posted by Taylor121 on March 03, 2005 at 11:34:15 PT

FOM
'This case has me so very nervous. I feel the decision is getting close. I know I'm not alone in how I feel. I'll keep praying that the Judges use wisdom in this important case. 'God I know what you mean. This case is so damn important, it could put this issue to rest 10 years before it would be put to rest in Congress. However, all intuition points to the government winning the case even though it would seem the states should have the say so.
[ Post Comment ]


 


Comment #16 posted by FoM on March 03, 2005 at 11:28:31 PT

Hope
I did a teen class in Church on drug use and it's problems with the permission of the parents back in the mid 80s. I was honest. I told them about how fun doing different drugs was but then I told them about the end results of doing those drugs. I loved those kids and they respected me. After it was over I had one young teen come up to me and tell me she was jealous because she won't be able to experience life the way I had. I didn't know what to say to her but I understand. I do believe jealousy plays into it too.
[ Post Comment ]


 


Comment #15 posted by Hope on March 03, 2005 at 11:20:56 PT

"Are they jealous ..."
I think it's pure arrogance. They think themselves better, smarter, wiser and are puffed up with pride and self righteousness...which is no real righteousness at all.In my book...they are repellant and dispicable. Because of the grief they cause they are hard to pity.
[ Post Comment ]


 


Comment #14 posted by FoM on March 03, 2005 at 10:52:38 PT

Max Flowers 
Thank you.
[ Post Comment ]


 


Comment #13 posted by FoM on March 03, 2005 at 10:26:21 PT

Narrow Minded People
Living in a narrow minded world. I think there's a song about that. I wasn't always opened minded about many issues but that's when I went to church. I slowly saw how judgmental they were and it was making me that way and I didn't like feeling angry all the time. Now many years later I know that living with people who don't believe like I do in an understanding atmosphere is good for my mental health. The anger of the right alienates people. 
[ Post Comment ]


 


Comment #12 posted by Max Flowers on March 03, 2005 at 10:19:06 PT

FoM, answers for your good questions
+ Most of the right wing love to hate. Now why is that?Hate is often a symptom of fear. They are fearful of change, which would likely alter their financial holdings, stock portfolios, and the mental constructs they have been building and harboring for decades+ Are they jealous of people who don't think like they do?They are FEARFUL of people who don't think like they do. And yes, I think they are also jealous/envious of people who are courageous enough to be progressive.+ What drives so much hate particularly towards medical marijuana?They fear medical cannabis because they fear cannabis, and they fear cannabis because they fear ANY substance that can encourage any mentality besides the herd mentality, which is the ONLY mentality they know. They fear anything that does not fit into their rigid, bigoted little world.
[ Post Comment ]


 


Comment #11 posted by Max Flowers on March 03, 2005 at 10:10:19 PT

Comment #7
from the linked news article:"If a sheriff doesn't want the Feds in his county he has the constitutional power and right to keep them out or ask them to leave or retain them in custody."YES!! FINALLYEvery sheriff in the country needs to realize this, and have the courage to enorce it. It is *absolutely necessary* to save our country. In a very real way, the sheriffs and police chiefs of the USA have the future of the nation in their hands, not just their own counties and cities!
[ Post Comment ]


 


Comment #10 posted by FoM on March 03, 2005 at 09:57:25 PT

Max Flowers 
I agree with you. When you empower this administration they run with it. I have come to a few conclusions recently. Most of the right wing love to hate. Now why is that? Are they jealous of people who don't think like they do? What drives so much hate particularly towards medical marijuana? 
[ Post Comment ]


 


Comment #9 posted by Max Flowers on March 03, 2005 at 09:51:12 PT

FoM I know how you feel
...I feel the same way. Somehow this case seems extremely important in quite a few different ways, not all of which have to do strictly with cannabis itself. I hope the justices can sense its importance too, but the way they sit in their little ivory towers, golfing with the VP and making $300,000/year (that's an off-the-cuff guess), I have my doubts. Yet, if they simply do their jobs and decide the case by its actual legal merits, using real precendent and honest Constitutional interpretation (i.e. the interpretation of it as the restraint on federal power that it is SUPPOSED to be, and not interpreting it as a tool that the feds can twist and bend to their liking), I don't see how we can lose.A friend of mine who grows for the bay area medical clubs says that he feels that even if the Supremes decide against us (in CA), it doesn't really change anything, we go on doing what we're doing and continuing to fight. That's all well and good, but I know that the feds would then use it as the rationale to ramp up attacks on clubs, and not only that---and perhaps more importantly---state and local cops would be emboldened to revert back to their persecutory ways in many cases. 
[ Post Comment ]


 


Comment #8 posted by E_Johnson on March 03, 2005 at 09:36:34 PT

Fox News piece on Texas
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,149303,00.html
[ Post Comment ]


 


Comment #7 posted by siege on March 03, 2005 at 06:56:47 PT

wake up
All Sheriffs could do this and put the federal agencies in there place.
Wyoming Sheriffs Put Federal Officers on Choke Chainshttp://www.greaterthings.com/News/Martial_Law/WyoSheriffs.htm
 	
All truth passes through three stages:
  First, it is ridiculed;
  Second, it is violently opposed; and
  Third, it is accepted as self-evident.-- Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860)
[ Post Comment ]


 


Comment #6 posted by Commonsense on March 03, 2005 at 06:38:04 PT

Not overly optimistic
The tough bit of luck for Raich here is Rehnquist's health. Rehnquist is expected to retire (or die) at anytime and both Scalia and Thomas are vying for the job of Chief Justice. Thomas at least would be one to vote for states rights under other circumstances but a vote for states rights in this case would turn off a lot of the "moral majority" type conservatives which would might make appointment to the top spot less likely. 
[ Post Comment ]


 


Comment #5 posted by afterburner on March 03, 2005 at 06:14:32 PT

I've Been Reading about Jiang Zemin's Rise to...
power as former President of China by demonizing the Falun Gong movement in order to gain political support ["Power of the Wheel: The Falun Gong Revolution" by Adams, Adams, Galati, 2000, Stoddart, NYC]. The parallels to the demonizing of cannabis -- medical, spiritual or social -- in the US (by both political parties) and by certain old school conservative politicians in Canada (partially funded by US anti-drug charities) is ominous. This scapegoating to power is obviously a well-worn tool of the global political scene. Too many young people are apathetic about politics and the older generation (many with long-standing bigotries intact) votes. Keep exercising your free speech, writing letters to the editor, jawboning with friends, relatives and work-mates, and think twice about voting. We must continue to spread the word to counter the fear, ignorance and malicious propaganda aimed at our cause. We must grow our base. "If we don't hang together, we will all hang separately." No fear, no worries, no problem!Peace and Love,afterburner
Jiang Zemin google search
[ Post Comment ]


 


Comment #4 posted by goneposthole on March 03, 2005 at 06:05:06 PT

no reply at all
"The Drug Free America Foundation, an umbrella group that filed a brief in favor of the government's position, did not return calls from The California Aggie for comment."The US gov has mired itself in the muck and can't find its way out. Frankly, nobody really even cares anymore. The days of the feds are over.Each day I wake up and each day I wait for the news of an attack on the US Capital. It's over for the US gov. It's all hanging by a thread. No money, spend all of the taxpayer's money on all sorts of stupid stuff and no end in sight. It's all done.Back to reality
[ Post Comment ]


 


Comment #3 posted by WolfgangWylde on March 03, 2005 at 03:21:08 PT

The entire Drug War infrastructure...
...depends on marijuana remaining COMPLETELY illegal. Its a slam dunk that the Court will side with the government.
[ Post Comment ]


 


Comment #2 posted by rchandar on March 03, 2005 at 00:03:37 PT:

raich
I'll believe it when I see it. No doubt, it would be something.--rchandar
[ Post Comment ]


 


Comment #1 posted by FoM on March 02, 2005 at 23:14:46 PT

I'm Holding My Breath
This case has me so very nervous. I feel the decision is getting close. I know I'm not alone in how I feel. I'll keep praying that the Judges use wisdom in this important case. 
[ Post Comment ]





  Post Comment