cannabisnews.com: Medical Marijuana Finds a Mellow Audience in Md.
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Medical Marijuana Finds a Mellow Audience in Md.
Posted by CN Staff on September 02, 2009 at 20:19:25 PT
By Dan Morse, Washington Post Staff Writer 
Source: Washington Post 
Washington, D.C. -- Although far smaller in scale, a California-style approach of going easy on medical-use pot smokers has been wafting through the Montgomery County courthouse. Within minutes of each other last week, two defendants left the courthouse with slaps on their wrists: a 56-year-old man with cyclic vomiting syndrome, and a 19-year-old woman with epilepsy.
Their cases show how Maryland's little-known medical marijuana law might be applied in the future and how some ill pot smokers are beginning to raise awareness of it. "It's essential the state do more. Marijuana is critical for people with certain illnesses," said Steven Kupferberg, a defense lawyer in one of the cases. Thirteen states allow the medical use of marijuana. California has led that effort, permitting storefront dispensaries to sell pot to residents with a doctor's recommendation. Virginia is not one of the 13 states, and politicians appear to have little interest in changing that. The District also forbids the practice, but advocates got a boost this summer when the U.S. House of Representatives lifted a restriction that curbs the city from changing its drug laws. The Senate has not taken that action, advocates said. The sponsor of the 1998 D.C. measure, then-U.S. Rep. Bob Barr (R-Ga.), praised the move, calling it "an important step in the direction of individual freedom." Maryland forbids medical use, but under a 2003 law, defendants can be shown leniency if they show medical necessity. The law is rarely used -- not all lawyers know about it, and people convicted of simple marijuana possession can receive leniency, particularly for a first arrest. Advocates for the medical use of pot in Maryland are pushing for a law that would keep sick people from resorting to buying it on the street. And more of those buyers have been willing to speak out for such a law. Debate over the medical use of marijuana often turns on the drug's efficacy and whether it is the only remedy available. The latter issue was evident in the two Montgomery cases. The case of William York started Feb. 8, 2008, when detectives intercepted a package of marijuana addressed to him. They delivered it to York at his home in Silver Spring, finding him dripping wet in his bathrobe after he had just gotten out of the tub. York was convicted of marijuana possession. At his sentencing hearing Aug. 27, York's attorney submitted medical records and two doctors' notes to show that York couldn't control his cyclic vomiting syndrome with pills, in part because he threw them up. The condition is typified by episodes of severe nausea and vomiting that can persist for hours or days. "What happens is, I wake in the morning with such bad nausea that I go into a vomiting fit, and I can't stop the vomiting," York told the judge at the hearing. "But if I use marijuana right at the point where the nausea attack hits me, most of the time it subdues, and after two hours I am able to work without any problems." York, a project manager at a telecom company who makes more than $100,000 a year, also spoke of the perils of having to buy an illegal, unregulated product: "I've been robbed a couple of times. The quality of the cannabis is suspect." Prosecutor Vlatka Tomazic said at the hearing that the doctors' notes were little more than a summary of what York had told his doctors, and one wasn't even dated. No medical professionals testified. "I get it," Tomazic said of marijuana's effect on vomiting. "Obviously, there is some research to show that it does help with nausea. But there's no indication that this is the only way that he can get better." Montgomery Circuit Court Judge David A. Boynton entered a finding of "medical necessity" and charged York a $100 fine. Forty-five minutes earlier, in a courtroom one floor above, attorneys had begun arguing the case of Winnie Gesumwa at her sentencing hearing. That investigation began the night of Feb. 24, when officers got a tip that someone smelled marijuana smoke at a Silver Spring apartment that doubled as a tattoo parlor, attorneys in the case said. Officers found three people inside, including Gesumwa. In her purse, they found 17 small packets of marijuana, valued at $170. She was charged with intent to sell because she had so many packets. Gesumwa pleaded guilty to marijuana possession, a lesser charge. Gesumwa, a native of Kenya, was 3 when she started exhibiting brief "blank stares" that halted her speech and caused her to zone out, her mother told the judge. She also had periodic grand mal seizures that sent her into convulsions. After Gesumwa had moved to the United States, doctors at Children's National Medical Center diagnosed epilepsy when she was 12, said her attorney, Alex Foster. Doctors prescribed Depakote, which caused sudden weight shifts, migraines and nausea, Gesumwa told the judge at her hearing. She said that marijuana controlled daily bouts of blanking out, without Depakote-like side effects, and that she bought 17 units at once to reduce the chance of getting caught. No medical experts testified. The state's medical-use law "has sort of flown under the radar here in Maryland," Foster said, adding that it applied "perfectly" to Gesumwa's case. Judge Andrew Sonner ruled that she had a medical necessity and waived the $100 fine. The debate over the medical use of marijuana isn't new in Maryland. In a 1999 case, a 16-year-old daughter of anti-nuclear activists in Takoma Park gave police some photos of 69 pot plants growing in the family's basement. The girl's mother said she needed the pot for severe migraines and fibromyalgia, a chronic and painful disorder. In 2002, conservative state Del. Donald E. Murphy (R-Baltimore County) took up the cause after a former Army green beret who had cancer told him that the drug eased intense nausea from chemotherapy. The measure, which went into law in 2003, lowered penalties for medical use but stopped short of legalizing it. Critics of using marijuana as medicine say that it can do more harm than good and worry that medical use is a first step toward full-blown legalization. Opponents of making the practice legal include the American Medical Association, the Food and Drug Administration, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. "Until the AMA weighs in otherwise, this is no more than medical folklore," said Leonard C. Collins Jr., Charles County's top prosecutor and former president of the Maryland State's Attorneys' Association. "If Eli Lilly was pushing this stuff, people would be accusing them of greed, and the users would be suing them for the bad side effects." Source: Washington Post (DC)Author:    Dan Morse, Washington Post Staff Writer Published: Thursday, September 3, 2009 Copyright: 2009 Washington Post Contact: letters washpost.com URL: http://drugsense.org/url/DtcMicCXWebsite: http://www.washingtonpost.com/ CannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml
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Comment #21 posted by Hope on September 09, 2009 at 21:20:59 PT
Frustration with trying to communicate
effectively with the PTB and trying to make them see what we're talking about.My mother said when I was little and I couldn't make anyone understand what I was trying to communicate... I'd step on their feet... hard, in frustration. Actually stomp... little girl stomps, might describe it better. So maybe that's what I'm still doing. What we're doing. Stomping on their, the collective PTB's, virtual feet, verbal and cyber style, in an effort to make them hear. 
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #20 posted by Hope on September 09, 2009 at 21:12:25 PT
Oh!
Powers that be.Well. I don't exactly know what to think about that... but thank you, old friend. I know the thought comes from a good heart and a thoughtful concience.Cyber hug coming your way!
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Comment #19 posted by afterburner on September 09, 2009 at 21:07:21 PT
Hope #16 
You're welcome.PTBs = Powers That Be.PTB = power that be?
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Comment #18 posted by Hope on September 09, 2009 at 18:48:43 PT
One of the possible "bad side effects" of use
Leonard C. Collins Jr., top prosecutor
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Comment #17 posted by Question Authority on September 09, 2009 at 17:14:16 PT
Leonard C. Collins Jr., top prosecutor
What bad side effects? Munchies?How about the fact that Collins is LAWYER not a DOCTOR?The prosecutors are mostly interested in eeaasy cases to prosecute, so they will never look at cannabis objectively.
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Comment #16 posted by Hope on September 09, 2009 at 08:52:40 PT
Thank you, Afterburner.
You're very kind. I appreciate that in a person. You've helped me back to feet, figuratively speaking, more than once. Thank you.One thing, though. What's a PTB? 
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Comment #15 posted by afterburner on September 09, 2009 at 07:45:03 PT
Hope #14 
You are welcome.Thank you, too, For all the work you do:The heavy lifting of the heart,The shaming of PTBs you start,But most of allFor just being you.
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Comment #14 posted by Hope on September 07, 2009 at 17:54:38 PT
This day for the Labor and the Laborer.
I'd like to salute a few people.Waitresses. Waiters. Maids. Janitors. Custodians. Dish Washers. Truck Drivers. Cab Drivers. Window Washers. Plumbers. Carpenters. Diggers. Stringers. Assemblers. Sweepers. Dusters. Electricians. Child Care Workers. Elder Care Workers. Farmers. Growers. Health Care Workers. Cleaners. Repair People. Beauticians. Machine Operators. Construction Workers. Cooks. Farmers. Pickers. Gatherers. Sorters. Haulers. Carriers. Carriers. Delivery People. Installers. Mechanics. Assemblers. Stringers. Brick Layers. Stone Masons. Pavers. Drivers. Heavy Equipment Operators. Dirt Movers. All those that keep the country clean, neat, healthy, pretty, and the citizenry informed, nourished, and rolling.Workmen. Workwomen.Thank you all.
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Comment #13 posted by Hope on September 07, 2009 at 12:08:29 PT
Sorry...
That should be Wilson Pickett. Mr. Wilson Pickett. A Man and a Half, as far as I know.
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Comment #12 posted by Hope on September 07, 2009 at 11:21:13 PT
Here's wishing your Labor Day
is a Mustang Sally kind of day.Wilson Picket stylehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQyWmaTSzNs
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Comment #11 posted by FoM on September 07, 2009 at 09:15:51 PT
BGreen
Thank you. I hope you have a really good day. We had a cookout last night. The fire was so warm and pretty. It was a great way to end the summer.
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Comment #10 posted by BGreen on September 07, 2009 at 09:04:56 PT
Happy Labor Day, My Fellow Laborers LOL
I'll check in with you tomorrow when I have a little more free time.Take care and have a fun yet safe day!The Reverend Bud Green
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Comment #9 posted by Hope on September 07, 2009 at 07:28:22 PT
Storm Crow comment 3
Please, please, please send that as a Letter to the Editor.Please, please, please?
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #8 posted by Hope on September 07, 2009 at 07:21:41 PT
Storm Crow comment 3
I keep wondering when they'll wake up. When will they see? When will they open their eyes to what THEY ARE DOING?It makes me sad. Sometimes it makes me furious, but most of all it makes me sad.
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Comment #7 posted by Hope on September 07, 2009 at 07:17:13 PT
Speculation about the future of drug law reform 
Projected goals... all that stuff.Where will we be two months from now in drug law reform in this country?:0(I speculate we'll pretty much be where we are right now... if we're lucky.
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Comment #6 posted by John Tyler on September 05, 2009 at 21:35:01 PT
Re #5 virginia
Hardly any Confederate flags, at least in the cities, but still lots and lots of Republican idiots. Would be glad to send them to other states.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #5 posted by quartermaster on September 05, 2009 at 10:15:44 PT
virginia
do they not still display the rebel flag there? are they not full of republican idiots. vote the republicans out everywhere, we have them just about out of power but there is still more tyrants to vote gone.
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Comment #4 posted by Sinsemilla Jones on September 04, 2009 at 15:22:55 PT
The AMA weighed in 72 years ago!
The AMA told Congress that cannabis was a safe, effective medication, and that there was virtually no misuse of it that the medical community was aware of, during the hearings for The Marijuana Tax Act of 1937.Congress chastised the AMA for trying to bring facts into the law making process, and eventually lied to themselves and the public about what the AMA said.Sounds like the type of government oversight of health care that everyone is afraid of, happened a long time ago.
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Comment #3 posted by Storm Crow on September 04, 2009 at 10:24:27 PT
 Mr. Leonard C. Collins Jr.'s quote
"Until the AMA weighs in otherwise, this is no more than medical folklore," said Leonard C. Collins Jr., Charles County's top prosecutor and former president of the Maryland State's Attorneys' Association. Well, I got over 120 pages of so-called "folklore" from PubMed, MedScape and various medical journals.(You can get a copy of my MMJ list at i.wantgrannyslist(at)yahoo.com ) Also the American Nurses Association and the American College of Physicians certainly don't agree with his "medical folklore" evaluation. Both have called, officially, for easing the federal prohibition of marijuana. I doubt if they are being fooled by "medical folklore"! The only folklore here is the AMA stance that cannabis is not medicine! "If Eli Lilly was pushing this stuff, people would be accusing them of greed, and the users would be suing them for the bad side effects." Note the words "pushing" and "stuff"- typical loaded words. And for his information- Eli Lilly used to "push this stuff" before prohibition. For about $50 you can buy an antique Eli Lilly cannabis tincture bottle from the 1800s. Cannabis was a very popular medicine before 1937. Also the "bad side effects"- feeling good, possible drowsiness and the munchies- are temporary and certainly nothing to sue about. Suing should be reserved for the serious side effects of prescription drugs! Asthma drugs that may increase your chance of dying from asthma, drugs that may cause "an unsafe drop in blood pressure", cause cancer or other "rare but fatal" side effects! Why doesn't Mr. Collins rail against these actual killers rather than a medicinal herb that has yet to cause a death? Oh yeah, that's right, his cushy job depends on persecuting sick cannabis users! Goodness knows he might actually have to work to earn his fat salary if he took on the pharmaceutical companies for actually killing people! 
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Comment #2 posted by John Tyler on September 03, 2009 at 22:06:20 PT
Virginia
“Virginia is not one of the 13 states, and politicians appear to have little interest in changing that.” Hold on, I thought Virginia had a medical marijuana law on the books since 1979, but the politicians, the cops, and the public seems to have forgotten about it. It went along the lines it could be used for some aliments, but doctors could not prescribe or recommend it, and of course, there was no legal way to get it. It was pretty ineffectual and was quickly forgotten by most people. Except for Senator Jim Webb, most of the politicians of both parties never mention anything about drug law reform in Virginia. They seem to be only interested in their own selfish political career. That is a shame.
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Comment #1 posted by SnowedUnder on September 03, 2009 at 08:33:33 PT:
Hold It...
but I thought the government was already supplying it for medical reasons. Now how can this be? Hypocracy maybe?!
The real issue here is to keep the money flowing, at any cost. Ask any honest peace officer.
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