cannabisnews.com: Area DAs To Unify Rules on Medical Pot 





Area DAs To Unify Rules on Medical Pot 
Posted by FoM on June 20, 2001 at 07:49:03 PT
By M.S. Enkoji, Bee Staff Writer 
Source: Sacramento Bee
Medical marijuana users in the Sacramento region can expect guidelines, possibly by the end of the year, on how much pot they can grow or own without getting harassed by law enforcement.District attorneys in Sacramento, Placer, El Dorado, Yuba and Amador counties are hoping to produce uniform standards that were left out of Proposition 215. The 1996 state initiative allows people with severe medical conditions to use marijuana with a doctor's permission. 
But the law has been fraught with enforcement issues that have plagued authorities and users. "We could look to the Legislature and the governor to cure the problem, but if not, we need to take matters into our own hands and come up with some kind of guidelines," said Yuba County District Attorney Patrick McGrath. "You can't ignore the elephant in the corner."The initiative conflicts with federal narcotics laws that still make growing or owning marijuana illegal. It also fails to define how much marijuana should be legal for medical use, McGrath said.He has gotten phone calls at home from police officers unsure of what to do. "They say, 'This is what we have, here's what we found. Should we arrest them?' " McGrath said.Other prosecutors are also weary of starting from ground zero on each case. "That's what we're trying to resolve right now is this case by case analysis," said Daniel Gong, Placer County assistant district attorney.A proposed state law that would direct state and local health representatives to set guidelines and also issue certificates to users is going through the Legislature, but a similar bill failed last year.The five area counties have enough at stake to pursue a regional approach, one that would be consistent with any new state laws, said El Dorado County District Attorney Gary Lacy.In his county, he already has begun working with El Dorado County sheriff's deputies and county health officers to come up with some determination of quantity amounts and how to ensure patients have a legitimate relationship with the doctors who certify them.Enlisting a medical group to help review patients who want to be certified for marijuana use will be too expensive unless a widespread region participates, Lacy said.Sacramento County District Attorney Jan Scully didn't return phone calls Tuesday. But she has been involved in discussions with the other counties, said Dale Kitching, who supervises the office's major narcotics cases. Though other district attorneys were hopeful about uniform guidelines, Kitching said Scully hasn't committed to anything.Without a uniform state law, counties are hamstrung, but many are attempting local guidelines, said Larry Brown, executive director of the California District Attorneys Association, which is backing the proposed state legislation.He said Berkeley recently settled on 10 plants and 2 pounds of pot, but Oakland opted for 30 plants outdoors and 48 indoors.For those who use marijuana to ease pain, nausea or other ailments, the confusion, they say, is just more pain.Dave Wahlers, 54, a former prison guard on disability, planted sweet peas, tomatoes and zucchini in March, just like he does every spring. But this time, he planted marijuana seeds in his fenced backyard garden in Sacramento's north area.Ever since he fell off the roof when chasing an inmate at Folsom State Prison in 1978, his spine has disintegrated, his knees are forever wrenched. His arm snagged on something as he fell, and now pain shoots through his shoulder. Seizures overcome him at times.His friends helped him plant his garden because he can do little more than water it.At his kitchen table, he lines up orange pill bottles of painkillers and anti-depressants."It's like a charley horse that never goes away," he said, describing his seizures, which sometimes paralyze his lower body."I refuse to wear diapers," said Wahlers, a U.S. Navy Vietnam veteran.But Wahlers is afraid to be so dependant on addictive painkillers like Vicodin. "The marijuana doesn't stop my pain, it keeps my mind off it so I'm not thinking about it 24 hours," he said.Sacramento city police officers knocked on his door Thursday evening. A neighbor had spotted Wahler's garden and reported him.Wahlers, who said he has never had police on his doorstep before, showed the officers his medical certificate in a pearlized frame and the copies he staked in the garden. He said he planted 30 seeds in hopes of getting 15 usable plants, which would yield the 3 pounds he figures he needs for a year.Wahlers said he had called the police and the District Attorney's Office before he planted anything to find out how much he could plant, but got no replies.Wahlers wasn't arrested or cited, said Sgt. Dan Hahn. The department will submit the case to the District Attorney's Office to determine if he will be charged.Kitching acknowledged that Wahlers is unlikely to see his plants again, even if he is never charged.Rather than giving a plant count as a guideline for medical users, Kitching said he considers every case on its own merits. "We're not going to give our stamp of approval across the board," he said.But Wahlers said he's left with nothing, even if he did nothing wrong and tried to do the right thing.In Sacramento County, if deputies determine whether someone with a medical certificate appears to be growing for his or her own use, they will not confiscate the pot, said Sgt. James Lewis, a department spokesman.More than legitimate medical users, growers who are trying to legitimize their drug-trafficking careers with a borderline medical certificate get the most attention from law enforcement, he said.The Bee's M.S. Enkoji can be reached at: menkoji sacbee.comSource: Sacramento Bee (CA)Author: M.S. Enkoji, Bee Staff Writer Published: June 20, 2001Copyright: 2001 The Sacramento BeeContact: opinion sacbee.comWebsite: http://www.sacbee.com/Related Article & Web Site:Medicinal Cannabis Research Linkshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/research.htmPolice, Medical Marijuana Backers Seek Alliancehttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread9910.shtmlCannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml 
END SNIP -->
Snipped
Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help




Comment #2 posted by DCP on June 20, 2001 at 13:12:36 PT
Police Ripoffs
"In Sacramento County, if deputies determine whether someone with a medical certificate appears to be growing for his or her own use, they will not confiscate the pot, said Sgt. James Lewis, a department spokesman." What does this statement mean when just above is the following..."Kitching acknowledged that Wahlers is unlikely to see his plants again, even if he is never charged." Evidently the left hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing. DCP
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #1 posted by lookinside on June 20, 2001 at 10:41:38 PT:
i hope...
they come up with some kind of guidelines...we live in thisarea, and up to now, we've had no guidance at all...
[ Post Comment ]


Post Comment