cannabisnews.com: First Stage of Trial for Ed Rosenthal Underway
First Stage of Trial for Ed Rosenthal Underway
Posted by CN Staff on January 14, 2003 at 20:58:21 PT
Bay City News Report
Source: SF Gate.com
The first stage of a trial for an Oakland marijuana author began in a federal courtroom in San Francisco this morning with the start of jury selection. Edward Rosenthal, 58, is accused of conspiring to grow more than 1,000 marijuana plants, actually growing more than 100 plants, and maintaining premises for marijuana cultivation at a former Oakland warehouse. Rosenthal has written several books about marijuana cultivation as well as a marijuana column for an alternative newspaper.
If convicted, he could face a lengthy sentence. The conspiracy charge carries a mandatory 10-year sentence upon conviction. The cultivation charge carries a mandatory five-year term and the marijuana premises charge has a term of up to 20 years in prison. The trial in the court of U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer is scheduled to begin on Jan. 21. Potential jurors were asked this morning whether they have strong views about marijuana laws and whether they could apply a federal law that makes it a crime to cultivate marijuana. Over the past several days, Breyer turned down several defense motions for dismissal of the charges. In one argument, Rosenthal contended that he had reason to believe he would not be prosecuted for helping to provide marijuana to aid seriously ill patients under the state's Compassionate Use Act. But the judge said that federal law supersedes the state law and Rosenthal did not prove that any federal officials led him to believe he would not be prosecuted in federal court. Breyer is the same judge who presided over a civil case filed by the U.S. Justice Department that forced that Oakland Cannabis Buyers' Cooperative to stop dispensing medical marijuana. Source: SF Gate.com (CA)Published: January 14, 2003Copyright: 2003 Bay City News Website: http://www.sfgate.com/Related Articles & Web Site:Medicinal Cannabis Research Linkshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/research.htmSelection of Jury in Pot Case Moved Up http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15169.shtmlTrial Looms for Medical Pot Figure from Oaklandhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15149.shtmlDismissal Sought in Medical Pot Case http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15128.shtml
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Comment #3 posted by Truth on January 15, 2003 at 10:33:06 PT
this trial is a farce
Nothing like letting all the facts be considered so it will be a fair trial, sheesss. Looks like the judge is doing a great job at fielding a partial jury. Shame on him.
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Comment #2 posted by FoM on January 15, 2003 at 10:20:39 PT
Important E-Mail News
Rosenthal Jury Selection Begins
Judge Excuses Half the Jury Pool in Federal Trial of Ed Rosenthal Potential Jurors Speak Out In Favor of Medical Marijuana, Legalization, and States' RightsTuesday, January 14, 2003 -- In what one defense attorney called the most remarkable day of jury selection heíd ever witnessed, half of the 50 potential jurors in the marijuana-cultivation trial of best-selling author and activist Ed Rosenthal were excused by the judge for cause. Even small-town murder trials where everyone knows everyone and emotions run high will see at most one or two jurors excused as being unable to give the proceeding a fair hearing.Asked by Judge Charles Breyer if they had strong feelings on the legalization of marijuana, the legality of medical marijuana, or the conflict between federal law and Californiaís voter initiative, Proposition 215, legalizing the medical use of marijuana, juror after juror either regaled the court with poignant anecdotes about how they or someone they knew used or had recommended to them medical marijuana, gave voice to passionate feelings about the need to legalize marijuana for all use, or expressed deep distaste for federal interference in California's laws. That these views were expressed by what appeared to be a representative cross-section of the Bay Area's populace was perhaps less surprising than that they were willing to give voice to such a call for reform at all, since potential jurors normally understate the strength of their views when speaking in front of strangers, for fear of how their peers might react.At the end of the day, the judge called for another pool of 50 to be presented tomorrow morning and guaranteed completion of selection by lunchtime. Of those jurors who can get past the judge's questions, the defense is permitted to challenge ten and the prosecution six, so at least five more potential jurors are needed to seat twelve and two alternates.The defense today also presented additional case authority in support of their pretrial motion on entrapment by estoppel, which argued that because local authorities had established a program to extend federal immunity from prosecution to those such as Rosenthal who were deputized to implement the city of Oakland's medical marijuana ordinance, and had told him he would be protected, he should not now be prosecuted. The judge said the additional cases cited in support of that argument would be considered.Jury selection continues at 8:30 a.m., Wednesday, January 15, in U.S. District Court, with trial commencing on Tuesday, January 21, 2003.FOR MORE INFORMATION: Updates and background information on Ed Rosenthal's case are available on the web at: http://www.green-aid.com or http://www.safeaccessnow.orgDale Gieringer (415) 563-5858 // canorml igc.org2215-R Market St. #278, San Francisco CA 94114
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Comment #1 posted by The GCW on January 15, 2003 at 06:07:11 PT
Be clean, for Christ God Our Father.
The Fed. urine suckers are going to stop anyone from being on the jury if they have a problem with the caging of humans for using a GREEN plant.This will be a jury of prohibitionists, only. It will not be a jury of Edward Rosenthal's peers. It will not be a jury representative of society which is not in support of the charges. It will certainly not be an unbiased jury!It seems that, that alone would be something to take to the supreme court.He will perhaps not even be allowed to say His doctor prescribed cannabis or anything about the issue.Prohibitionists only on the jury, please.They are the house and stack the deck, like satan.The one True chance Ed has is that one, just one of the jury members gets some intrinsic desire to be clean.
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