cannabisnews.com: Rosenthal is Guilty -- for Helping Those in Need Rosenthal is Guilty -- for Helping Those in Need Posted by CN Staff on February 14, 2003 at 14:59:11 PT Editorial Source: Contra Costa Times "You cannot substitute your sense of justice, whatever that is, for your duty to follow the law . . ." Judge Charles Breyer, U.S. District Court-Ninth Circuit And so we have a new kind of justice in America, one where our "sense of justice," whatever that is, is irrelevant, where mitigating circumstances don't mitigate, and where context is out of context. Or so implies the good justice above as he acted as both prosecutor and judge in convicting Oakland's Ed Rosenthal. Rosenthal, a writer, publisher and 20-year city resident, was openly growing and distributing cannabis plants to sick and dying individuals who needed them. And he was doing so under the auspices of the Oakland Cannabis Buyers Cooperative -- that's with Oakland and Alameda County's full awareness and support.He was, he claims, "made an officer of the county," by authority of the buyer's club, and was doing it within the context of Prop 215, passed overwhelmingly by California voters.But according to Judge Charles Breyer, those facts and the suffering of the sick and dying have no place in a court of law. No, we must not substitute our "sense of justice" for our hypocrisy.Breyer went so far as to refuse to allow any mention of "medical marijuana" during the trial, even taking over questioning of one witness, county supervisor Nate Miley, who was there to support Rosenthal's contention that he was working for the county.Thus, the jurors, deliberating in darkness, delivered a dark, unjust verdict. When they learned the real nature of the case, they repented immediately.Juror Marney Craig wrote recently in the San Jose Mercury News, "Last week, I did something so profoundly wrong it will haunt me for the rest of my life . . ."Rosenthal is unrepentant and vows to fight on. "Whether I won or not," he told me, "they've lost. In the court of public opinion, I've won this case . . . We've moved the debate, the issue is now being discussed in ways it hadn't been before."Though Breyer has warned him to keep quiet, under threat of a harsh sentence, Rosenthal told me he "will not be silenced.""The people who prevent people from getting medicine are the real criminals," he said.Lest you think he is overstating his case, consider the condition of Redwood Heights resident Angel McClary Raich, 37.The mother of two, Raich is suffering from what she calls 15 "serious aliments," including inoperable brain tumors, seizure disorders, chronic pain and a "life-threatening wasting syndrome," among others.She is down to 98 pounds, and the only thing that keeps her food down is "medical marijuana." The only thing that mitigates her pain is "medical marijuana." She requires a treatment every two hours of her waking life. Without it, she claims, she would lose a pound a day. "If I followed the law," she said, "I would die.""When I wake up, my first sensation is pain," she told me. "My suffering is bad enough, but why should I have the added fear of my government?"Raich spent four years partially paralyzed and in a wheelchair. It was cannabis that got her out of the chair, "and I have the medical records to prove it!""I am living proof cannabis has medical value. They don't need research, they have me."Raich goes through about three ounces a week, requiring about eight or nine pounds a year. On the black market, that would cost tens of thousands of dollars. Instead, her medicine is grown by her two caregivers. "They are keeping me alive and risking their own necks. . . . They are heroes to me."Raich and her caregivers are being proactive. They have sued John Ashcroft, drug czar Asa Hutchinson, and the federal government "to prevent them from raiding our homes, from taking our property" and to force them "to allow us to possess and grow our own confection."Legally, this is a case of first impression, i.e. there has been no other case like it before. There is no commerce involved, no one is buying or selling anything. Everything is taking place within California, and there's a clear medical necessity.According to Jeff Jones, executive director of the Oakland Cannabis Buyer's Coop, Angel's case is the single most important test case in the nation."We looked at all our legal experience, at all we have learned, and this is the one. It's an individual patient-right case," he said. "There is no other remedy for her. My plants, my home, my right. . . . We wanted to hit a legal home run, and this is the one."The co-op, you might know, took its case to the Supreme Court last year and struck out. They, too, have a second case on the way up the ladder, this one based on state's rights, claiming the issue is outside of the fed's jurisdiction.Oakland is in the forefront of the medical marijuana battle. The future, we hope, is on our side. But there are many struggles ahead: See Ed Rosenthal, see Angel, see the dark forces of Ashcroft/Bush.These people in power think they have a right to control our bodies, our reproductive organs, our minds. Somehow, however, they seem to lack authority over our businesses, our environments and our guns. After all, a man has to have his principles!The hypocrisy is titanic. May it sink accordingly.Complete Title: Rosenthal is Guilty -- for Helping Those in Serious NeedTo help Angel contact: angelraich sbcglobal.net -- for Ed's case see: http://www.green-aid.comSource: Contra Costa Times (CA)Published: Friday, February 14, 2003 Copyright: 2003 Contra Costa Newspapers Inc.Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/96Website: http://www.bayarea.com/mld/cctimesRelated Articles & Web Sites:OCBChttp://www.rxcbc.org/Ed Rosenthal's Trial Pictures & Articleshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/trialpics.htmDrugs War Hits a High as Sick Demand Marijuanahttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15423.shtmlMedicinal Marijuana Users Sue U.S. Officialshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread14417.shtmlMedicinal Pot Users Renew Legal Challengehttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread14410.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #5 posted by afterburner on February 14, 2003 at 20:44:08 PT: Robert Schmidt, devoted cannabis cultivator Interesting story about another devoted cannabis cultivator:SCHMIDT ANSWERS TO A HIGHER AUTHORITY http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v03/n239/a06.htmlexcerpt: Robert "Duke" Schmidt, 52, sits in a small room in a Tenderloin halfway house looking out at the unattainable entrance to Original Joe's and -as we pan across Taylor St.- a big billboard showing 8-year-old Ashley Epis and her "My Dad is not a Criminal" sign. "Medical Marijuana," proclaims the billboard, "Compassion -Not Federal Prison." Says Schmidt, "I asked God for a sign. I'm serious. In my moment of despair, I asked God for a sign, and the next day, there was that sign." Even more interesting: Was the U.S. government's Paraquat execution, of Columbia's cannabis plants (Remember Columbia Gold?), responsible for the cocaine epidemic of the 1980's and the drive-by shootings and gang wars that came with it?excerpt: ....Schmidt remembers the Paraquat days: "In 1978 there was more than 12 million acres of land in South America growing the finest cannabis sativa. One morning when we were loading up and getting it ready for transport to the coast, we noticed a lot of American C-140 aircraft flying overhead. Then the sky became orange, the whole valley was orange with the defoliant they were dropping. We had a DC-3 there and the wings were so heavy with this spray that it would not lift off. We pulled our t-shirts over our heads, we grabbed what stuff we had baled up, and we made it to the coast. It took us four days overland. When I got back to the United States I asked, 'When did we declare war on Colombia?' Everybody was wondering what I was talking about. That area now is all heroin fields and coca fields." ego destruction or ego transcendence, that is the question. [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by FoM on February 14, 2003 at 17:53:29 PT Thanks delariand I thought I should fix it and I did. Recently I've seen mistakes in articles and I'm not sure why. [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by mayan on February 14, 2003 at 17:25:03 PT Jury Nullification "You cannot substitute your sense of justice, whatever that is, for your duty to follow the law . . ." - Judge Charles Breyer, U.S. District Court-Ninth CircuitYes you can... Our Last, Best Hope: http://www.sierratimes.com/03/02/10/robinson.htm [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by delariand on February 14, 2003 at 17:23:02 PT I may be nitpicky, but... "In the context of Prop 209"... could have done a little research before licking that stamp... [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by agnosticman on February 14, 2003 at 16:40:41 PT: Medical Marijuana I use marijuana to ease intestinal discomfort. I have been diagnosed with Colitis and nothing... nothing! works as well to ease spasms and pain for stomach/intestinal problems. What am I supposed to do? Not smoke it because the government says "there is no such thing as medical marijuana" NOT! [ Post Comment ] Post Comment