cannabisnews.com: Help Save Ed





Help Save Ed
Posted by CN Staff on February 16, 2003 at 20:28:01 PT
By Joel Frady 
Source: Technician Online
Over time, it's been one of those small things that got shoved down our throats. It wasn't around all that much, but every now and again it would appear during a court show, lawyer movie or during the evening news.The Statue of Lady Justice, an American symbol designed after the Greek goddess Themis, stands with a sword in one hand and a scale in the other. Her eyes are blindfolded, and frequently there's a banner somewhere in the area that says "Justice is Blind." 
For many people, that's reassuring -- it's easy to believe that anyone, no matter who he or she is, would get a fair, unbiased trial where the truth is found among all the evidence, and the guilty parties are actually punished.A recent court case, however, has put a new spin on things: Is justice blind or is justice blinding?Meet Ed Rosenthal. Author, columnist and self-described "Guru of Ganja," Rosenthal was found guilty on Jan. 31 on three felony charges stemming from his arrest for growing medicinal marijuana plants. An AP report even states that "he was portrayed as a major drug manufacturer."It is now fairly well-known information that Rosenthal was actually growing the plants under California's Proposition 215, which exempts patients who possess and cultivate marijuana for medicinal uses from laws that forbid those activities. He was even growing the plants as an officer for the city of Oakland.This information, however, was not given to the jury, for U.S. District Court Judge Charles Breyer wouldn't allow the defense to argue the Proposition 215 case, because while Rosenthal's actions were legal under California state law, they were illegal under federal law. So jurors were never told about the proposition, the fact that the plants were for medicinal use or the nifty little reality that he was actually working for a major U.S. city.On Feb. 3, some of the jurors began to come forward, expressing regret about their decision in the trial and even stating they felt cheated because they weren't given all the information."I feel like I made the biggest mistake in my life," said Marney Craig, a juror on the case, in a Feb. 5 AP report. "We convicted a man who is not a criminal."This only backed up what Rosenthal had been saying all along. On the day of his conviction, he had stated to the press that "[The jury] didn't have the whole truth. They didn't have nothing but the truth. They had lies and deceptions and half-truths."He's also begging all of us to think about one question very clearly. We can't actually approve of a judicial system that convicts a man without bringing out all the evidence. If you, your sibling or your close friend were on trial, you would expect it to be a fair one. At least one where the defendant is able to speak his case, tell his story and get judged accordingly.Can we really lay back and let an innocent 58-year-old man face 85 years -- the rest of his natural life -- in prison?Can we really stand back while officers of the Drug Enforcement Agency brag about the trial's verdict? DEA spokesman Richard Meyer even stated, "We feel that the people of California have spoken. We're pleased with the verdict. We're happy with what happened today."If you can stand back and allow this, you might want to re-examine your moral compass, because it's something I can't just ignore. This man has done so much good for his community, a community that refers to him as the "Mother Teresa of medical marijuana."As it turns out, taking a stand against the decision is easier than you think. Since Feb. 4, more than 9,700 people have sent faxes to their Congressmen through the Marijuana Policy Project, which offers the service online at: http://www.mpp.org The process, which takes about five minutes, is incredibly simple: Simply type in your mailing address (this is so the appropriate politicians can be selected, and all information is private). Now choose one of the many pre-written letters, at which point it will show up in a text box, and you'll be able to modify it as you see fit.Once you're done, click a button, and the fax is sent.It's that easy, and by the time you read this, it's very likely that over 10,000 faxes will have been sent to public representatives -- not a shabby number at all.But still, imagine the impact that it could have if the number of faxes continue to rise. Imagine if every day more and more people send these faxes and start placing little stickers on bathroom stalls that read "Save Ed." Imagine if waiters and waitresses start wearing little pieces of flair that read "Save Ed," and it starts to adorn the bumper stickers of every car in the nation!Okay, maybe bumper stickers are a bad idea. But whether or not you believe patients with cancer and other illnesses deserve medicinal marijuana to fight the pain and infection, it is time to make it known that we can't be proud of a country that doesn't even give one of its citizens a fair trial. If this is how the people working to benefit humanity are being treated, how are the rest of us going to be treated?My fax has already gone through the lines and landed in the fax machines of Senator Elizabeth Dole, Senator John Edwards and Representative Bob Etheridge. My voice has been heard, even if only in the form of a few pieces of paper.Now it's your turn.Joel promises that he's done being serious for at least two days. But if you're looking to help him "Save Ed," shoot him a line at: daJoel hotmail.comSource: Technician, The (NC State University)Author: Joel Frady Published: Monday, February 17, 2003Copyright: 2003 The TechnicianContact: opinion technicianstaff.comWebsite: http://www.technicianonline.com/Related Articles & Web Sites:Marijuana Policy Projecthttp://www.mpp.org/Ed Rosenthal's Trial Pictures & Articleshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/trialpics.htmRosenthal is Guilty -- for Helping Those in Needhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15474.shtmlHow The Feds Duped Jurors in Marijuana Trial http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15432.shtml
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Comment #2 posted by JSM on February 17, 2003 at 05:41:32 PT
Billos...
As far as I can tell this is the first time you have posted here. To answer your question, the change starts when people feel so strongly about this issue that they are willing to step up and publicly make their postion known. Welcome to Cannabis News and thank you for joining those already here who are trying to do what we can to change these laws.
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Comment #1 posted by billos on February 17, 2003 at 05:23:14 PT:
Save Ed
It truly amazes me how Clara Harris could run her husband over to his death (they say she ran over him at least three times) and get 20 years, which she no doubt will fight tooth and nail and probably get probation. She's a mother you know. While a man named Ed sits and waits to be sentenced to a possible 85 years in prison for growing a plant in accordance to state law. There is something definitely wrong with this picture. How do we wake the sheople up for God's sake?
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