cannabisnews.com: Medical Marijuana Policy Change Urged 





Medical Marijuana Policy Change Urged 
Posted by CN Staff on February 19, 2003 at 07:27:49 PT
By John Welsh
Source: Press-Enterprise 
Riverside - Medical marijuana activists protested Tuesday outside a Riverside office of the Drug Enforcement Administration because they said the federal agency ignores state law. The protesters said the federal officers arresting those who claim they're using marijuana for medicinal purposes are ignoring the 1996 initiative approved by California voters. The measure, Prop. 215, allows those with a doctor's prescription to use marijuana. 
"The DEA and the Bush administration have got to realize the states are responsible for the health of their citizens and the federal government needs to back off," said organizer Lanny Swerdlow. "If the states decide medical marijuana is OK, then leave the states alone." Jose Martinez, a spokesman for the DEA, said marijuana remains a controlled substance, and until the medical community changes its view, federal officers still have to follow the law in making drug arrests. Holding posters with slogans such as "Doctors yes, DEA no" and "Legal marijuana now," the dozen protesters walked along a sidewalk on Olivewood Avenue outside the DEA office near Riverside Community College. Some motorists honked in support and raised their thumbs, but others yelled out insults. The group used the case against Ed Rosenthal to illustrate its point. A trial against Rosenthal started last month in U.S. District Court in San Francisco on charges of marijuana cultivation and conspiracy. The charges stem from a business he ran growing marijuana to be sold for medicinal uses under the auspices of Oakland's medical marijuana ordinance, one of many such municipal statutes in California. If convicted on all three counts, Rosenthal, 58, could face at least 10 years in prison; the conspiracy charge carries a possible life sentence. The DEA said marijuana remains an illegal, addictive substance. "The medical community has not changed its opinion," Martinez said. "It remains a Schedule 1 controlled substance. And we have to, by law, enforce the laws of this country." Schedule 1 substances include heroin and marijuana, drugs considered to have no medical value that are also highly addictive, Martinez said. "Inhaling a drug, i.e., opium, or smoking marijuana doesn't allow for the methods to be controlled in terms of amount or purity," Martinez said. "It's an issue of science and its need by the legitimate medical community." Protests: Marchers outside a DEA office in Riverside call on the agency to honor state law. Source: Press-Enterprise (CA)Author: John WelshPublished: February 19, 2003Copyright: 2003 The Press-Enterprise CompanyContact: letters pe.comWebsite: http://www.pe.com/Related Articles & Web Sites:Americans For Safe Accesshttp://www.safeaccessnow.orgMedical Marijuana Awareness Weekhttp://freedomtoexhale.com/aware.htmEd Rosenthal's Trial Pictures & Articleshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/trialpics.htmPot Activists Want DEA Out of Oakland Buildinghttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15503.shtmlWhen a Jury Should Just Say No http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15502.shtml
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