cannabisnews.com: DEA Should Give Back Patient's Pot





DEA Should Give Back Patient's Pot
Posted by CN Staff on January 04, 2004 at 09:02:53 PT
Editorial
Source: Rocky Mountain News 
Oh, it's good to be the king. You float high above the law and plunder your subjects with impunity.Or so it seems in Routt County, where the local cops bring along a federal drug agent on their raids in hopes that his presence will immunize them from the sticky strictures of the Colorado Constitution. It's time someone told them they answer to state law, not the whims of a federal agent who happens to be hanging around.
Last October a drug "task force" of nine, count 'em nine, agents, acting on a tip and armed with a warrant, raided Don Nord's home in Hayden.A major drug bust it was not. They came away with three marijuana plants, a couple of ounces of pot, some special lights and other growing equipment. They didn't arrest him; possession of that amount is a misdemeanor and they left behind a ticket.They were not dissuaded in the least when Nord, who has suffered from cancer and diabetes, showed them a certificate saying he's registered in the state's medical marijuana program, which was established by a vote of the people in November 2000.The ticket commanded him to show up in Routt County court Nov. 4. But the government somehow lost its copy of the ticket and Judge James Garrecht dismissed the charges. The district attorney's office could have chosen to refile, but declined to do so.Kristopher Hammond, Nord's lawyer, then asked the county to return the marijuana and the paraphernalia. After all, the medical marijuana amendment specifically says that goods seized "shall not be harmed, neglected, injured or destroyed" while in the possession of law enforcement and must be returned immediately after acquittal, dismissal of charges - or a decision not to prosecute.The judge gave law enforcement 21 days to return the marijuana and equipment. You might call it a writ of habeas cannabis. Some of the equipment was returned but the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency - one of whose agents had been in on the raid - said the pot had been shipped to its lab in San Francisco and would not be returned."Federal law supersedes state law and the federal government does not recognize the medicinal use of marijuana," said DEA spokesman Bill Grant with that effortless superiority the feds are so good at.But Hammond complained that in fact there was nothing federal about the case. The warrant had been issued by a state judge. "The feds can't just steal the marijuana and therefore make it federal property," he said.But they try, and they convince local law enforcement officials that even they don't have to obey Colorado law.As Hammond puts it, "It's no secret that the federal government claims to be for states rights - until the states do things they don't like, such as enacting a medical marijuana statute."He's asking the judge to cite the DEA with contempt. We hope the judge does just that. If he doesn't, or if the DEA brushes off the citation as if it were a gnat, perhaps Hammond should try again in federal court.Even if it isn't found in contempt, the DEA is clearly guilty of violating the old mob dictum: "Never steal anything small."Source: Denver Rocky Mountain News (CO)Published: January 4, 2004Copyright: 2004 Denver Publishing Co.Contact: letters denver-rmn.com Website: http://www.rockymountainnews.com/Related Articles:Marijuana Fight Continues http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread18070.shtmlFederal Authorities Refuse To Return Marijuanahttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread18061.shtmlNational Issue Hits Home http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread18052.shtml
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Comment #8 posted by FoM on January 08, 2004 at 08:50:16 PT
News Brief from The Associated Press
Contempt Citations Issued in Medical Marijuana FightPublished: January 8, 2003STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) - A judge has issued contempt citations to nine police officers involved in a drug raid that has led to a clash in state and federal laws over the use of marijuana by the sick.The citations, issued Wednesday, accuse the officers of failing to return 2 ounces of marijuana seized from Don Nord, 57, last October.Colorado is one of nine states that allow the infirm to grow or smoke marijuana with a doctor's recommendation. Nord, who has battled cancer, diabetes and other ailments, has a certificate from the state allowing him to use the drug under a voter-approved 2000 constitutional amendment.''My client just wants them to give him back his medicine,'' attorney Kristopher Hammond said. ''We're not going to run away.''Last month, some of Nord's pot-growing equipment was returned but he is still waiting for the marijuana and his pipes.Officials with the Drug Enforcement Agency have said they have no intention of returning the marijuana, which is illegal for any use under federal law.The officers, who served on a federal task force that conducted the raid, must appear before Routt County Judge James Garrecht on Feb. 2 to explain why they should not be punished for contempt.Copyright: 2004 Associated Press
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Comment #7 posted by freddybigbee on January 07, 2004 at 07:23:33 PT:
Max Flowers - I have a dream
That is one of the most powerful, concise statements of the case that I have heard.Did that strike anyone else the same way? I think it could be a very effective slogan, although it would need to be streamlined to fit on a tee shirt or bumper sticker.
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Comment #6 posted by jose melendez on January 04, 2004 at 23:31:29 PT
telling POTUS photo
http://i.timeinc.net/time/covers/1101040112/bushranch/images/05.jpgLook at the above picture and think: What's the most powerful weapon shown?Is it the telephone, the teleconferencing system, or the remote control? Nope. It's the pen.- another insightful, practically off topic post by Jose Melendez to inspire CNEWS'ers and others.
forced into compliance?
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Comment #5 posted by jose melendez on January 04, 2004 at 23:01:13 PT
if this is a war . . .
Are there not rules about how prisoners of war are to be treated, with special rules about how the press is to cover them? 
why are drug warriors exempt?
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Comment #4 posted by escapegoat on January 04, 2004 at 15:03:55 PT
Art Bell's guest portrays cannabis arrest as wacky
Last night on Coast to Coast AM, Art Bell's guest Leland Gregory played a few "wacky" 911 calls and other law enforcement-related audio clips.One of these clips was from a police cruiser microphone recording the reaction of a man arrested after a traffic stop for possessing a large amount of cannabis. The clip was referred to on the show as "The Screaming Pothead" and the general tone was derogatory. Indeed, while some segments of American society may find this "funny" or "wacky," I found it in extreme poor taste, and very disturbing. Also, there was no indication one way or the other to indicate if this person was transporting medicine to a sick person.I would be interested to know if the man in question has Leland Gregory's permission to have his screams of terror being marketed and profited from -- and ridiculed on open-line late-night radio.I would encourage everyone who felt as disturbed as I am to let Art know that this kind of "entertainment" is not universally appreciated. Art has spoken on the ridiculousness of cannabis prohibition in the past, and this would be a great time to remind him and ask him if his stance has changed. Try to call in to tonight's program and let him know of your concern. The show runs from 10pm
to 2am Pacific (1am to 5am Eastern).Western US: 1-800-618-8255 (toll free)
Eastern US: 1-800-825-5033 (toll free)
First time caller: 1-775-727-1222
Wild Card line: 1-775-727-1295 (anyone can call)Art Bell:
artbell mindspring.comLeland Gregory:
leland realwacky.comCoast to Coast website: http://www.coasttocoastam.com/Real Wacky website: http://www.realwacky.com/
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Comment #3 posted by global_warming on January 04, 2004 at 12:29:46 PT
Democratic Presidential Candidates Debate Tonight 
Hi AllDemocratic Presidential Candidates Debate on C-SPANhttp://www.c-span.org/homepage.asp9:00 PM Eastern Time
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Comment #2 posted by Max Flowers on January 04, 2004 at 11:53:54 PT
I have a dream...
...that someday the people of this nation won't have to fear that agents of the federal government will come for them to take away their medicine, their homes, break up families, steal their possessions, smash their belongings, point guns at them, and harass them for doing nothing more than minding their own business, an activity which used to be Constitutionally protected.
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Comment #1 posted by kaptinemo on January 04, 2004 at 10:11:41 PT:
"La Cosa Nostra and the DEA
...seperated at birth?"Stop and think: The Mob threatens to destroy the lives of largely helpless, inoffensive people. The Mob steals from you. They stick a gun in your face and demand money. And the DEA? They threaten to destroy the lives of (mainly, with the exception of the big shots the stupid laws breed like bacteria) helpless, inoffensive people if you're found with anything 'contraband', but most of all, cannabis. They steal from you...oh so genteely with taxes, or directly and violently with forfeiture. Usually the latter initially occurs at gunpoint.Private 'wise guys' or public 'wise guys'; what's the difference? In the end, they are both working for themselves, ultimately. No benefit accrues to society for the existence of EITHER group...yet they can't live without each other, like conjoined Siamese Twins. Very, very ugly and dangerous ones...
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