cannabisnews.com: Oakland's Ganja Guru Sues for Green Oakland's Ganja Guru Sues for Green Posted by CN Staff on March 16, 2004 at 08:21:02 PT By Josh Richman, Staff Writer Source: Oakland Tribune San Francisco -- Perhaps only here could someone go to court to enforce the terms of a marijuana deal gone bad. Ed Rosenthal, the Oakland "Guru of Ganja" who was convicted but avoided prison time on federal marijuana charges last year, was back in court Monday, but this time of his own volition. He was in small claims court in his lawsuit against Bob Martin, a man who has been involved with several of San Francisco's medical marijuana dispensaries. At issue is just how much protection the state's medical marijuana law affords marijuana providers -- marijuana costs money to produce, and if dispensaries must pay providers for plants, does the law ensure those payments will be made in good faith? Rosenthal claims Martin a few years ago wrote him several checks for marijuana "clones" -- plants grown from cuttings of other plants -- that he created and delivered to the Harm Reduction Center, a dispensary on Sixth Street. These checks bounced, and Rosenthal now wants his money. Rosenthal provided the checks Monday to San Francisco Superior Court Commissioner Catherine A.S. Lyons. He also gave her a transcript of testimony Martin gave at Rosenthal's federal trial last year, in which Rosenthal claims Martin said he never intended to pay Rosenthal for the plants. Martin told Lyons he doesn't own the Harm Reduction Center and wasn't present when Rosenthal delivered the plants; Lyons, however, noted aloud that Martin signed the bad checks. Martin said he worked at the dispensary as a volunteer, and that the transaction with Rosenthal was interrupted in February 2002 by a Drug Enforcement Administration raid in which plants were seized from the dispensary and Rosenthal's Oakland growing facility, and in which Rosenthal and others were arrested. Martin made another argument: "If I was forced to pay those checks, your honor, I'd be committing a federal crime ... I'd be paying for marijuana, which is a federal offense." But Martin had no legal precedent to cite to Lyon on that, and Rosenthal noted Martin remains one of San Francisco's largest providers of medical marijuana. Lyons didn't rule Monday, saying she'll probably issue her decision in about a week. The bad blood between Rosenthal and Martin boiled over last spring at the annual conference of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML). The two reportedly got into a public shouting match after Rosenthal branded Martin a "snitch" for having testified against him at trial. Rosenthal was convicted early last year of three marijuana cultivation felonies, but a federal judge last summer sentenced him to only one day of jail time he'd already served. The judge said Rosenthal's conviction served as a warning that city and state laws don't protect marijuana users and providers from federal law's ban on the drug, and future providers won't receive such lenient sentences. Prosecutors appealed that sentence and Rosenthal appealed his conviction, claiming that jurors were unfairly kept in the dark about his permission from Oakland officials to grow marijuana and provide it to patients with doctors' recommendations under the state law. Those appeals are pending.Note: Ed Rosenthal goes up against man he says gave him bad checks for marijuana clones.Source: Oakland Tribune (CA)Author: Josh Richman, Staff WriterPublished: Tuesday, March 16, 2004 Copyright: 2004 MediaNews Group, Inc. Contact: triblet angnewspapers.com Website: http://www.oaklandtribune.com/Related Articles & Web Sites:NORMLhttp://www.norml.org/Ed Rosenthal's Trial Pictures & Newshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/trialpics.htmGroundbreaking Pot Trial Wraps Up http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15335.shtmlPot Advocate Helps Feds http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15276.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #6 posted by BGreen on March 16, 2004 at 20:19:29 PT ekim, You forgot that walters was lying *AGAIN* The nation's drug czar described as foolhardy Thursday the latest Nevada initiative to legalize marijuana. John Walters, in Las Vegas to push for a crackdown on the abuse of prescriptions drugs, said legalizing marijuana is "not an area for legitimate debate."The debate comment was a lie. walters never intended to do anything other than lie his way across amerika.The Reverend Bud Green Drug Czar Critical of Marijuana Initiative [ Post Comment ] Comment #5 posted by ekim on March 16, 2004 at 19:57:50 PT Thank you Mr Lewis and Mayan for Hemp link Will you have a policy that will protect the people from the Zero THC law, that will have a lawyer represent one in such cases. Ann Arbor has a ticket law but allowes the use. Detroit is voting on Med Use in Aug. and the people must be protected. I have read it said 20 percent of the USA population is in a State that has a Med Law. Has anyone seen the Busted Video Where is the Movie for the Plant and how one acts under such repression and intolerant views. We need free thinking and open debate -- J.Pee said he would pow wow. He has not yet set a date. What Las Vegas owner will break the sound barrier of silence and host this great Debate of J.Pee and Jack Cole of LEAP. let the people hear what a Law Enforcement Officer has to say about this 80 year old war and how to achive Peace. http://www.leap.cc [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by FoM on March 16, 2004 at 15:55:56 PT Off Topic Article: MPP and Other Organizations I wasn't sure what this article was about except money. I thought a link would be ok. Here's the article.***527 Update: Peter Lewis and the Marijuana Policy Project Washington - March 16 - Peter Lewis is already known as one of the most generous donors to Democratic-leaning 527 groups that aim to defeat President Bush in November. But the famously liberal chairman of auto insurer Progressive Corp. is generously funding at least one other cause: the legalization of marijuana.Lewis gave $340,000 to a 527 account of the Marijuana Policy Project, according to records filed with the Internal Revenue Service and made available yesterday. According to its Web site, the Washington, D.C.-based MPP "focuses on removing criminal penalties for marijuana use" and emphasizes legalization of marijuana for medical purposes. Snip:Complete Article: http://www.commondreams.org/news2004/0316-05.htm [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by psthbng on March 16, 2004 at 09:45:10 PT: Bad Checks Mr. Rosenthal should be paid. For Mr. Martin to use that weak defence is stupid. Mr. Martin knew he was breaking the law from the get go. Pot 4 Peace [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by goneposthole on March 16, 2004 at 09:01:39 PT forgive the debt Mr. Rosenthal can do without the money. They should shake hands and forgive one another. Forgive and forget. Grudges are just misdirected anger. Hard to be humble these days. "I'm as free as the breeze and I'll do as I pleasejust a bummin' around."- Pete GravesThe war in Iraq is bad news, too. [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by Cannabis Enthusiast on March 16, 2004 at 08:36:01 PT Whitney Houston once again smoking Crack... See article below... Whitney Houston back in rehab [ Post Comment ] Post Comment