cannabisnews.com: Medical Marijuana Issue May Make Nov. Ballot





Medical Marijuana Issue May Make Nov. Ballot
Posted by CN Staff on May 05, 2004 at 08:26:31 PT
By Tracy Davis, News Staff Reporter
Source: Ann Arbor News 
Organizers say they have gathered enough signatures to put a medical marijuana question before Ann Arbor voters on the November ballot. Scio Township Trustee Charles Ream, a 16-year veteran of the township board, with about a dozen volunteers, spearheaded the effort to gather about 6,900 signatures from city voters. As an amendment to the city charter, 4,175 signatures, or 5 percent of all registered voters, are required, according to acting city clerk Ron Olson. 
The signatures must be reviewed and verified by the city clerk's office, and the city attorney's office must ensure the petition language meets legal requirements before it can be officially placed on the ballot. But Ream, chairman of the Washtenaw Coalition for Compassionate Care, and other advocates say it's high time to put a vote of decriminalizing medical marijuana use before residents. "It's absolutely immoral to keep this medicine away from people who need it," said Ream, who said he's used cannabis himself to alleviate severe stomach pains he once suffered. The petition asks voters to amend the city charter to not prosecute users of marijuana for medicinal purposes. Coalition supporters began gathering signatures in spring of 2003. The coalition, which also goes by Medical Marijuana in Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti and Saline, is loosely affiliated with the Detroit Coalition for Compassionate Care, which has had more than 7,000 signatures validated for a referendum legalizing medical marijuana use placed on the August ballot. A previous effort in Detroit failed when the city's legal department cited technicalities in the language.  Snipped:Complete Article: http://www.freedomtoexhale.com/issue.htmSource: Ann Arbor News (MI)Author: Tracy Davis, News Staff ReporterPublished: Wednesday, May 5, 2004Copyright: 2004 The Ann Arbor NewsContact: letters annarbornews.comWebsite: http://www.mlive.com/aanews/index.ssfRelated Articles & Web Site:Detroit Coalition for Compassionate Carehttp://www.mmdetroit.org/Medicinal Pot Headed To '04 Detroit Ballot http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread17843.shtmlMedical Marijuana Could be Relief for Pain http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread11700.shtmlCannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml
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