cannabisnews.com: `No Law' Against It





 `No Law' Against It
Posted by CN Staff on August 04, 2004 at 07:51:00 PT
Editorial
Source: Las Vegas Review Journal 
Bill Kosinksi, whose back was injured in a car accident, uses marijuana. It's legal for medical purposes in Nevada, though the federal government -- ignoring the 10th Amendment -- does not approve. Nor is it easy to get the state's registration card, which costs $200, all told. Mr. Kosinski says his took a year. He even had to get fingerprinted. In order to get registered. To legally use a naturally occurring plant with few known toxic effects. For medical purposes.
So onerous is the registration procedure that five of six people who are mailed state applications never return them. So, it occurred to Mr. Kosinski there might be a business opportunity there, helping patients navigate the regulatory hurdles. He applied for a city business license for his proposed Medical Marijuana Consultants of Nevada -- and was promptly turned down, in June. There was a concern that Mr. Kosinski might be planning to grow or distribute marijuana, which would be illegal under federal law, explains Jim DiFiore, manager of the city's Business Services Division. But as it turns out, "He's simply going to assist someone with an ailment who needs to see a doctor who would prescribe medical marijuana," Mr. DiFiore says. "We have no law that denies an opportunity to do that." So, on Monday, the city of Las Vegas finally gave Mr. Kosinski his license. (How the right to conduct a legal business became a privilege requiring a "license" is a good question in and of itself -- but one reform at a time.) For a fee, Mr. Kosinski now proposes to guide people with health problems to one of the 170 Nevada doctors who have recommended marijuana for their patients. He will also advise them about Internet sites where they can learn where to buy marijuana seed and how to grow the plants -- of which registered Nevada patients are allowed to possess seven, only three of which may be mature. Much of the confusion over Mr. Kosinski's application was because this is the first such license to be issued by the city, Mr. DiFiore explains. Las Vegas City Attorney Brad Jerbic even warns that a case now working its way through the federal appellate courts might bar Mr. Kosinski's enterprise, at which point "he won't have a license." But at least the city's licensing agents -- finding no law against what Mr. Kosinski proposes to do -- have finally done the right thing, and granted him his license.Note: Las Vegas grants first marijuana-related business license.Source: Las Vegas Review-Journal (NV)Published: Wednesday, August 04, 2004Copyright: 2004 Las Vegas Review-JournalContact: letters reviewjournal.comWebsite: http://www.reviewjournal.com/Related Articles & Web Site:Medicinal Cannabis Research Linkshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/research.htmPot Adviser Likely To Get Licensehttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread19276.shtmlMed Marijuana: City Gives Business Green Lighthttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread19270.shtml
Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help




Post Comment