cannabisnews.com: Cannabis Therapy Man Escapes Jail! 





Cannabis Therapy Man Escapes Jail! 
Posted by FoM on July 09, 1999 at 14:45:41 PT
 Cannabis is being grown for medical trials 
Source: BBC
An elderly man who drank "cannabis tea" to relieve the pain of rheumatism has been spared a prison sentence by an Old Bailey judge. 
Albert James, 65, from South London, escaped jail despite being found with 300 grammes of cannabis by police. The case is likely to add weight to calls for the legalisation of cannabis for medicinal purposes. Mr James, whose medical condition means he finds it difficult and painful to walk, told the BBC following the case: "I think they should be looking for people with cocaine and heroin. "I may have been breaking the law, but I was using it in my own home for my own purposes." Albert James escaped jail But a BMA spokesman said that legalising the consumption of the raw drug would mean patients also suffering its impurities. Dr Bill O'Neill said only 60 out of the estimated 400 ingredients of cannabis produced the desired effect. He said: "Crude cannabis has got too many constituents - the risks of harm outweight the benefits. "Cannabis contains fungi, pesticide residues and very high levels of tar. Cannabinoids already available"We need to see purer forms of the drug available before it can be available on prescription." Dr Bill O'Neill talks about the safety of cannabis Two drugs using ingredients derived from cannabis are already available on prescription for nausea and other side effects of cancer chemotherapy, but Dr O'Neill said that they were rarely used because other drugs proved more effective. Trials are about to start using cannabis grown at a secret location in the UK to test whether it is medically effective for a range of conditions. A motion calling for cannabis to be legalised for medical purposes was narrowly defeated at the BMA's Annual Conference in Belfast this week.Friday, July 9, 1999 Published at 19:04 GMT 20:04 UK 
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