cannabisnews.com: Justice Department Asks For Rehearing of MMJ





Justice Department Asks For Rehearing of MMJ
Posted by FoM on October 28, 1999 at 08:48:40 PT
By Jordan Lite, Associated Press Writer 
Source: Sacramento Bee
The U.S. Justice Department has asked a federal appeals court to reconsider a ruling that could allow sick people to defend their use of pot on the basis of medical necessity.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals last month told a federal judge to rethink his order of last year that closed down some Northern California medical marijuana clubs, and consider an exemption for patients who face imminent harm without the drug and have no effective legal alternative.California Attorney General Bill Lockyer, who has vowed to uphold a successful state initiative allowing patients to use pot, had asked the federal Justice Department not to appeal the ruling."Obviously, Attorney General Lockyer respects the decision of Janet Reno in this matter, but he did believe that the 9th Circuit's ruling was well thought out and reasonable in terms of the narrow application of the medical exception to ensure access to this medicine," said Lockyer's spokesman, Nathan Barankin.William Panzer, an attorney for a pot club in Marin County, said the federal government is working hard to undermine the court's doctrine."They're real scared of this decision. They want to slow it down," he said Wednesday. "It really calls into question a lot of the government's policies."Federal prosecutors have repeatedly argued that Congress has declared pot to be among the most dangerous controlled substances and has no medical purpose, thus invalidating the medical necessity argument the court said should be considered."A court may not, under the rubric of 'medical necessity' set aside that judgment, re-balance the factors already weighed by Congress, and conclude that the public interest exempts a class of persons from federal law," they wrote in the petition filed Wednesday."The doctrine of 'necessity' does not permit a court to prospectively license a class of persons to violate federal law and undermine the comprehensive statutory scheme for controlling illegal drugs," prosecutors said.In its ruling, a three-judge panel from the 9th Circuit said the government has offered nothing to contradict "evidence that cannabis is the only effective treatment for a large group of seriously ill individuals." Prosecutors now want an 11-judge panel to reconsider that ruling.If it stands, it would affect California and at least four other states in the 9th Circuit -- Arizona, Oregon, Washington and Alaska, all of which have laws protecting medical marijuana users against state prosecution.After Californians approved a medical marijuana initiative in 1996, the U.S. Justice Department sued six Northern California pot clubs, saying the absolute federal ban on marijuana distribution overrode Proposition 215.Three of the clubs closed last year after U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer issued his injunction against marijuana distribution. Two, in Fairfax and Ukiah, have remained open because of a lack of evidence that they were violating the injunction.The sixth, in Oakland, has reopened for hemp distribution and patient support.In its ruling last month, the appeals court did not order Breyer to allow the sickest patients to use pot, but said it would be justified by evidence he has heard from seriously ill patients and their doctors.If Breyer reverses his ruling, some of the clubs could reopen, at least for the most seriously ill. They could, however, still face prosecution under state drug-distribution laws.The initiative allows patients with serious illnesses to obtain and use marijuana at their doctors' recommendation without being prosecuted under state law. The drug is used to relieve pain and other effects of AIDS, cancer and certain other diseases and their treatments. Pubdate: October 28, 1999Copyright © The Sacramento Bee Related Article:Justice Department Ask for Rehearing of MMJ Ruling-10/27/99http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread3452.shtmlBoston Globe Tells Peter McWilliams Story - 10/26/99http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread3427.shtml
END SNIP -->
Snipped
Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help




Comment #1 posted by FoM on October 28, 1999 at 17:59:44 PT:
Related Articles
 Justice Department Asks for Rehearing on Medical MarijuanaOctober 28, 1999 11:38 AM EDT (1538 GMT) CNN Interactivehttp://cnn.com/Click the links to read more!http://cnn.com/HEALTH/9910/28/medical.marijuana.ap/index.htmlMedical marijuana grower slapped with stiff sentencehttp://cnn.com/US/9908/07/med.marijuana.prisoner/Federal report reignites medical marijuana debatehttp://cnn.com/HEALTH/9903/17/medical.marijuana/Study casts doubt on marijuana's effectiveness as glaucoma treatmenthttp://cnn.com/HEALTH/9811/13/marijuana.glaucoma/index.htmlMedical marijuana popular at pollshttp://cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/stories/1998/11/03/election/ballots/medical.marijuana/Experts urge new study of medical uses of marijuanahttp://cnn.com/HEALTH/9702/20/nfm/index.htmlWeed Warshttp://cnn.com/HEALTH/9702/weed.wars/index.htmlU.S. Department of Justicehttp://www.usdoj.gov/Californians for Compassionate Usehttp://www.marijuana.org/
My Medical Marijuana Page
[ Post Comment ]

Post Comment


Name: Optional Password: 
E-Mail: 
Subject: 
Comment: [Please refrain from using profanity in your message]
Link URL: 
Link Title: