cannabisnews.com: Authorities Say MMJ Acquittal Won't Stop Arrests





Authorities Say MMJ Acquittal Won't Stop Arrests
Posted by FoM on February 05, 2000 at 09:34:46 PT
By Scott Mobley
Source: Calaveras Enterprise
Local law enforcement authorities say a Calaveras County jury's recent decision to acquit a medical cannabis cultivator won't stop them from going after people they suspect are illegally growing the weed."We certainly don't want to interfere with legitimate use," said Dennis Downum, Calaveras County sheriff. "But there are probably nine frauds for every medical user and we are having a hell of a time weeding them out."
Prosecutors had accused William Roth Harrison, 50, of Vallecito, of possessing and growing cannabis for sale. Authorities seized 64 plants at two outdoor gardens in September, 1998 and arrested Harrison despite his recommendation from a local and Bay Area doctor that he use marijuana to treat his chronic pain, nausea, vertigo and tinnitus. Prosecutors argued that Harrison had enough pot to smoke an ounce a day for a year, which is way too much. The jury's decision to acquit him didn't compel them to change their minds."I think that's a significant amount, more than any human can smoke and still function," said Peter Smith, Calaveras County's district attorney.Downum said a doctor's note would not have kept deputies from arresting Harrison, because he had planted so many plants.Smith, meanwhile, said he respects the jury's decision, which will make his staff look harder at amounts in the future.But the acquittal won't make his office back off prosecuting people possessing more pot than medically necessary. William Logan, Harrison's attorney, argued that his client grew far more than he would smoke in a year to insulate himself against the risks of cultivation, which include theft and predation by animals in addition to arrest.State voters in 1996 passed Prop. 215, which legalized possessing and growing marijuana for folks with a written or oral doctor's recommendation.But the law never spelled out how much cannabis was appropriate for medical marijuana users. That's left patients, doctors, and law enforcement officials in a quandary, both Smith and Downum said.Downum noted that the jury might have decided differently had it some criteria for appropriate medical marijuana use.Tehema County, in the northern Sacramento Valley, recently decided to let medical marijuana patients grow up to six plants, Downum said.Both Downum and Smith will be on a task force to develop medical marijuana guidelines in this county. But both would prefer state guidance on the issue, which Downum expects within the year.San Francisco, Mendocino and Humboldt counties have also developed Prop. 215 guidelines, while Shasta County, under pressure from a lawsuit, is working out a policy.The San Francisco Board of Supervisors last week approved identification cards for medical marijuana patients that would let them get high grade cannabis from dispensaries without fear of arrest.Mendocino County already has such a program.Published: February 4, 2000 Content Copyright (c) 1999, The Calaveras EnterpriseRelated Articles:Jury Acquits Medical Marijuana Grower - 1/02/2000http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread4558.shtml Medical Pot Law Tested in Local Court Case - 1/29/2000http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread4524.shtmlCannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archives:http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml
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