cannabisnews.com: Pro-Marijuana Group Honoring S.F.'s Hallinan 





Pro-Marijuana Group Honoring S.F.'s Hallinan 
Posted by FoM on June 09, 2000 at 10:00:32 PT
By Jonathan Curiel, Chronicle Staff Writer
Source: San Francisco Chronicle 
Medical marijuana advocates have named an award after San Francisco District Attorney Terence Hallinan, saying they will give the honor at least once a year to an elected official who demonstrates ``courage and leadership'' on drug policy issues. At a ceremony tonight in the Venetian Room of the Fairmont Hotel, Hallinan will receive the inaugural award. 
``He appreciates their support,'' Fred Gardner, spokesman for the district attorney's office, said yesterday. ``There's kind of a mutual admiration going on.'' No other U.S. district attorney has campaigned for liberal drug policies in the way Hallinan has. He was the only district attorney to support Proposition 215, the state initiative approved by voters in 1996 that allows ill patients with a doctor's approval to possess and grow marijuana. This year, he supported a Board of Supervisors measure that allows city health officials to issue identification cards to marijuana users who qualify under Proposition 215. `'He's action-oriented,'' said Jeff Jones, executive director of the Oakland Cannabis Buyers' Cooperative, a sponsor of the Terence Hallinan Award. ``He supported Dennis Peron when (his marijuana club) got raided by (former) state Attorney General Dan Lungren. He has seen to it that he has not prosecuted any medical marijuana cases. ``Yet he's been able to fit it in with San Francisco and keep a rein on (pot use),'' Jones said. ``There is not a bunch of craziness happening. There are still arrests. Things are being sorted out.'' In addition to a wooden plaque, recipients of the Terence Hallinan Award get a ``small monetary contribution'' that is expected to be donated to charity. Tonight, Hallinan will receive $2,500 and the adoration of a crowd that may number in the hundreds. Gardner said Hallinan is considering donating his award to the Standing Against Global Exploitation (SAGE) Project, a nonprofit group that counsels victims of abuse and prostitution. The sponsors of the Terence Hallinan Award, which include the San Francisco Patients and Caregivers Health Center, a Mission Street dispenser of medical marijuana, will hand out the award at least once a year -- sometimes more often, depending on political circumstances. Hallinan ``is an icon who should inspire other public officials,'' said Rich Evans, who runs the Patients and Caregivers Health Center. ``We hope this award will highlight the important contributions he has made and encourage others to follow his example.'' Organizers of the ceremony, which will be at 7 p.m., considered holding it at a marijuana club, but settled on the Venetian Room because of its central location, among other factors. It is already a venue steeped in San Francisco lore. In 1945, President Harry S. Truman held a reception there to mark the drafting and signing of the U.N. charter. In 1961, Tony Bennett first sang ``I Left My Heart in San Francisco'' in the Venetian Room. And now, the city's chief prosecutor will be honored there by pot advocates. ``I felt that Terence needed to be shown that what he's doing is a good thing,'' Evans said. By Jonathan Curiel, Chronicle Staff WriterSan Francisco, Calif.Friday, June 9, 2000 ©2000 San Francisco Chronicle  Page A21 Related Articles & Web Sites:Oakland Cannabis Buyers' Cooperativehttp://www.rxcbc.org/index.htmlCalifornia's Compassionate Use Act of 1996 http://www.drugsense.org/CCUA/Hallinan, Fazio Tussle Over Who Supports Marijuana More http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread3920.shtmlIn Land of Liberals, D.A. Race Takes Twists http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread3981.shtmlCannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archives:http://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml 
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