cannabisnews.com: Medical Marijuana 





Medical Marijuana 
Posted by FoM on July 18, 2000 at 09:21:16 PT
Editorial
Source: Orange County Register
The news that U.S. District Judge Charles R. Breyer has modified a previous injunction against northern California cannabis clubs tops a weekend of good news on the medical marijuana front. The federal government's previously unyielding wall of marijuana prohibition is beginning to crumble. It's about time. Judge Breyer's ruling almost certainly clears the way for the Oakland Cannabis Buyers Cooperative to begin dispensing marijuana to certain patients. 
In addition to Judge Breyer's decision, UC San Francisco medical school researcher Donald Abrams reported promising results at last week's international AIDS conference in Durban, South Africa, on his pioneering studies on the use of marijuana by AIDS patients. Many people had expressed concern that marijuana would damage the immune systems of AIDS patients. Dr. Abrams' research showed no damage to the immune systems of patients in his study, but noted improved appetites and ability to hold down food and medicine, which is the reason many AIDS patients believe marijuana helps them. In San Francisco, meanwhile, District Attorney Terence Hallinan kicked off a new program of issuing city identification cards for medical marijuana users that are intended to protect patients from arrest or prosecution for possession, cultivation or use of marijuana by local law enforcement agencies. As Jeff Jones, executive director of the Oakland cooperative, told us, "You can go to the same window where you apply for a copy of your birth certificate and get a cannabis card. From what patients tell us, the program, begun last week, is working smoothly." The San Francisco ID card program doesn't change federal law, but Judge Breyer's decision affects the way federal law is applied in limited but significant ways. Judge Breyer issued an injunction against the Oakland Cannabis Buyers Cooperative and five other northern California medical cannabis distribution centers in May 1998, forbidding them to distribute cannabis to patients who qualify under Section 11362.5 of the California Health and Safety Code, established by voters when they passed Proposition 215 in 1996. The Oakland cooperative appealed Judge Breyer's injunction and last September the federal 9th Circuit Court of Appeal ordered him to reconsider the case after allowing the club to offer a "medical necessity" defense that would create exceptions to federal laws against marijuana use. On appeal from the government, the 9th Circuit declined to reconsider the case. On Monday Judge Breyer modified his injunction "as a result of the government's failure to offer any new evidence and in light of the 9th Circuit court's opinion." Specifically, Judge Breyer ruled that under federal laws the Oakland cooperative can distribute marijuana to patients who meet certain criteria. They must: * Suffer from a serious medical condition. * Face "imminent harm" if they do not have access to marijuana. * Need marijuana for treatment of a medical condition or to alleviate symptoms associated with the condition, and * Have no reasonable alternative to cannabis because they have tried other available legal treatments and those treatments have either not worked or have produced intolerable side effects. Those conditions are stricter than those imposed by under which patients may possess, use and cultivate and, in light of appellate court decisions, transport marijuana under California law as modified by Proposition 215. However, as Robert Raich, attorney for the Oakland cooperative, reminded us, Judge Breyer's decision specifically authorizes distribution, whereas Proposition 215 did not although distribution could be inferred. The ruling also doesn't require a physician's certification because, as Mr. Raich put it, "Under the law if it's a necessity that settles it; no authority figure is needed." It is also worth noting that the federal government has not challenged California's medical marijuana law in court, so under the California constitution California officials are obliged to enforce it as written. and unless a federal court so rules, they cannot claim that it is undorceable due to conflict with federal law. The next step, as Jeff Jones reminded us, is for the federal government to recognize medical reality and remove marijuana from Schedule I under the Controlled Substances Act. Schedule I is reserved for drugs that have no recognized medical use and cannot be used safely under a doctor's supervision. Federal courts and recent research have now recognized that there are accepted and safe medical uses for marijuana. The Drug Enforcement Administration should act immediately on a petition currently pending to reschedule marijuana and cease its cruel and unjustified war on sick people. Please send comments to: ocregister link.freedom.com Published: July 18, 2000Copyright 1999 The Orange County RegisterRelated Articles & Web Site:Oakland Cannabis Buyer's Cooperativehttp://www.rxcbc.org/CCUA Chronology of Implementation http://drugsense.org/CCUA/chrono.htmlRuling in California Favor the Medicinal Use of MJhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread6436.shtmlCard-Carrying Medical Pot Users Like Protectionhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread6406.shtmlMed. Pot Ruling May Have Far-Reaching Implicationshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread6402.shtml Study Finds Pot Safe for AIDS Patientshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread6390.shtmlCannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archives:http://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml
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Comment #1 posted by FoM on July 18, 2000 at 12:13:59 PT
Oldie but a Goodie!
Hi Everyone! This article is from November but I thought some of you might like to check it out!Debate Rages Over Whether Some Patients Should be Able to Buy, Use Pot http://www.abcnews.go.com/sections/us/TakingSides/takingsides3.html
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