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Dear friends,

Donate today and help us end DEA abuses. 

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Even a directive from the president hasn’t stopped the DEA from bullying the medical marijuana community.  Help us hold the DEA accountable by donating today.

Last month, DEA agents raided the home of a Colorado medical marijuana supplier who was providing sick people with the medicine they need.  The raid came months after President Obama told federal law enforcement to stop arresting people who grow or supply medical marijuana in states where it’s legal.

We’re determined to end the harassment of medical marijuana patients and providers.  By making a donation today, you can help hold the DEA responsible for its abuses. 

The DEA is defying the president’s directive on medical marijuana under the watchful eye of acting director Michele Leonhart, a Bush administration holdover and drug war zealot.  We're mounting a campaign to block her from becoming the permanent head of the DEA.

With your generous support, we can take the power to halt progress out of Michele Leonhart's hands.  Donate today and help us demand an appointee who will approach our nation’s drug issues with reason, science and compassion.

Sincerely,

Bill Piper
Director, Office of National Affairs
Drug Policy Alliance Network

John J. Dilulio Jr. once coauthored a 1996 book entitled Body Count: Moral Poverty...And How to Win America's War Against Crime and Drugs. The other two authors were Bill Bennett and John Walters, both former drug czars and infamously rabid prohibitionists. I haven't read the book, but I'm sure it's a thick serving of ugly drug war propaganda.

And I'm sure it sounds nothing like what Dilulio wrote this month in Democracy Journal:

… legalize marijuana for medically prescribed uses, and seriously consider decriminalizing it altogether. Last year there were more than 800,000 marijuana-related arrests. The impact of these arrests on crime rates was likely close to zero. There is almost no scientific evidence showing that pot is more harmful to its users’ health, more of a "gateway drug," or more crime-causing in its effects than alcohol or other legal narcotic or mind-altering substances. Our post-2000 legal drug culture has untold millions of Americans, from the very young to the very old, consuming drugs in unprecedented and untested combinations and quantities. Prime-time commercial television is now a virtual medicine cabinet ("just ask your doctor if this drug is right for you"). Big pharmaceutical companies function as all-purpose drug pushers. And yet we expend scarce federal, state, and local law enforcement resources waging "war" against pot users. That is insane.

Well, it certainly is and Dilulio deserves credit for his candor, particularly given the likelihood of hugely pissing off his former colleagues (not that they don't deserve it). I hope we hear more from him, both because there's nothing more powerful than former drug warriors speaking out for reform, and because I'm just intensely curious if there were specific events or observations that triggered the evolution of his thinking on these issues.

Moments like this illustrate something powerfully important: any of our opponents could come around at any time. Most won't, and predicting who will is probably impossible, but recognizing that any of these people could potentially end up on our side someday is instructive in terms of how we might choose to interact with them on the rare occasions that big-time drug warriors emerge from their bunkers for public engagement.

It's so easy to just hate the hell out of these people that want to put us in jail, that lie reflexively and professionally, and that preside over monumental injustices with smug callousness. But we have nothing to gain by loathing them and much to lose if our frustration betrays opportunities to build bridges that could one day foster further defection from the ranks of the great drug warrior army.

As the war on drugs continues to cascade out of favor with academics, politicians and the public, those whose careers have been defined by defending it will suffer the greatest disillusionment and may soon crave the embrace of the kind, generous and forgiving people they spent so many years trying to destroy. It would serve our interests well to make it clear that they are always welcome among us.

MEDIA ADVISORY           

MARCH 10, 2010

Medical Marijuana Patients Will Ask Legislators to Support Safe Access at Thursday Press Conference

Proposed legislation would make Massachusetts 15th state to have effective medical marijuana law

mattjallen@mac.com

BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS — Tomorrow, Thursday, at 1:30 p.m. at the Grand Staircase at the State House, a group of medical marijuana patients and advocates will hold a press conference to ask state lawmakers to support a medical marijuana law in Massachusetts.

            The state legislature’s Joint Committee on Pubic Health is currently considering bill that would make Massachusetts the 15th state in the nation to give seriously ill patients safe and legal access to medical marijuana.

            WHAT: Press conference to ask state lawmakers to support proposed medical marijuana bill

            WHEN: Thursday, March 11, at 1:30 p.m.     

            WHERE: Grand Staircase, in the State House, Boston, MA.

####

Some legislators in Vermont aren't thrilled about a bill to create 5 medical marijuana dispensaries in the state:

The bill has drawn opposition from the Department of Public Safety, where officials say they worry that dispensaries would fuel increased illegal drug use.

Well, I certainly understand your concerns, ladies and gentlemen, and I thank you for sharing them. Allow me to clarify one thing though, if I may; this is legal drug use we're talking about here. This is for sick people using marijuana legally with a doctor's recommendation.

You see, Vermont's patients can only obtain their medicine from illegal sources currently, so this is actually about creating a legal option and reducing illegal activity. If anyone is still anticipating problems here, I would refer you to the fact that you live in Vermont. Your neighbor grows marijuana. Vermont's epic pre-existing marijuana supply will not be substantially impacted by 5 little dispensaries that only sell to sick people. If your happy life in Vermont hasn’t already been ruined by hippies, then you have nothing to worry about with this, I assure you.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                                     

MARCH 9, 2010

Group Cries Foul Over U.N. Anti-Drug Agency Meddling with State Laws in the U.S.

International Narcotic Control Board says it is “deeply concerned” that states’ medical marijuana laws send “wrong message to other countries”

CONTACT: Aaron Houston, MPP director of government relations …… 202-905-2009 or ahouston@mpp.org

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Marijuana Policy Project today denounced efforts by the United Nations’ International Narcotic Control Board (INCB) — currently meeting in Vienna, Austria — to meddle in marijuana reform in the United States. In a recent report, the INCB said they were “deeply concerned” that the country’s 14 state medical marijuana laws are sending the “wrong message to other countries.”

         Additionally, the INCB is “concerned over the ongoing discussion in several states on legalizing and taxing the ‘recreational’ use of cannabis, which would be a serious contravention of the 1961 convention.” However, the Single Convention on Narcotics Drugs treaty explicitly grants exception for any country to make laws that agree with its constitutional and legal requirements; therefore, the U.S. is complying with the treaty.

         “The last thing the INCB should be doing is meddling in our states’ affairs,” stated Aaron Houston, MPP director of government relations. “We are a federalist society and our states are granted the right to decide their own policy—not the federal government, and certainly not the United Nations. Who is the U.N. to tell Texas, Mississippi, Ohio or any other state what to do?”

         The INCB has also criticized several Latin American countries (Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina) for decriminalizing possession of some narcotics, including marijuana.

         With more than 124,000 members and supporters nationwide, the Marijuana Policy Project is the largest marijuana policy reform organization in the United States. MPP believes that the best way to minimize the harm associated with marijuana is to regulate marijuana in a manner similar to alcohol. For more information, please visit www.mpp.org.

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In This Issue:

D.C. Council Holds Hearing on Medical Marijuana

Maryland May Be 15th State to Make Medical Cannabis Legal

ASA Argues Against Local Dispensary Bans in Calif.

ASA Files Suit Over Dispensary Rules in LA

Medical Marijuana Week a National Success

UC Researchers Issue Report on State-Funded Studies

ACTION ALERT: Tell the AG to End the Raids!

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Americans for Safe Access
Monthly Activist Newsletter

March 2010

Volume 5, Issue 3

D.C. Holds Hearing on Medical Marijuana

ASA testifies on behalf of patients

Local officials in Washington, D.C. are shaping legislation to make medical marijuana available to patients there, after Congress lifted a ban on implementing a 1998 initiative in the District.

D.C. resident and Executive Director of Americans for Safe Access Steph Sherer was among the patients and advocates who appeared before the council at a hearing this month to explain why they should use care in restricting access to medical marijuana.

"A lot of regulations look good on paper but don't really help patients," Sherer told the members of the council's judiciary and public health committees. She urged the council not to limit patients to receiving recommendations only from their primary care physicians, explaining that chronically ill patients frequently see many specialists, and those that specialize in cannabis therapies are no different.

The D.C. council is wrestling with regulatory amendments for implementing Initiative 59, which was approved directly by District voters. In addition to restrictions on who can write recommendations for medical cannabis, officials are considering limiting what conditions patients could be treated for, who will be permitted to work in dispensaries, and where the cannabis would be cultivated.

Officials have said they are concerned because any legislative action taken by the council must be approved by Congress. Council Chairman Vincent Gray co-introduced the proposed legislation with council members David Catania and Phil Mendelson.

"This is a great first step, and we are confident that after hearing from patients in the District, the Council will make the necessary improvements," said Sherer.

Further Information:
Proposed D.C. legislation to implement I-59
Text of I-59, as passed in 1998.

Back to Top

Maryland May Be 15th Medical Cannabis State

Advocates and patients testify before state lawmakers

Patients and advocates testified before Maryland state legislators this month in support of new legislation to make medical marijuana legal in the state. The hearings of the House Judiciary Committee and Health and Government Operations Committee addressed concerns about the proposed law's restrictions.

"We applaud the Maryland legislature for recognizing the need to protect medical marijuana patients," said Caren Woodson, ASA Government Affairs Director. "But this bill falls short of meeting the fundamental needs of patients."

The proposed measure -- HB712, introduced by Maryland House Delegate Dan Morhaim, M.D. -- would replace the state's current medical marijuana law, the Darrel Putnam Compassionate Use Act, which was adopted in 2003. Existing law provides for patients who use and possess cannabis for medical treatment to receive misdemeanor convictions with maximum fines of $100.

The new legislation would put the state's health department in charge of the medical marijuana program, including the licensing of patients, caregivers, large-scale growers, and distributors. Patients would b e prohibited from cultivating any cannabis themselves and could only legally possess two ounces or less of medicine.

Further information:
Maryland's new proposed medical marijuana law HB712
ASA Legislative Memo re: Maryland proposed law
Darrel Putnam Compassionate Use Act (current law)

As more states begin to consider reforming marijuana laws, legislators are struggling to sort fact from fiction in the marijuana debate. Fortunately, we've already made enough progress that we have plenty of practical experience studying the impact of marijuana reform.

Our friends at NORML have compiled this useful and revealing information in a new report, Real World Ramifications of Cannabis Legalization and Decriminalization. It's an excellent resource that ought to help any reasonable person understand why ending marijuana prohibition will make the world a better place.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                                     

MARCH 4, 2010

Veterans Affairs Continues to Forbid Doctors to Recommend Medical Marijuana to PTSD Patients

VA refuses to recognize marijuana as an effective medicine, proven to relieve PTSD symptoms suffered by the men and women who defend our nation

CONTACT: Kurt A. Gardinier, MPP director of communications …………… 202-215-4205 or 202-905-0738

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Despite widespread evidence showing medical marijuana to be a safe and effective treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs forbids all VA doctors from recommending medical marijuana to veterans, even in the 14 states where medical marijuana is legal.

         The VA policy is based on advice from the Drug Enforcement Administration, which has long-supported keeping marijuana in the Schedule I classification reserved for substances with no accepted medical use, placing it alongside substances like heroin and LSD. A 2008 study by the RAND Corporation showed that 20 percent of soldiers returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan suffer from PTSD. A 2007 study in the Journal of Traumatic Stress found that marijuana can be an effective treatment for severe PTSD symptoms.

         In New Mexico, PTSD is the most common affliction treated among those enrolled in the state’s medical marijuana program, according to the New Mexico Dept. of Health. One such patient is Army Veteran Paul Culkin, who served in Iraq as a staff sergeant with the Army’s bomb squad and now heads the New Mexico Medical Marijuana Patient’s Group.

         “As a country, we are committed to providing the best equipment and weapons to our servicemen and women on the battlefield. Similarly, our soldiers should be offered the best and most effective medical treatments when we return home, but this is simply not the case,” Culkin stated. “Marijuana is a proven and legitimate medicine and the VA needs to start listening to the scientific facts.”

         According to University of Albany clinical psychologist Dr. Mitch Earleywine, “It is an outrage that the men and women who risk their lives keeping us free are now forced to risk their own freedom to obtain a medicine they feel works best to treat their PTSD. Marijuana can be an effective medicine for some key symptoms of PTSD. There is no question that our country’s bravest should have safe access to it.”

         To set up an interview with Paul Culkin or Mitch Earleywine contact Kurt A. Gardinier at 202-215-4205.

         With more than 124,000 members and subscribers nationwide, the Marijuana Policy Project is the largest marijuana policy reform organization in the United States. MPP believes that the best way to minimize the harm associated with marijuana is to regulate marijuana in a manner similar to alcohol. For more information, please visit www.mpp.org.

####

On Thursday, March 4, starting at 1:30pm, the Colorado State Legislature will hear the first reading of a bill which seeks to regulate dispensaries-- and weaken patient rights.  This bill, HB 1284, which was largely authored by law enforcement, threatens to cripple the state medical marijuana law in a number of ways. (Note a version of this bill will be posted on our website shortly.)

Here are a few of the most damaging provisions of the bill:

• Prohibits patients from living near schools.  Patients could not possess medicine within 1000 feet of a school, which means patients could not live near schools.

• Patients could not join together with family members or others to share grow space.

• Would allow cities and towns to ban dispensaries-- forcing sick patients to "get on the bus" to find medicine.

Here's how you can help fight HB 1284

Attend the Thursday Hearing.  Legislators need to hear from patients and professionals about how damaging HB 1284 will be.  This Hearing should begin around 1:30 at the State Capitol in Denver in the Old Supreme Court Chambers (2nd floor).  Please show up, dress nice, and spread the message to "vote no on HB 1284."

Call your state legislator

Every state legislator should hear how bad HB 1284 is.  You can find and contact your state legislators here.  Note you will need to enter your nine digit zip code to find your state rep and senator.  Find your full zip code here.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                                                                 

MARCH 2, 2010

What is Keeping Maryland from Passing a Medical Marijuana Law?

Despite overwhelming public support and virtually no opposition, key officials are still silent about their stance on the issue

CONTACT: Mike Meno, MPP assistant director of communications …………… 202-905-2030

ANNAPOLIS, MARYLAND — Last Friday, Feb. 26, the Maryland House Judiciary and Health and Government Committees held a public hearing on a bill that would allow chronically ill patients to have safe access to medical marijuana with their doctor’s recommendation—an idea supported by 81% of Americans nationwide, according to a recent ABC News/Washington Post poll. Dozens of witnesses—including physicians, patients, and former law enforcement officials—testified in favor of the bill, and no one testified in opposition. Fourteen other states have already passed medical marijuana laws. So why hasn’t Maryland?

         Previous efforts to pass medical marijuana legislation in Maryland all failed to make it out of the House Judiciary Committee, chaired by Del. Joseph F. Vallario , Jr., (D-Dist. 27A, Calvert and Prince George’s Counties). In the past, Del. Vallario has expressed concern over legislation that might clash with federal law. But medical marijuana should no longer trigger such concerns following the October release of an Obama administration memo instructing federal prosecutors not to target medical marijuana patients or caregivers who obey state law.

         Just last week, a poll conducted by Conquest Communications in Del. Vallario’s House District showed support for passing this year’s medical marijuana bill outnumbered opposition nearly 3-1.  

         “Sometimes in an election year you’ll see politicians shy away from controversial issues, but these polls show there’s nothing controversial anymore about medical marijuana – except maybe opposing it,” said Dan Riffle, a legislative analyst with the Marijuana Policy Project. “Now that the federal government has given the green light to states to enact medical marijuana laws, there should be nothing stopping Chariman Vallario and others here in Maryland from listening to the will of their constituents.”

         With more than 124,000 members and supporters nationwide, the Marijuana Policy Project is the largest marijuana policy reform organization in the United States. For more information, please visit http://MarijuanaPolicy.org.

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MEDIA ADVISORY                                                                                                                                               

february 26, 2010

Medical Marijuana Bill Gets Hearing Today in Annapolis

HB 712 Would Allow Seriously Ill Patients to Use Medical Marijuana With Doctor’s Recommendation

CONTACT: Mike Meno, MPP assistant director of communications …………… 202-905-2030

ANNAPOLIS, MARYLAND— Today, the Maryland House Judiciary and Health and Government Operations committees will hold a hearing to receive testimony on HB 712, a bill introduced by Del. Dan Morhaim (D-Baltimore County) that would make Maryland the 15th state in the nation to have a medical marijuana law. The bill would allow pharmacies or other state-regulated outlets to dispense medical marijuana to patients who receive a recommendation from their doctor.

         WHAT: Hearing on HB 712, a medical marijuana bill in Maryland

         WHERE: Maryland Legislative Services Building—across from the statehouse—in the hearing room

         WHEN: Friday, February 26, 1 p.m.

         WHO: House Judiciary and Health and Government Operations committees

         With more than 124,000 members and supporters nationwide, the Marijuana Policy Project is the largest marijuana policy reform organization in the United States. For more information, please visit www.mpp.org.

####

The DEA's recent tough-guy tactics in Colorado aren't winning them any friends in the press, the public, or even in politics. Colorado Congressman Jared Polis sent a scathing letter to Attorney General Holder and President Obama demanding that DEA be required to uphold the administration's policy of respecting medical marijuana laws. Here it is in part:

Despite these formal guidelines, Friday, February 12, 2010, agents from the U.S. Department of Justice's Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) raided the home of medical marijuana caregiver Chris Bartkowicz in Highlands Ranch, Colorado. In a news article in the Denver Post the next day, the lead DEA agent in the raid, Jeffrey Sweetin, claimed "We're still going to continue to investigate and arrest people...Technically, every dispensary in the state is in blatant violation of federal law," he said. "The time is coming when we go into a dispensary, we find out what their profit is, we seize the building and we arrest everybody. They're violating federal law; they're at risk of arrest and imprisonment."

Agent Sweetin's comment that "we arrest everybody" is of great concern to me and to the people of Colorado, who overwhelmingly voted to allow medical marijuana. Coloradans suffering from debilitating medical conditions, many of them disabled, elderly, veterans, or otherwise vulnerable people, have expressed their concern to me that the DEA will come into medical marijuana dispensaries, which are legal under Colorado law, and "arrest everybody" present. Although Agent Sweetin reportedly has backed away from his comments, he has yet to issue a written clarification or resign, thus the widespread panic in Colorado continues.

On May 14, 2009, Mr. Kerlikowske told the Wall Street Journal: "Regardless of how you try to explain to people it's a 'war on drugs' or a 'war on a product,' people see a war as a war on them," he said. "We're not at war with people in this country." The actions and commentary of Mr. Sweetin are inconsistent with the idea of not waging war against the people of the State of Colorado and are a contradiction to your agency's laudable policies. [Westword]

Right on. We're witnessing a conspicuous disruption of the White House's carefully crafted effort to reduce controversy in the war on drugs, and it's clear that the silence must soon be broken in Washington. It's easy to say "we're not at war," but until you order the soldiers under your command to lay down their arms, it won't be possible to sugarcoat any of this.

The New York Senate Health Committee approved a medical marijuana bill, S 4041-B, on a 9-3 vote Tuesday.

Bryan Epis, the first California medical marijuana provider to be prosecuted and convicted for growing marijuana for patients, was sent back to federal prison Monday by a federal judge in Sacrament

In its annual report on countries' compliance with the global drug prohibition regime, released Wednesday, the