Pubdate: Sat, 20 Jul 2002
Source: Press Democrat, The (CA)
Copyright: 2002 The Press Democrat
Contact:  http://www.pressdemo.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/348
Author: Mary Callahan
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?115 (Cannabis - California)

POT RULING TO HAVE LITTLE LOCAL IMPACT

Sonoma County Already Recognizes Rights Of Medical Marijuana Users

A state Supreme Court ruling hailed as a victory for medical marijuana 
patients will have limited impact in Sonoma County, where local authorities 
already recognize the right of such people to use the drug, officials and 
advocates said.

And because it fails to address inconsistencies in how counties handle such 
cases and has no bearing on federal authorities, who don't recognize any 
medical right, it leaves unresolved two of the state law's major obstacles.

Thursday's unanimous ruling protecting patients from prosecution if they 
have a doctor's recommendation to use marijuana will be felt most strongly 
in conservative counties, where authorities still arrest and prosecute 
patients with regularity, officials and advocates said.

Sonoma County no longer prosecutes individuals who appear to have a viable 
medical claim. The turnabout came after acquittals in two high-profile 
cases involving more than 100 plants, District Attorney Mike Mullins said.

Under subsequent countywide guidelines, patients with physician approval 
may have up to 99 plants or 3 pounds of dried marijuana. In neighboring 
Mendocino County, patients may have 25 plants or 2 pounds.

"This ruling backs up the admirable work that this county has already 
done," said Mary Pat Jacobs, a spokeswoman for the Sonoma County Alliance 
for Medical Marijuana. "Our district attorney and local law enforcement, 
and the Sonoma County Peer Review: Congratulations to them for being ahead 
of the curve here."

District Attorney-elect Stephan Passalacqua noted that the diabetic man 
whose case prompted the state high court decision would never have been 
tried here.

But the ruling would streamline any cases that do go to court, averting 
trials by allowing judges to hear about medical need beforehand, Mullins said.

It also eases the burden on defendants, requiring they merely raise 
reasonable doubt that the pot in their possession was not intended for 
legitimate medical use.

Mendocino County District Attorney Norman Vroman said prosecutors also may 
shy away from filing cases they might otherwise have pursued because the 
shifting burden makes it harder to prove someone is growing large 
quantities of pot under bogus medical claims.

"It doesn't give us as much as we asked for," said Alliance spokeswoman 
Jacobs, who was among many advocates hoping for a stronger ruling barring 
authorities from arresting and charging patients in the first place. "But 
now it looks like they are starting to look toward the bar to prosecution."

The ruling arose from a 1997 case in which a blind and seriously ill 
Tuolumne County diabetic named Myron Mower was tried for growing marijuana 
that his physician recommended to control nausea and help maintain his weight.

While Tuolumne County policy would have allowed him three plants, Mower had 
31, the court ruling says.

His attorneys appealed his conviction, claiming he was completely immune to 
arrest and prosecution under the 1996 state initiative giving Californians 
the right to use medicinal marijuana.

The California Supreme Court ruled that while he did not have complete 
immunity, he did have the right to present his medical claim at a pretrial 
hearing and seek a dismissal of charges.

The court also said that while authorities believed Mower was growing more 
marijuana than was required to meet his medical needs, Mower need only 
raise reasonable doubt about the truth of that assertion to go free.

The ruling moves patients beyond the point where they only were guaranteed 
a right to raise a medical defense at trial. So "it is seen as progress," 
said another Alliance spokesman, Doc Knapp.

But it fails to address the larger problems associated with the 
compassionate use law.

There are still no statewide guidelines governing its use. Attorney General 
Bill Lockyer has refused to set limits on how much an individual or 
caregiver may possess or grow for medical use, so there is no consistency 
in how counties handle such cases.

In any case, patients in even the most permissive counties are still 
subject to arrest and prosecution by federal authorities.

Federal prosecutors are mounting cases against two key members of the Aiko 
Compassion Center in Santa Rosa, for instance. The West College Avenue 
dispensary was closed after it was raided by federal authorities in late May.

"You're still taking your chances with the feds," Mullins said.

Jacobs said the Alliance recommends no one grow more than 99 plants because 
of federal rules. Under federal law, anyone growing 100 plants or more can 
be imprisoned for five to 10 years. With 99 plants or fewer, one may only 
get probation, she said.

Overall, said Vroman, the ruling "is just a further step down the line to 
totally legalizing it (marijuana), and I just wish they'd do it and get it 
over with. It would save everybody a lot of trouble."
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