Pubdate: Wed, 01 Oct 2003 Source: Baltimore Sun (MD) Copyright: 2003 The Baltimore Sun, a Times Mirror Newspaper. Contact: http://www.sunspot.net/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/37 Author: Stephanie Desmon, Sun Staff Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal) Note: Non-drug policy content snipped MEDICAL MARIJUANA (snip) Another new law that has gotten a lot of attention will significantly reduce penalties for seriously ill Marylanders who are caught smoking marijuana if they can convince a court they have a medical need. They would face a $100 fine and no jail time. After much debate, the House and Senate passed the bill, and Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. signed it into law despite lobbying from the White House to veto it. "The net effect is for people suffering from terminal diseases, if they use marijuana, they have a lot less fear of going to jail," said Del. Dan K. Morhaim, a Democrat from Baltimore County and a co-sponsor of the bill. The very ill have said that using the drug helps alleviate nausea and allows them to keep food down. Morhaim said he is troubled by how the sick will obtain the drug if they decide they need it. "I don't like the fact that people are still going to have to go out on the street to get it," he said. But the legislature could not legalize marijuana, he said, because possessing it violates federal law. (snip) - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin