Pubdate: Thu, 02 Oct 2003
Source: Frederick News Post (MD)
Copyright: 2003 Randall Family, LLC.
Contact:  http://www.fredericknewspost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/814
Author: Steven T. Dennis, Staff Writer
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal)

MEDICAL MARIJUANA, CHILD SEAT, BREASTFEEDING LAWS TAKE EFFECT ACROSS 
MARYLAND THIS WEEK

ANNAPOLIS -- Medical marijuana smokers can breathe a little easier. Parents 
have to put their children in booster seats at least until they turn 6. And 
breastfeeding moms no longer have to skulk to a bathroom stall to feed 
their babies.

Those were a few of the nearly 300 new Maryland laws that took effect 
Wednesday.

Under the new medical marijuana law, smoking a joint is still a crime, but 
if a defendant can prove to a judge that they had a medical necessity to 
smoke the weed, the maximum penalty is a $100 fine. Critics of the law say 
it will encourage illegal drug use. But backers say that marijuana can 
relieve nausea and pain, and that it makes no sense to arrest cancer 
patients or those with chronic illnesses who are trying to alleviate their 
suffering.

Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. (R) signed the law and long has backed 
legalization of medical marijuana, setting him apart from the national 
Republican Party and the Bush administration, which lobbied hard for a veto.
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