Pubdate: Wed, 08 Jun 2005
Source: Macon Telegraph (GA)
Copyright: 2005 The Macon Telegraph Publishing Company
Contact:  http://www.macontelegraph.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/667
Cited: Gonzales v. Raich ( www.angeljustice.org/ )
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/opinion.htm (Opinion)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/topics/Raich (Raich v. Gonzales)

CONGRESS NEEDS TO DECIDE

A somewhat reluctant U.S. Supreme Court's decision that federal
authorities have the constitutional authority to prohibit
state-approved marijuana use for medical purposes leaves the ball
squarely in Congress' court.

In a 6-3 decision, the justices found earlier this week that federal
agents have the right to arrest persons who use marijuana to ease the
pain of cancer and other ailments, even if the state has passed laws
permitting such use. This applies also in cases where physicians have
prescribed the use of marijuana based on clear medical needs.

The court was torn in its decision involving two seriously ill
California women, Angel Raich of Oakland, who has scoliosis, a spinal
disorder, and a brain tumor, and Diane Monson of Oroville, who has
degenerative spine disease. Both women grow and use marijuana to ease
the symptoms of their diseases, and both say they will continue to do
so because they have no other choice. "If I stop using cannabis
(another name for marijuana) I would die," Ms. Raich was quoted as
saying by the Associated Press.

Justice John Paul Stevens noted that the court was not passing
judgment on the medical benefits of marijuana, but that federal
agencies have the authority to regulate the production and use of
homegrown marijuana under interstate commerce laws.

The use of marijuana for medical purposes has been debated for years,
and 11 states have passed laws permitting the use of pot to treat
illness. This ruling, opposed by Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, whose
dissent was joined by states-rights advocates Chief Justice William
Rehnquist and Justice Clarence Thomas, does not strike down the
states' medical marijuana laws. But it does establish the right of the
federal government to charge users under federal statutes.

Congress could - and should - address this problem by allowing
researchers to establish once and for all whether marijuana is a
useful medical tool in treating serious illnesses. If this is found to
be the case, our lawmakers should change marijuana's harshly
restrictive designation under the Controlled Substances Act,
permitting physicians to prescribe it as the do with other federally
restricted drugs.
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MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin