Pubdate: Thu, 09 Jun 2005 Source: Great Falls Tribune (MT) Copyright: 2005 Great Falls Tribune Contact: http://www.greatfallstribune.com/customerservice/contactus.html Website: http://www.greatfallstribune.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2502 Cited: Gonzales v. Raich ( www.angeljustice.org/ ) Action: http://actioncenter.drugpolicy.org/action/index.asp?step=2&item=25197&ms=hp Action: http://hinchey.mpp.org/ Action: http://capwiz.com/norml2/mail/oneclick_compose/?alertid=7309441 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 MUST STEP INTO COURT-CREATED BREACH It's an almost ridiculous notion: federal agents swooping in to arrest deathly ill patients for using marijuana as a pain reliever. Still, it's possible. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled this week that patients in 11 states -- including Montana -- who receive legal prescriptions for marijuana from their physicians are subject to prosecution for violating federal drug laws. If the Supreme Court won't protect states' rights on this issue, Congress must. Hooray to Sen. Conrad Burns for saying that he'd side with his constituency if the vote goes before Congress. Last fall 62 percent of Montanans voted to allow use of marijuana for medical purposes. More than 100 people are now on the state registry. "The voters in Montana and these other states have clearly spoken their intent, and we should honor that," Burns said in a written statement. Sen. Max Baucus and Rep. Denny Rehberg haven't yet committed to that stance. We urge them to do so. Most Montanans differentiate between the illegal use of marijuana to get "high" versus using the drug under a doctor's supervision. The drug's benefits are well documented for those suffering from cancer, AIDS and other conditions that can result in severe pain, nausea or seizures. Some justices acknowledged as much, but ruled nonetheless that federal law overrides state law in restricting drugs. Fortunately, not all prosecutors are eager to arrest dying cancer patients. Montana Attorney General Mike McGrath says he'd probably support changing federal law to exempt medical marijuana use from federal prosecution. U.S. Attorney Bill Mercer isn't saying he won't prosecute anyone in Montana, but he made clear it's not a priority for him. Right now his office focuses more on drug traffickers than drug users. "We've got a limited amount of resources, and we simply cannot charge every single violation of federal narcotics law," he said. Still, the threat of arrest remains. Congress must remove it. If voters in some states don't want to legalize marijuana for medical use, fine. But federal law needs to accommodate those who do. Dying patients don't need jail time. They need a law that reflects common sense and compassion. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake