Pubdate: Sat, 23 Nov 2013 Source: Albuquerque Journal (NM) Copyright: 2013 Albuquerque Journal Contact: http://www.abqjournal.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/10 Author: Patrick Lohmann Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/spirit.htm (Spiritual or Sacramental) RASTAFARIAN ARGUES FOR POT USE Man Busted With Marijuana Says It Is for Religious Purposes Richard L. Chavez, aka "Rasta Ritchi," smokes marijuana as a religious sacrament, and he smokes a lot of it. So when Bernalillo County sheriff's deputies arrived at his home at 4 a.m. two months ago, they discovered upwards of 75 plants - some of which stood more than 12 feet tall in Chavez's South Valley front yard - and more than 8 ounces of pot. They arrested him, and now he's facing felony charges of possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, despite what Chavez claims is his religious right to smoke marijuana as a practice of his faith. "This is the murder they caused," Chavez said Thursday as he pointed to the loose dirt and four-inch-deep holes where his marijuana crop once stood. "... I use herb to enlighten my mind, and they're trying to treat me as a criminal." Chavez's attorney, John McCall, said New Mexico does not have any law currently on the books that would protect Chavez from criminal charges for using marijuana, even if he were using it religiously. However, McCall said recent state case law could make New Mexico uniquely poised to relax drug laws for those using controlled substances in practicing their faith. Chavez, 41, was also arrested in 1997 in Albuquerque on marijuana possession charges after he'd been a Rastafarian for almost two decades. Those charges were dismissed by a District Court judge who said the charges should be dropped because jurors were not instructed about Chavez's "religious right to use marijuana." The Court of Appeals ultimately overturned that ruling and referred the case back to District Court, and the charges were reduced to a misdemeanor disorderly conduct charge, McCall said. Even though the appeals court rejected the lower court's ruling, the subsequent opinion included testimony from a Caribbean expert who testified that Rastafarianism is a legitimate religion, McCall said, in addition to a then-recent court opinion from Guam that recognized a person's right to smoke marijuana as a sacrament. McCall said New Mexico has a history of fighting for religious use of illegal drugs, and that has left courts here "primed for a decision like this". In 2006, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of Jeffrey Bronfman, a Santa Fe resident who adhered to an obscure Brazilian religion that sanctified the use of ayahuasca, a potentially psychoactive concoction. Also, New Mexico courts have allowed Native Americans and later non-Indians to use peyote, a hallucinogen, for religious purposes. In 1991, New Mexico's United States District Court Judge Juan Burciaga wrote an opinion allowing non-Indian use of the drug and issued an influential opinion that said prohibiting drug use as part of religious exercise is a violation of Constitutional rights. A spokeswoman with the District Attorney's Office said Chavez's case is under review as prosecutors await more information from law enforcement. She said they so far haven't received any information about Chavez's religious background. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom