Pubdate: Sat, 30 May 2015
Source: Trentonian, The (NJ)
Copyright: 2015 The Trentonian
Contact:  http://www.trentonian.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1006
Author: Ed Forchion, NJWeedman.com For The Trentonian

NOW WE WAIT FOR COURT'S DECISION

State vs Forchion.

Memorial day - the difference between Memorial Day and Veterans Day 
is on Memorial Day it's a remembrance of those who died in battle. 
Veterans Day is for those who served. Memorial day is not supposed to 
be a happy holiday.

Flags on Memorial Day should be half-staff (until noon*). On this 
Memorial Day I noticed a few that were forgotten up all day or not 
lowered in the AM.  Oops

I hate being told to shut up or not being allowed to speak for 
myself. I had a stunner this week, I had assumed since I represented 
myself at trial that here in the appeal I would as well. I had 
planned to speak, instead I was told to put that in motion form - so I did.

It had the biggest court case in my life reach the ORAL argument 
stage on Wednesday and I was denied the right to represent myself at 
my own appeal on Tuesday. Wtg  (what the ganja)

One of the issues I was appealing to the NJ Appeals Court for in the 
first place was at the trial level the Judge constantly usurped my 
right to self representation. The irony of the Appeals Court Judges 
denying me the right to speak for myself at the Oral Argument flew in 
the face of Faretta v. California, 422 U.S. 806 (1975), was a case in 
which the Supreme Court of the United States held that criminal 
defendants have a constitutional right to refuse counsel and 
represent themselves in state criminal proceedings.

They also have a right to choose their own tactics and defense - if 
the defense fails only the defendant goes to prison. It has always 
been my tactic to speak for myself and still invoke the 6th amendment 
right to "assistance of counsel."

FACT: The 6th amendment doesn't give lawyers the right to defend 
defendants, it gives defendants the right to assistance. The word 
representation doesn't exist in the 6th amendment.

Very few defendants insist on this right to "assistance" and instead 
demand representation, so when Pro Se defendants such as myself 
invokes the right  I'm looked at as a nut job by the system instead 
of as a defendant who is informed. My assistant John Saykanic gave a 
very good oral presentation to the honorable Judges of the Appeals 
Court. I do believe he did better than the state prosecutor - but I 
sure wish I hadn't been robbed of my glory on this one. I wanted to 
litigate before this panel. I'm not going to cry and moan but please 
just PASS THE JOINT.

While Gov Christie constantly says, "not on his watch" when asked if 
marijuana will be legalized in New Jersey. He's forgetting 4th grade 
social studies where we were all taught that there are three branches 
of government that make law. I have presented my appeal to the NJ 
Appellate Court trying to get the judicial branch to legalize it 
despite Christie.

Now we wait - sometime in the next few months the courts will decide. 
#LEGALIZENJ
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom