Pubdate: Sun, 25 Oct 1998 Source: Denver Post (CO) Section: Medical Contact: http://www.denverpost.com/ Copyright: 1998 The Denver Post Author: Bill Briggs, Denver Post Staff Writer ROR POLIAC, 42, ARAPAHOE COUNTY Twice now, Arapahoe County sheriff's deputies have stopped Ror Poliac and found marijuana in his car. Twice they have handed him back his pot and let him go. A way with words? Just plain lucky? No, Poliac carries a note from his doctor for just such occasions. Poliac, who has chronic, progressive multiple sclerosis, is a living example of how a medical marijuana system might work in Colorado. His physician, he says, recognizes how pot quiets the spasticity in his leg muscles, boosts his appetite and helps him sleep through the buzz of the 30 prescription pills he has to take daily. The doctor's handwritten note indicates Poliac has his permission to smoke the marijuana. But because marijuana remains illegal in Colorado, the officers still could have busted Poliac for possession. For that reason, he doesn't flaunt his unofficial pot prescription. In fact, when he calls friends about buying marijuana, they use code words over the phone lines - phrases like "I'm going to the green house'' or "Do you have any cans of green paint?'' "It seems ludicrous to have to go to that extent for my medication,'' says Poliac, 42. For about 10 years, the MS has slowly stolen Poliac's ability to walk on beaches, to dance and to hike. He now uses a wheelchair. As his paralysis worsened, he found that a nightly dose of marijuana gave him the energy he needed to fight the illness. "Ten puffs and I'm fine,'' Poliac says. "They're always saying we shouldn't cut down all the rain forests because maybe some tree has the cure for cancer or AIDS . . . Well, this could be my plant in the Amazon. Who knows?'' - --- Checked-by: Richard Lake