Atlanta (AP) - Georgia lawmakers revisited a divisive argument over legalizing medical marijuana on Wednesday, as parents pleaded for something to help children with seizure disorders and representatives of law enforcement and conservative groups warned of unintended consequences.

Members of a study committee met for the final time on Wednesday in Atlanta, with some lining up behind different proposals on the issue that will arise again in the 2015 legislative session that begins in January.

Republican Rep. Allen Peake, who spearheaded last session's failed effort to pass a bill aimed at helping children with seizure disorders, pre-filed a bill last month to allow limited use of medical cannabis in Georgia. Peake said he expects to have a draft bill by Christmas, or at the latest by the Jan. 12 start to the session.

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A state senator is proposing to fully legalize marijuana in Georgia, providing Colorado-style access at licensed retail shops while also allowing its use through medical providers for treatment of conditions including cancer, glaucoma and HIV/AIDS.

State Sen. Curt Thompson, D-Norcross, filed the joint proposals Monday for consideration by the state Legislature next year. The legislative session starts Jan. 12.

Thompson's Senate Bill 7 would allow doctors to prescribe marijuana of up to two ounces for specific debilitating medical conditions and its use would be strictly regulated by the state.

Additionally, Senate Resolution 6 is a proposed amendment to the state constitution. Requiring voter approval, it would legalize, regulate and tax the sale of retail marijuana. Tax revenue from the sale of marijuana would be constitutionally earmarked for education and transportation infrastructure.

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Atlanta (AP) - While an effort to bring a form of medical marijuana to Georgia garnered bipartisan support during the most recent legislative session, hurdles remain as lawmakers prepare to make another attempt at passing the legislation next year.

A bill is being drafted after a series of committee hearings and included testimony from leaders within the law enforcement and medical communities who raised concerns about the use of medical cannabis even under narrow circumstances. Meanwhile, progress is being made in terms of bringing clinical trials to Georgia, but advocates warn that will not be enough to help all those who see the drug as their best hope to manage debilitating conditions.

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Running a clinical trial of cannabis-derived oil for 50 children with uncontrollable seizures could cost the state of Georgia $7-8 million, an official with Georgia Regents University told a legislative study committee meeting in Augusta on Wednesday.

But outside of that limited number, entities in the state might be authorized to grow and produce the oil for the thousands of others who might benefit from it, the chief proponent for the legislation said.

The Joint Study Committee on the Prescription of Medical Cannabis for Serious Medical Conditions met at GRU to hear about progress in getting clinical trials started on a drug from GW Pharmaceuticals called Epidiolex that is a highly purified form of cannabidiol, one of the main active compounds in marijuana, with only minuscule amounts of the psychoactive compound tetrahydrocannabinol. An expanded access study for two patients is only awaiting final approval from the Drug Enforcement Administration and that could come any day, said Dr. Michael Diamond, Interim Senior Vice President for Research at GRU.

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A legislative study committee on narrow uses of medical marijuana will hold a hearing Tuesday at Georgia Regents University to hear about potential medical evidence for use, according to the committee co-chairman. GRU itself is on the verge of beginning clinical trials into a purified cannabis oil drug for children with uncontrollable seizures.

The Joint Study Committee on the Prescription of Medical Cannabis will hold its fourth meeting in the ballroom of the Jaguar Student Activities Center on the Summerville campus of GRU. Previous meetings of the committee had heard from families with various medical conditions that might benefit from marijuana-derived oil and concerns from law enforcement about legalization, said Rep. Allen Peake, R-Macon, the chief proponent of legislation that would allow its use only under strict conditions.

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The Isabellas are tired of waiting on Georgia.

Next month, the Lawrenceville family plans to pull up roots and head for Colorado, where they can obtain a non-intoxicating form of medical marijuana for 7-year-old Brooke Isabella, who suffers from a chronic seizure disorder.

"Nobody can help us here," said father Chip Isabella, who was among parents rallying legislators earlier this year to allow an oil form of the drug in Georgia. "We're just stuck and we're tired of it. We could've had medical marijuana right here and been using it. We're tired of playing. Let's go."

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Federal prosecutors on Tuesday indicated they were disappointed criminal charges were not brought against any of the officers involved in the botched drug raid that left a toddler disfigured.

But remedying that decision won't be easy for U.S. Attorney Sally Quillian Yates, who faces a much higher threshold than that required on the state and local level.

"You have to show the person knowingly or willfully did what they did," said former assistant U.S. Attorney Buddy Parker. "You'd essentially have to develop evidence that these were rogue cops at work."

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Medical marijuana, also referred to as cannabis, is a topic in the medical and drug field that brings up much debate over whether or not it should be legalized in all of the states.

Medical marijuana is legal in 23 states and Washington D.C. Currently only two states have legalized marijuana for recreational use. If medical marijuana is truly needed and beneficial, patients should have access to the treatment that will help them.

Several states have laws that decriminalize marijuana. Decriminalization of marijuana means that minor possession charges will no longer be handled as serious crimes. This could be compared to the legal actions taken towards traffic violations. Legalization is where charges would not exist on the state level.

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While expressing support for limited use of medical marijuana, law enforcement officials from across the state Wednesday warned of a slippery slope leading to legalized recreational use.

Their warning came during a hearing at Georgia Gwinnett College in Lawrenceville of the Joint Study Committee on Prescription of Medical Cannabis for Serious Medical Conditions.

State lawmakers are considering allowing the use of cannabis oil - which contains anti-inflammatory and anti-anxiety cannibidiols but is free of THC, the psychoactive ingredient that gets people high - to treat children with seizure disorders.

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The task force responsible for supplying information used in the May drug raid that left a toddler disfigured is being disbanded.

The news comes just as a Habersham County grand jury is hearing evidence about the Mountain Judicial Circuit Narcotics Criminal Investigation and Suppression Team's role in the planning of the raid that left 19-month-old Bounkham "Bou Bou" Phonesavanh seriously injured after a stun grenade exploded in his playpen.

"It's interesting that would happen now," said Mawuli Davis, the attorney representing the Phonesavanh family.

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ATLANTA - The question hovers over Kelli Hopkins every day.

It rises with her each morning as she feeds her two remaining sick children their seizure medicine five pills for Mary Elizabeth, seven for Michala. It follows as she packs them and their wheelchairs into the van for another hospital visit, another brain scan, another trip to the emergency room. It wakes her at 2 a.m. each night when she rolls over on the couch she's slept on for years only to see carpet where there used to be a cot.

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Proponents of legalization and other drug policy reforms make some important points.

It is true that most people who try drugs do not get addicted - they stop after using a few times.

It is also true - and regrettable - that America's incarceration rate is embarrassingly high and that blacks and Latinos bear the brunt of harsh arrest policies. And, finally, despite our best efforts, fully eradicating drug use and its consequences remains a distant dream.

But placing faith that legalization will help any of these issues is misguided. In fact, legalization threatens to further contribute to disproportionate health outcomes among minorities, all the while creating a massive new industry - Big Tobacco 2.0 - intent on addicting the most vulnerable in society.

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Is America's scientific research biased to focus on the harmful effects of drugs? That was one of the questions at the heart of a congressional hearing this summer seeking to understand more comprehensively the scientific evidence related to marijuana. And it was how Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, found herself being grilled by Rep. Gerald Connolly, D-Va.

"Dr. Volkow, your testimony seems to completely disregard lots of other data," he accused.

Volkow and I were the witnesses, along with a representative from the Food and Drug Administration. Connolly was particularly interested in learning why NIDA and the FDA - both part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services - supported so little research into the potential medical uses of marijuana. He appeared exasperated by the focus on drugs' harmful effects, which "impeded the ability to have legitimate research that could benefit human health."

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In a world where you can be arrested and incarcerated for being in possession of a harmless plant, it is time to reform our drug policies and rethink the war on drugs altogether.

The Global Commission on Drug Policy reported the war on drugs is both counter-intuitive and harmful to society. Not only is prohibition completely ineffective, but in many ways it only exacerbates the problem and has led to a wide array of social and health issues throughout the globe. After a half century of failure, it is time to stop wasting time, tax money and resources and finally put an end to this ridiculous war on drugs.

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"Reefer Madness" was a 1930's propaganda style film extolling the dangers of marijuana.

The film has become infamous for its overdramatic portrayal that the drug would lead to chaos for its users. Decades later the rationale behind the effects of marijuana tends to be less extreme, but those people against its legalization should realize it's only a matter of time before other states decriminalize the substance.

The states of Washington and Colorado have become the lab rats for studying the legalization of pot. So far, chaos has not ensued. The latest news out of Colorado regarding marijuana was that the state could be missing out on $21.5 million in taxes because of too high taxes and fees (more government regulation), according to Fox31 Denver.

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Regarding "Analyze cost, benefits of legal pot" (Atlanta Forward, Aug. 21), J. Tom Morgan makes a cogent case for the decriminalization of marijuana, citing the racist scare tactics of the Depression-era director of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics and the specious argument that it is a gateway to harder drugs.

Let's also consider these points: Legal marijuana can be taxed; its potency can be standardized; criminal enterprises will no longer profit from trafficking in it, and useful medical research into its therapeutic use can begin. And decriminalization will ease the current enormous strain on our courts and prisons. With the taxpayer money saved, maybe then we can turn our attention to the shortcomings of our infrastructure and educational systems.

FRED ROBERTS, DECATUR

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Two states have legalized small amounts of marijuana possession. More than 30 states have legalized marijuana for medicinal purposes. Recently, The New York Times editorial board called for the decriminalization of marijuana. Kenneth Thompson, the district attorney of Kings County, N.Y., announced he will no longer prosecute misdemeanor marijuana possession cases.

In light of the changes in the rest of the country, the Georgia Legislature should examine whether to repeal Georgia's own prohibition of marijuana possession. Prior to 1937, cannabis was legal and recognized by the American Medical Association as a legitimate pharmaceutical. It was prescribed by doctors in this country and England; Queen Victoria was prescribed marijuana for menstrual cramps.

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During the 2014 General Assembly, Kay Godwin and I, co-founders of the Capitol Coalition of Conservative Leaders, and other conservatives even on the religious right supported the use of medical cannabis for intractable seizure disorder.

My heart broke for children suffering day and night with more than 300 violent seizures per week that only had one medical choice, and that was to basically be put in a nearly comatose state by prescription drugs. The accounts of parents who had used medical cannabis oil and had amazing success - in some cases taking the seizures down to less than two per week - were encouraging.

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If the Obama administration is to be believed, America's infamous "War on Drugs" is over. In its most recent National Drug Control Strategy, released last week, officials promised a more humane and sympathetic approach to drug users and addiction. Out, the report suggests, are "tough on crime" policies. Rather than more police and more prisons, officials talk about public health and education. They promise to use evidence-based practices to combat drug abuse. And they want to use compassionate messaging and successful reentry programs to reduce the stigma drug offenders and addicts face.

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The toddler critically injured during a SWAT raid in Habersham County is headed home to Wisconsin and the long road to recovery, a lawyer for the family told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Bounkham Phonesavanh was seriously injured when a "flash bang" grenade went off in his playpen during an early morning raid a month ago that netted no drugs and no drug dealer. The explosion caused a brain injury, collapsed a lung and disfigured the boy's face, said Mawuli Davis, an attorney for the family.

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