Newsletter Template

October 2004 Edition

Organizational News:

State News:

National News:

International News:

Regular Features:

OPNews Disclaimer

You Are Invited to OPN Meetings

Help the OPN Support Patients

How to Get Your Information in OPNews

How to be Removed from the OPNews List

How to Contact Your State Representative and Senator

Organizational News Items:

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State News:

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National News:

D.C. JAIL STAY ENDS IN DEATH FOR QUADRIPLEGIC MD MAN

Care Provided By Hospital, Corrections Dept. In Question

Jonathan Magbie, a 27-year-old Mitchellville man, was sent to jail in the District last week for 10 days for marijuana possession.

He never made it home.

MARIJUANA MEASURES ON 3 STATES' BALLOTS

Alaska will become the first state to make marijuana legal if voters approve a measure on Tuesday's ballot that has drawn criticism from the Bush administration. The Alaska proposal is the most provocative of three ballot measures in Western states aimed at easing restrictions on marijuana.

COURT UPHOLDS DISMISSAL OF MARIJUANA CULTIVATION CHARGE

A preliminary hearing magistrate properly dismissed a marijuana cultivation charge based on evidence, including expert testimony, that the defendant was using the drug for personal medical purposes, the Third District Court of Appeal ruled yesterday.

STATE BACKS MEDICAL POT CASE BEFORE U.S. SUPREME COURT

Attorney General Files Brief Supporting Two Californians California Attorney General Bill Lockyer sided with two medical marijuana patients Wednesday in their U.S. Supreme Court battle with the Bush administration, arguing that patients who use locally grown marijuana in states that allow it should be protected from federal drug enforcement.

ACTIVISTS CHALLENGE FEDS ON MARIJUANA

Berkeley Group Wants U.S. Recognition of Medical Use of Pot A Berkeley-based organization announced Monday it will file a petition with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services charging the agency with putting politics over science on the issue of medical marijuana.

MARIJUANA SHOULD BE IN THE TOOLBOX

I-148 -- Allowing the use of marijuana under medical supervision by patients with certain medical conditions.

Our position: Yes.

MEDICAL MARIJUANA DEBATE RAGES

For the last year until he died of Hodgkin's lymphoma, Travis Michalski was in tremendous pain -- and his parents were ready to help in any way. "With his first chemo treatment, he became violently ill," said his mother, Teresa Michalski of Helena.

JUDGE ORDERS RETRIAL IN MEDICAL POT CASE

Voters 'Didn't Understand Issues' Of Marijuana Proposition, S.J. Justice Says STOCKTON -- A San Joaquin Superior Court judge Friday criticized voters for legalizing medical marijuana and then ordered a Stockton quadriplegic to again stand trial for cultivating and intending to sell pot.

MARIJUANA INITIATIVE NEEDS MORE WORK

When voters go to the polls on Nov. 2, they will be asked whether the use of marijuana for strictly medicinal purposes should be permitted under state law. Marijuana is one of those hot-button words that gets people's hackles up in a hurry. On one side, marijuana has unduplicated properties to ease the pain of those suffering from chronic and terminal illness. On the other side, it is one of the most abused illegal substances around and I-148 would allow some Montanans to grow their own pharmaceuticals.

DEPUTY DRUG CZAR OPPOSES LEGALIZING MARIJUANA

Scott Burns, a top federal official in the war on drugs, visited Montana this week intending to discuss methamphetamine. But Burns found himself talking instead mostly about marijuana, as Montanans prepare to vote Nov. 2 on a ballot measure that would allow use of the illegal plant for medical purposes.

ANTI-MARIJUANA LAWS AT ODDS WITH PUBLIC'S VIEWS

America's War on Drugs needs a big dose of common sense - a commodity in short supply in Washington, D.C. The gap between U.S. drug-control policies and citizen preferences is widest when we consider how tax dollars are spent and how government policies are working their way into the doctor's office.

MARIJUANA PROPOSALS GO TO VOTERS IN THREE WESTERN STATES

The Bush administration's war on drugs stretches deep into Asia and Latin America, yet one of its most crucial campaigns -- in the eyes of drug czar John Walters -- is being waged this fall among voters in Oregon, Alaska and Montana. In each state, activists seeking to ease drug laws have placed a marijuana-related proposal on the Nov. 2 ballot as part of a long-running quest for alternatives to federal drug policies they consider harsh and ineffective.

ONE WORD OVER THE LINE

There's certainly no love lost between Anchorage Democratic Representative Eric Croft and Republican Lieutenant Governor Loren Leman, who oversees the Alaska Division of Elections. The tussle between the two has been going on for a while, but just recently made it into the news when Superior Court Judge Morgan Christen sided with Croft over the language in the "Trust the People" initiative he sponsored. Judge Christen ruled the ballot language worded by the Leman's office was biased and factually inaccurate. That proposition proposes to remove the governor's authority to appoint a Senate replacement if a seat becomes vacant.

SUPREME COURT TAKES ON MORE DIVISIVE ISSUES

The Supreme Court session starting Monday features many of the same wrenching issues that splintered the justices during the last term and led to some unusually acrimonious dissents. The death penalty, free speech and prison sentences are back on the agenda, along with new topics such as medical marijuana and out-of-state wine purchases that are likely to produce significant disagreement.

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International News:

MARIJUANA CRUSADER FACES JAIL AFTER PLANTS EXPOSED

Manitoba Man Faces A Year In Custody Since He Has Previous Drug Conviction WINNIPEG -- A medical marijuana crusader who got caught running a grow operation from his home when it was broken into may be facing jail time.

The Crown is seeking one year of custody for Chris Buors, mainly due to a prior drug conviction that netted a conditional sentence.

DUNCAN COUPLE PUBLISHES GUIDE TO LEGAL POT

Eric Nash and Wendy Little don't just grow pot legally -- they wrote the book on it. The Duncan couple, two of 553 people currently allowed to cultivate marijuana for medical use, have published Sell Marijuana Legally, a step-by-step guide to making money by becoming federally licensed to sell pot.

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Regular Features:

OPNews DISCLAIMER

OPNews, a publication of Ohio Patient Network (OPN), provides medical cannabis news that affects Ohio patients, caregivers, and health professionals.

All articles are intended for educational purposes and do not reflect an official position, either positive or negative, by the OPN or its Board of Directors.

Ohio Patient Network does not endorse any candidates running for office. The reports of campaign-related activities are for educational purposes only.

For more information, contact editor@ohiopatient.net .

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YOU ARE INVITED TO OPN MEETINGS

The OPN Board of Directors invites you to participate in OPN patient forums, which are held at 8:00 p.m. (eastern time) the last Thursday of each month. You are also welcome to attend the weekly OPN business meetings.

These electronic voice/text meetings are held at the OPN chatroom in PalTalk http://www.paltalk.com/ for further information, including instructions for the PalTalk meeting room, visit: http://ohiopatient.net/join/index.htm#meetingscontact or contact info@ohiopatient.net .

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HELP THE OPN SUPPORT PATIENTS

The Ohio Patient Network's goal is to provide a voice for Ohio's medicinal cannabis patients and create an environment where this vital medicine becomes an accepted and legitimate therapy. To do this, we need your help.

We'd like you to personally become involved in OPN by donating your time. Please check out our various committees and activities at http://ohiopatient.net/donate/index.htm#volunteers . Respond with your interest to our Membership Coordinator, Doc Miller, at KRMiller@OhioPatient.net.

If you'd prefer, you can also support medicinal cannabis and what we are doing by contributing monetarily to OPN. Please note that the Ohio Patient Network is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation in the State of Ohio. Donations to OPN are tax deductible to the extent provided by law.

Please visit our donations page at http://ohiopatient.net/donate/index.htm to make a contribution using your credit card. Please note that these donations will be processed through Paypal.

If you would prefer to donate by check or money order, please make them payable to the "Ohio Patient Network" and mail to P.O. Box 26353, Columbus, OH 43216.

Thank you for supporting the Ohio Patient Network.

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HOW TO GET YOUR INFORMATION IN OPNews

OPNews is published monthly. To have your information considered for publication, submit your story to editor@ohiopatient.net .

PLEASE DO NOT SEND ATTACHMENTS. Please do not boldface or italicize text. Include a contact name with a phone number and/or e-mail address with submissions.

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HOW TO BE REMOVED FROM THE OPNews LIST

You may sign off this list at any time by using the web form at http://ohiopatient.net/join/index.htm#disclist .

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HOW TO CONTACT YOUR STATE REPRESENTATIVE AND SENATOR

Find your Representative in the Ohio House at http://www.house.state.oh.us/jsps/Representatives.jsp .

Find your Ohio Senator at http://www.senate.state.oh.us/senators/ .

Write to your officials care of their district office, or send your letter to their Columbus office at:

The Honorable (name)

Ohio House of Representatives

77 South High Street

Columbus, Ohio 43266-0603

-or-

The Honorable (name)

Ohio Senate Building

Columbus, Ohio 43215

Telephone calls and emails are also persuasive, especially when the constituent contacts the district office.

� A publication of the Ohio Patient Network (OPN) Contact editor@ohiopatient.net

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Ohio Patient Network - P.O. Box 26353 - Columbus, Ohio 43226-0353

1-888-OH-Patient (1-888-647-2843) info@ohiopatient.net