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Federal
Judge
Issues
Injunction
Against
California
Cannabis
Clubs
6/14/02
US District Judge Charles
Breyer issued a permanent injunction Monday against the Oakland Cannabis
Buyers Coop and two other coops that have already shut down, ordering them
to immediately halt the distribution of medical marijuana. Medical
marijuana supporters fear the injunction will be a green light for the
DEA to step up its persecution of activities that are legal under California
law but banned by the federal government.
By following the route of
civil injunctions, the DEA and the Justice Department avoid having to resort
to criminal prosecutions of medical marijuana providers, a tactic that
could backfire dramatically in a state where voters overwhelming approved
medical marijuana at the ballot box.
The ruling was not unexpected.
Breyer had in early May issued a temporary injunction after denying numerous
requests from medical marijuana lawyers to find a way to allow the distribution
of medical marijuana within federal law. That ruling came in the
wake of the Supreme Court ruling in the Oakland Cannabis Buyers Coop case,
in which a unanimous court held that California's medical marijuana law
did not override federal restrictions on marijuana distribution.
"A medical-necessity exception
for marijuana is at odds with the terms of the Controlled Substances Act,"
Justice Clarence Thomas wrote in his opinion. "The statute reflects
a determination that marijuana has no medical benefits worthy of an exception,
outside the confines of a government-approved research project."
The DEA has in recent months
stepped up its persecution of medical marijuana providers, provoking the
formation of Americans for Safe Access (http://www.safeaccessnow.org),
the umbrella group that organized last week's demonstrations at DEA offices
around the country. ASA has an emergency response plan for raids
that may follow this ruling.
-- END --
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Issue #241, 6/14/02
Federal Judge Issues Injunction Against California Cannabis Clubs | The June 6th Medical Marijuana Actions: One Week Later | With Competing Drug Reform Bills Passed, NY Governor and Assembly Have One Week to Reach Compromise | Border Governors to Discuss Chihuahua Marijuana Legalization | Dan Forbes Goes After Ad Age for McCarthyite Smear | London Borough Proposes De Facto Hard Drug Decrim | Philippines Enacts Death Penalty for Drug Dealing, Possession of a Pound of Marijuana or Tens Grams of Ecstasy | Colombian Paramilitary Leader Again Admits Links with Cocaine Traffic, Calls for Tactical Retreat from the Trade | Newsbrief: Mexico Drug Trade Helps Prevent Social Explosion, Says Researcher | Newsbrief: DARE Dropped in Toledo | Newsbrief: Maryland GOP Governor Candidate Talks Treatment Not Jail | Newsbrief: Supreme Court Ruling Leads to Public Housing Eviction for Son's Marijuana Pipe | Newsbrief: Addicts Vote with Their Feet on Vietnam's New, Lengthy Mandatory Drug Rehab | Newsbrief: Louisiana Judge Busted in Dope-Planting Scheme | Newsbrief: Life for Brownies? California Man Faces Three-Strikes Penalty | Grant Program: Tides Foundation RFPs for Latin America, Prop. 36 Implementation and Overdose Prevention | New DRCNet/StopTheDrugWar.org Merchandise Out -- Discounted Purchase Available | The Reformer's Calendar
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