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Newsbrief:
US
9th
Circuit
Court
of
Appeals
Rejects
DEA
Motion
for
New
Hemp
Hearing
7/9/04
The US 9th Circuit Court
of Appeals in San Francisco on June 28 denied a Drug Enforcement Administration
(DEA) petition seeking a rehearing on the court's February decision blocking
the agency from attempting to ban hemp foods. That decision was made
by a three-judge panel. The DEA asked for a hearing before the full
court, but the court refused.
That decision now gives the
DEA and the Justice Department until September 26 to decide to appeal the
decision to the US Supreme Court. If the administration fails to
act, the sale of hemp foods in the US will be permanently protected.
Hemp food manufacturers are
confident of victory in either case, said David Bronner, Chair of the Hemp
Industry Association's Food and Oil Committee and President of Alpsnack/Dr.
Bronner's Magic Soaps. "The three-judge panel in the Ninth Circuit
unanimously ruled that the DEA ignored the specific Congressional exemption
in the Controlled Substances Act hat excludes hemp fiber, seed and oil
from control along with poppy seeds. The Court reasonably viewed
as insignificant and irrelevant harmless trace amounts of THC in hemp seed,
just like harmless trace amounts of opiates in poppy seeds," said Bronner.
Hemp companies and the HIA
have spent over $200,000 in the two-and-a-half year legal struggle with
the DEA, and they are prepared to go the distance. "The public and
the media should question the DEA's waste of tax dollars in trying to crush
the legitimate hemp food industry," said Eric Steenstra, President of Vote
Hemp (http://www.votehemp.org). "A Bush administration appeal will
fail and only further embarrass the DEA. Appealing the decision is
a last-ditch effort to save face at the expense of taxpayers and limited
law enforcement resources."
The clock is ticking.
-- END --
|
Issue #345, 7/9/04
Editorial: Time for Congress to Get Real |
In the Wake of Blakely: Federal Sentencing Chaos as Defense Attorneys, Prosecutors, Lawmakers Ponder How to Respond |
House Votes Down Medical Marijuana Bill -- Election Year Politics, Organized Opposition Cited |
International AIDS Conference Puts Focus on Thai War on Drugs |
Making it Official: More Initiatives Move Toward November Ballot |
ALERT: "Thank or Spank" Your Congressman for This Week's Medical Marijuana Vote |
Newsbrief: Rep. Ron Paul Brings Pain Doctor Prosecution Issue to House |
Newsbrief: US 9th Circuit Court of Appeals Rejects DEA Motion for New Hemp Hearing |
Newsbrief: Kansas Supreme Court Says Cut Methamphetamine Sentences |
Newsbrief: Tommy Chong Walks Out of Prison |
Newsbrief: Iranians Protest US, UK Blind Eye to Afghan Opium Crop |
Newsbrief: United Arab Emirates Ponders First Step Toward Harm Reduction |
Newsbrief: Head of National Drug Intelligence Center Fired |
Newsbrief: Prohibition as a Marketing Tool -- Camel Ad Campaign Touts "Forbidden Fruit" Appeal |
Newsbrief: This Week's Corrupt Cops Story |
Newsbrief: California Prisons "Dysfunctional," State Report Concludes |
Movie Opening: Maria Full of Grace |
Media Scan: New CSDP Ad -- Richard Paey and Rush Limbaugh |
This Week in History |
Psilocybin Cancer Research Study Still Seeking Participants |
The Reformer's Calendar
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