My name is Jeffrey w Kennedy I am disabled and live in palm beach county, Florida. I was arrested for trying to grow my own Medical Marijuana, I suffer from failed back surgery as well as very painful Neuropathay of the feet and legs, I have hired Attorney Michael c Minardi to help defend me and the rights of all who live in Florida, We will be using the medical necissity defense, I am in search of Doctors that think Medical Marijuana has a great value for chronic pain. Please contact me at [email protected] This is the 1st time that the medical necessity defense has been used in Palm Beach County, Florida And we need your help to win this historic case,

Thank you,
Jeffrey w Kennedy

Legalize it now

I have collected many filed out petitions from registerd voters for medical marijuana and have no address to send them to. Please provide me with an address and i will aptain many more [email protected]

I am a Mormon father of five. My oldest daughter suffers from chronic migraine headaches and nausea. Her last headache so far has lasted 37 days. She has been unable to go snowboarding with the family, go to church or any of the other things that she enjoys in life. She does work at a Veterinary Clinic during the day as a vet tech, but she has to go straight to bed when she gets home because of the pain. She absolutely loves her job and working with the animals, but is in danger of loosing it due to her problems and having to leave sometimes. Her doctor put her on anti seizure medication. And it worked, for a while! Now that her body has gotten use to the medication the headaches are back. The medication is costing her $248.87 a month. On top of that the drug can cause liver, kidney and heart problems. This is a hard thing for a father to see his daughter go through. She is 22 and has been plagued by these headaches for 5 years now. My sister an mother suffered from the same headaches. They are gone now, but they never found relief from their condition.

Come on! Should she have to suffer for the rest of her life because of the fears of a group of people that either don't care enough or haven't taken the time to research the medicine that is in question? Are our politicians and government agencies being influenced off by the drug companies? I'm sure that every one of the people that are so against the medical marijuana, could look into the family history and find a family member that suffered from excruciating gain, or an agonizing death. Think about your children, wives, mothers and fathers. What would you be willing to do for them to protect them from suffering? I know I would give up my own life if it would stop the pain that my daughter is going through. I think any parent would. There are so many people that are out there that are suffering from things that are beyond my imagination. Parents that can't work and support their children. Do you really want to continue to pay for their housing and food? I'm not saying that they are bums and they don't try, some have no other choice. What about the good people that are truly using marijuana as a medication and have been arrested and put in jail. Most people can't survive as a single income family. The spouse can no longer pay the bills and they go under. Guess what! Now you are paying for their housing and food too. Let's not for get the poor suffer that is in jail. Where does the money come from that is running the jail. You guessed it! Our tax dollars! And any medication that they receive in jail. We are paying for it! Now lets look at the kids of these parents. The spouse tries the best that they can, but they aren't able to spend the time that they need to with the kids. Now the kids are feeling rejected and live in a lower income part of town. They are exposed to users and drug dealers that they potentially would have never met. Now they are stealing prescription drugs from their parents medicine cabinet because their school mates have taught them how it can make their sadness go away. They will wind up in rehab or a juvenile school or worse even jail. Guess what you are still paying for it all!!!!

Does legalizing marijuana expose more kids to it? Yes it does. But they will be taught that it is a medicine and the responsibility of such a medicine. You mean to tell me your kids don't know that can get high from the Oxycodone that is in you medicine cabinet from when you hurt your back? Now days kids can get drugs just about anywhere, they even take them from our medicine cabinets. To people that are ignorant of the benefits of marijuana, it is only a drug. Let's not teach our children that! Teach them of the benefits and the help that it does. Don't teach them that the only thing that marijuana is good for is getting high.

I have signed my daughter up for the medical marijuana program here in Montana. She doesn't drink and she doesn't smoke. I have no fear that she will get addicted to it, or that it will lead her into using cocaine or anything else. I'll be her caregiver and we will be growing it. She will not smoke it. It will be used as an extract.

One last thought (sorry to ramble on!) People are worried about "Driving under the influence". The research that I have done has proved to me that under proper dosage the senses are actually enhanced not decreased by marijuana. I it did have a negative effect on the senses, my daughter would be smart enough to not drive. What about the people who drive with the headaches and other pain. To me that is really dangerous! Are they paying attention to the things around them. I would wager that most of them are concentrating on the pain. My daughter's anti seizure medication causes her fingers, hands and sometime her toes to go numb. And it's legal for her to drive on that medication. Sad, just sad.

I hope that this will open the eyes of at least one person. If I was in Florida I would help by going out and getting petitions for you. People please go out and help this cause! For people like my daughters sake, for your own kids and family members sake. It will only take you a few minutes to go around and get some signatures from your family, neighbors and even church members or PTA members. It only takes a few minutes and will help so many..

Thank you for taking the time to read this. Please don't feel like it was time wasted.

you can email me at [email protected]

I say I'm for it...me myself has several problems being a Combat Vet of Iraq and Afghanistan, and with this being used could help with mood/PTSD, sleep disorder, pain, and loss of appetite which as of right now the only way I can get help is by take prescription pills, and which most can cause of has some serious side effects as well as addiction for what I am having to take. Now I know medical marijuana also has its side effects and what not, but it's better than what my prescriptions are doing to me in the long run...I don't like having to take the pills because of the past I have had to deal with due to my brother addiction after he was in a serious car accident and was put on prescription meds. and now the meds I have to take now help for some things its only going to get worse for another

I suffer from pain due to botched Male-2-Female Sexual Reassignment Surgery and marijuana is the only thing that helps relax and relieve some of the pain. Its time drug laws are made on sound science and not by right wing or religious zealots who classify it as a "gateway drug" without any other rational or facts. alcohol and tobacco are more gateway drugs that marijuana but they are legal so we don't look at them that way.

Kristian Brandreth

I AM BI POLAR AND SUFFER FROM DEPRESSION......IH AVE TRIED PREVIOUS MEDICATIONS APROVED BY THE FDA.....I HAVE FOUND THAT DOCTORS ARE MORE READY TO DISH OUT PILLS THEN OTHER FORMS OF MEDICATIONS......OR ALTERNITIVE MEDS.......THERE IS SOMETHING WRONG WITH THIS ......OXYS XANEX PERCOSETS LORTABS I THINK R WAY MORE DANGEROUS THEN CANNIBUS....BUT MORE EASILY ACCEPTABLE....WE NEED TO QUIT DEMONIZING CANNIBUS AND LEGALIZE IT....

I grew up here in Florida back in the 60's and cannabis was easily available in the schools. For people to argue against MMJ by saying it would be easier for kids to get it is just plain wrong. A well regulated dispensary system will keep kids out and the black market would also be reduced, making it more difficult for kids to obtain it illegally. I've been a resident of Colorado for 40 years now and I'm a MMJ patient. I have severe back problems, sciatica and degenerative disk disease. Prescription pain killers and muscle relaxers were causing my kidneys to shut down and I was forced to stop taking them. My doctor recommended me for MMJ and it has been a Godsend! I'm much healthier and happier now and have learned much about the subject of MMJ. I highly recommend to the people of Florida to allow MMJ in this state.

I use medical marajuana for my pain with RA, gloucoma, and scleritis. It takes the pain away and it keeps my pressures in my eyes down so it helps me with my gloucoma.

I am BEGGING everyone to encourage others to sign this. I go to doctors and off the record they say use it, it works. but "on the record" they say no it is an illegal drug. I can't advice you off any regarding marajuana.

It is very bad that I need this to live and I could get arrested for buying it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! VERY VERY SAD!!!!!!!!!!!!!

While I'm not a pot smoker and have no plans to partake, I read some of these posts and wonder where such anger & maliciousness comes from. To those that are tossing their verbal hand grenades here about this subject, I cringe for those that have impacted or shattered lives and wait for much needed relief. Instead of the haters here spouting off, be thankful that you are healthy and don't need the relief that this natural God-given plant offers!
I will always defend the right of people in need of this type of medicinal relief from their symptoms of various afflictions and diseases and glad to see I'm not alone. I am so thankful that I have a compassionate heart and open mind and hope this will get on the ballots and the vote to legalize it will prevail so many can have a life with less pain or nausea, or more mobility resulting in a life of relief and better quality existance as God intended. God bless and be with those of you that wait in their anguish or pain for some intelligence and compassion that will be addressed in this ballot & vote.

I Have Glaucoma i am 24 Years old
I go to The eye Doctor to have my Check-up's
I was Born With it. The Medicine That i Use is
timolol maleate 0.5% i Take 2 eye drops to each
eye every Morning. The Medicine Get's Vary expensive
I Belive that for Medical purposes Should Be Legal
My eye's Do Strain even When i Use The eye Drops
all tho the eye Drops keep me From Going Blind But
Thar is Always The Chance To Go Blind even With the
eye Drops. The Medical Marijuana may Help The Pressure
To the eye From what i no it relieves This Strain in The eye
so Thar for no Strain no pain and you wont go Blind and i Do
Agree With people That want to make it Legal - as well For
others That need the Help. at the Moment i am in Florida
Waiting to See how Things will go here.

AS A DISABLED VET WHO IS PERSCRIBED AND GIVEN MANY OPIATES BY THE VA WHICH IS THE FEDERAL GOVT.
I DONT UNDERSTAND THE PROBLEM WITH FEDERAL OR STATE LEGALIZATION. BUT THEN AGAIN THEY BARELY PASSED HEALTH CARE.
FOR A STATE THAT ALLOWS SUPERMARKETS AND PHARMACIES TO SELL ALCOHOL AND DRUGS WITH A PERSCRIPTION OR ID WE SHOULD BE ALLOWED TO USE MEDICAL MARIGUANA. I DONT USE NOW BUT IF I WANTED TO I WOULD FEEL BETTER GOING TO A DISPENCERY THAN BUYING OFF THE STREET. BESIDES THE STATE COULD USE THE REVENUE GENERATED FROM LEGALIZATION, RATHER THAN WASTING OR TAX DOLLARS ARRESTING SICK PEOPLE. BUT NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS KEEP FIGHTING FOR OUR RIGHTS

Do you really think that those pharmacutical companies out there really want someone to be able to grow a plant in there back yard and smoke it to cure there nausa, or other hundreds off ailments that they make pills for that cost you so much money that keeps you from being able to pay your morgage or electric bills on time? Hell, No! this is all about BIG business and $$$$$ simple as that, A blind man can even see that. this is a democracy money making country ran by a bunch of crooked politicians, and back stabbing lawyers. It's America don't forget land of the not so free! unless your african american, Hispanic or other native origin other than the U.S. then you've got it made. It won't happen in our time but I say light up a blunt anyway and screw that pathetic law, if everyone smoked it then they better build many, many, more prisons.

  My name is Rick Reed. I'm 49 years old. I live in the state of Florida.

    I have been living in chronic pain since 2001, due to a serious accident. I have to live the rest of my life with two protruding disks in my neck, constantly pinching nerves to the point I have lost the use of two of my toes in the right foot, and I have to have shots in my shoulder every three weeks to help ease the pain. The same with my left knee. I have a partially crushed disk in my lower back, this pinches nerves as well which is causing neurolocigal disorders. I have a degenerative bone disease, which cause severe pain throughout my entire body. I have a rare bone disease in my left arm which has caused the bone to grow larger than normal. I can't lift my arm any higher than chest high. I have austioartheritis throughout my entire body. I have a bad knee which buckles on me when I least expect it. I have to wear a knee brace permanately on it. Recently this happened and I broke a rib because of it. I live with bipolar disease and post traumatic stress disorder. I have survived a stroke and a heart attack because of the seriousness of my pain. The heart attack left permanent scaring on the left ventricle of my heart.

   Lately because of a few misguided and scrupulous doctors abusing there authority and prescribing narcotics to patients who didn't even need them has ruined it for those of us who actually need them. I have been on pain meds for a number of years and just last week I was told by the clinic I go to that the new policy was no more controlled substance were being prescribed. Where does this leave me know?

   I have been smoking weed for a number of years and this truly does impede the pain I live in. I'm able to concentrate better and not be in such pain. Yes, the state of Florida does need to legalize medical marijuana. There are so many who need this to help control the chronic pain they live in. For those that have such as hate on for marijuana has probably never live with these kinds of pain. These are the ones I feel sorry for. It seems like they have no compassion or sympathy for those of us who live in pain.

their is nothing wrong with it more me people die due to dwi and cancer from smoking and chewing tabbacco than pot they tried prohibition in the 20's it didnt work then it wont work now  look at the numbers nthey dont lie

JUST LEGALIZE IT ALREADY  ENOUGH IS ENOUGH MARIJUANA IS BETTER THEN ANY MENTAL HEALTH DRUG OUT THERE I GUESS THEY ARE REALLY SCARED THAT IT TRULY WILL PUT THE MENTAL  HEALTH CENTERS OUT OF BIZ AND I DO HOPE THAT HAPPENS  LOOK AT IT THIS WAY ONCE THEY LEGALIZE IT NO ONE WILL GO TO THERE DOCTOR TO GET THOSE MAN MADE DRUGS THAT CAUSE SO MANY   PROBLEMS . LIKE  SIDE EFFECTS  AND OTHER PROBLEMS WITH THE MAN MADE DRUGS OF TODAYS WORLD. MARIJUANA HAS BEEN AROUND FOR SO MANY YEARS  AND GOD MADE MARIJUANA. MAN MADE THOSE MENTAL HEALTH DRUGS AND THATS JUST WHAT THEY ARE IS DRUGS .  NO MATTER WHAT  PEOPLE TAKE FOR WHAT EVER ILLS THEM SOMEONE IS GOING TO FIND SOMETHING WRONG ABOUT IT . MAN MADE DRUGS ARE JUST DRUGS MARIJUANA IS AN ALL NATURAL PLANT THAT GROWS FROM GODS GREEN EARTH . GOD PUT MARIJUANA ON THIS PLANET FOR A REASON . I THINK IT JUST COMES DOWN TO  MONEY  AND WHO WILL PAY THE MOST TO GET IT LEGALIZE AND WHO WILL PROFIT FROM IT  I GUESS EVERYONE WANTS A PEACE OF THE PIE. AND NOT MATTER WHAT PEOPLE EAT ,DRINK ,SMOKE IT STILL GOING TO KILL YOU IN THE LONG RUN. FREEDOM  DO WE STILL HAVE FREEDOM IN THIS COUNTRY  I REALLY DONT THINK SO  .

Fact - Marijuana has never killed anyone.  Ever.  It is physically impossible to ingest enough raw marijuana to even approach an LD50.  Tylenol killed over 2000 people last year.

Fact - In countless academic studies, judicial opinions and peer-reviews, marijuana has been deemed to be exceedingly safe.  Moreso than virtually any prescription medication.  Moreso than any over-the-counter medication.  It does not cause lung cancer - in fact, in studies conducted on life-long smokers, those who indulged in marijuana showed less incidence of lung cancer.  This is because marijuana does not contain Polonium (a radioactive element) among other carcinogens, as tobacco does.

Fact - Marijuana has already been legalized for medicine and recreation in numerous countries, without any purported ill effect on society.  It has, however, provided much-needed tax revenue.

Fact - The laws in this "free" nation will stigmatize, imprison, and oppress... marijuana will make one sleepy, hungry, and perhaps giggly.  If you were faced with your child smoking marijuana, or your child being caught smoking marijuana, which would YOU choose?

Fact - Marijuana has been used by humanity for over 5000 years, dating back to ancient China.  For those without a calculator, this is 3000 years older than Christ.  Marijuana has, fortunately, been responsible for far less death and suffering than pretty much any mainstream religion.

Fact - Mexican drug cartels killed over 10,000 people last year.  If marijuana were broadly legalized and regulated in the USA, their fields (many hundreds/thousands of acres) would not be worth the dung they used to fertilize them.

Fact - The side effects of marijuana include empathy and introspection.  A few of the power-mongering hypocrites opposing the decriminalization of marijuana would do well to do a little experimentation with a "pro".   In other words, don't be that cop that calls 911 and reports yourself dead (think about it), because you and your ignorant wife have just toked up a donkey-dong-sized spliff of unknown potency.  Take a toke, step back, and put it down.  If marijuana were regulated and decriminalized, people would know this kind of thing.  It would lose its mystery. 

Good luck on this initiative, you have my vote and my voice.  I may point out that I am a college graduate, a veteran, and a father.  I work 40+ hours per week.  My taxes, for this year, have been paid.  I support, in a broad sense, law enforcement.  I do not break, on the whole, any laws outside of those pertaining to marijuana, nor will I ever.  If anyone, anywhere, can show me any scientific and non-biased evidence that marijuana is harmful when used responsibly, I will immediately concede my position and change my stance.  It cannot be done, because it is not harmful, nor has it been for the last 5000 years.

We have the civic duty to oppose those laws which are themselves unlawful.  Whether the legislature ever decides to recognize this or not, we need our LEOs, DAs, judges, and others "up the ladder" to understand this.  We all have to live here.  This is our country.  We cannot remain free - let alone export democracy to the far corners of the earth - when we progressively limit our activities without good, rational, sound cause.

Fact - Marijuana has never killed anyone.  Ever.  It is physically impossible to ingest enough raw marijuana to even approach an LD50.  Tylenol killed over 2000 people last year.

Fact - In countless academic studies, judicial opinions and peer-reviews, marijuana has been deemed to be exceedingly safe.  Moreso than virtually any prescription medication.  Moreso than any over-the-counter medication.  It does not cause lung cancer - in fact, in studies conducted on life-long smokers, those who indulged in marijuana showed less incidence of lung cancer.  This is because marijuana does not contain Polonium (a radioactive element) among other carcinogens, as tobacco does.

Fact - Marijuana has already been legalized for medicine and recreation in numerous countries, without any purported ill effect on society.  It has, however, provided much-needed tax revenue.

Fact - The laws in this "free" nation will stigmatize, imprison, and oppress... marijuana will make one sleepy, hungry, and perhaps giggly.  If you were faced with your child smoking marijuana, or your child being caught smoking marijuana, which would YOU choose?

Fact - Marijuana has been used by humanity for over 5000 years, dating back to ancient China.  For those without a calculator, this is 3000 years older than Christ.  Marijuana has, fortunately, been responsible for far less death and suffering than pretty much any mainstream religion.

Fact - Mexican drug cartels killed over 10,000 people last year.  If marijuana were broadly legalized and regulated in the USA, their fields (many hundreds/thousands of acres) would not be worth the dung they used to fertilize them.

Fact - The side effects of marijuana include empathy and introspection.  A few of the power-mongering hypocrites opposing the decriminalization of marijuana would do well to do a little experimentation with a "pro".   In other words, don't be that cop that calls 911 and reports yourself dead (think about it), because you and your ignorant wife have just toked up a donkey-dong-sized spliff of unknown potency.  Take a toke, step back, and put it down.  If marijuana were regulated and decriminalized, people would know this kind of thing.  It would lose its mystery. 

Good luck on this initiative, you have my vote and my voice.  I may point out that I am a college graduate, a veteran, and a father.  I work 40+ hours per week.  My taxes, for this year, have been paid.  I support, in a broad sense, law enforcement.  I do not break, on the whole, any laws outside of those pertaining to marijuana, nor will I ever.  If anyone, anywhere, can show me any scientific and non-biased evidence that marijuana is harmful when used responsibly, I will immediately concede my position and change my stance.  It cannot be done, because it is not harmful, nor has it been for the last 5000 years.

We have the civic duty to oppose those laws which are themselves unlawful.  Whether the legislature ever decides to recognize this or not, we need our LEOs, DAs, judges, and others "up the ladder" to understand this.  We all have to live here.  This is our country.  We cannot remain free - let alone export democracy to the far corners of the earth - when we progressively limit our activities without good, rational, sound cause.