Dear ASA Supporter,

On February 5th, the White House issued a statement of President Obama’s position on ending federal interference in state medical cannabis laws. But this still leaves innocent people in prison who would have been protected by their state laws, if they had not been raided by the policies of George W. Bush. They’re still in prison, and they need to know we’re behind them. Today, write a short note to let them know they are not alone.

There are many people currently serving time in federal prison for crimes that would have been protected by the medical cannabis laws in their states. Check ASA’s website for a list of individuals currently serving time. You’ll be able to read their stories and write to an individual whose situation really catches your attention.

Find the mailing addresses for these medical cannabis caregiver prisoners here, along with some helpful tips for writing to inmates in federal prison.

When writing to inmates, there are a couple of things to keep in mind:

1.    Don’t write about anything illegal or incriminating in the letters

2.    Be yourself, focus on giving them sympathy and emotional support, and try to be understanding about what they may be going through.

3.    Use common sense and be forward and clear with your intentions

It is not only those who are currently serving time that need our support, but also those who have yet to be sentenced or who are currently awaiting trial. If, as Obama says, the federal government stops undermining state medical cannabis laws – then what does that mean for those “in limbo;” those who have already fallen victim to George W. Bush’s war on innocent Americans? Get a list of upcoming court cases here – where you’ll also find additional details and information on individual cases.

In addition, call President Obama to tell him about the status of these cases and ask him to grant pardons or clemency to these individuals. Call 202-456-1111 and use this sample script:

Hi, my name is _____________ and I live in __________. I would like to thank President Obama for agreeing to end federal interference in states with medical cannabis laws. It is a much needed step forward and will help alleviate the suffering of hundreds of thousands of Americans. However, there are still many individuals currently serving time in federal prisons or awaiting sentences from federal prosecutions for crimes that would have been protected by the laws in their own states. I ask that the President consider the fate of these people, and whether or not federal prison terms for these individuals is consistent with the White House position on federal interference and the values of the American justice system. Thank you.

Don’t forget that these people need our help. They are political prisoners, and casualties of Bush’s War on Patients. Communicating with one who’s been unjustly imprisoned can be a profound experience.

Sincerely,

Josie Weisbrich
Legal Coordinator
Americans for Safe Access

[Courtesy of Coalition for Medical Marijuana -- New Jersey, Inc.] 

FOR IMMEDIATE Release: February 19, 2009

For more information, contact: Ken Wolski @ (609) 394-2137

New Jersey Senate to Vote on Medical Marijuana

WHO:      State Senators in New Jersey

WHAT:   Will vote on the New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act (S119)

WHEN:   Monday February 23, 2009 at 2:00 PM

WHERE: Senate Chambers of the New Jersey State House in Trenton, NJ

WHY:       To advance a bill that will protect seriously ill or injured New Jersey patients who use therapeutic marijuana on the advice of a licensed physician. 

The New Jersey State Senate will vote on the New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act" (S119)  on Monday, February 23, 2009 at 2:00 PM in the State House Senate Chambers in Trenton, NJ.  Many supporters of the bill plan to attend the voting session, led by the Coalition for Medical Marijuana--New Jersey, Inc. (CMMNJ).  New Jersey would become the 14^th state in the nation to legalize medical marijuana by passing this legislation into law.

S119 will remove the state penalties for the possession, use and cultivation of a small amount of marijuana when a licensed physician recommends it for a debilitating medical condition.  Qualifying medical conditions include chronic pain, cancer, AIDS, multiple sclerosis, Crohn’s disease, etc.  Patients will be issued ID cards in a program run by the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS).  Patients will be permitted to grow up to six plants and possess one ounce of marijuana, but they will not be permitted to use their therapeutic marijuana in public or while operating motor vehicles.  Patients may designate a caregiver or treatment center to grow the plants for them, but the caregiver/center must also register with DHSS.  CMMNJ Executive Director, Ken Wolski, RN said, “The bill is very conservative.  No medical marijuana state has a smaller plant limit or possession amount.  Still, it will help a tremendous number of patients here.”  The American Nurses Association, the American College of Physicians, the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, the American Public Health Association, the American Academy of HIV Medicine and many other professional healthcare organizations have endorsed medical marijuana. 

S119 was originally introduced by Senator Nicholas Scutari, D-Linden, in January 2005, and was referred to the senate health committee.   Hearings were conducted on the bill in June 2006 and in December 2008, at which time the bill was favorably released out of committee by a 6 – 1 vote.  If the bill passes in the senate, it will then go to the assembly for votes by the health committee and the entire assembly.  Governor Jon Corzine has said on several occasions that he supports medical marijuana and that he will sign the bill when it gets to his desk. 

CMMNJ, 501(c)(3) public charity, provides education about the benefits of safe and legal access to medical marijuana.  For more info, contact:

Ken Wolski, RN, MPA, Executive Director

Coalition for Medical Marijuana--New Jersey, Inc.
844 Spruce St., Trenton, NJ  08648
609.394.2137 www.cmmnj.org   [email protected]

This link from the Drug Policy Alliance allows personalized e-mails to be forwarded to all NJ State Senators:

http://dpa.convio.net/site/MessageViewer?em_id=9921.0&dlv_id=24781

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE   
FEBRUARY 18, 2009

House Committee Passes Medical Marijuana, 9-6

CONTACT: Former Rep. Chris DeLaForest (R-Andover)......................................................(763) 439-1178

ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA -- Minnesota's medical marijuana bill, H.F. 292, cleared its first hurdle in the House of Representatives today, passing the Health Care and Human Services Policy and Oversight Committee in a vote of 9 to 6. The vote came after medical marijuana patients and others testified to the relief provided by medical marijuana when conventional treatments had failed.

    "Before medical marijuana, I was in such pain I had no life," said K.K. Forss of Ely, who suffers chronic, severe pain as a result of a ruptured disk in his neck and repeated surgeries on his neck and upper spine. "It was so horrible I wanted to die every day. No one should have to face a choice between suffering unbearably and risking arrest and jail."

    Rep. Tom Rukavina (DFL-Virginia), sponsor of the bill, hailed the vote, saying, "Today's vote is an important step toward protecting seriously ill Minnesotans. The evidence is clear that medical marijuana can help some patients who suffer terribly, and it's time to protect these patients from arrest and jail."

    "This sensible, humane, bipartisan bill is modeled after laws that have been working well for years in states like Montana and Rhode Island," said Rep. Mark Buesgens (R-Jordan). "We should not be using our scarce law enforcement dollars to arrest suffering patients for using a medicine their doctor has recommended."

    Thirteen states, comprising approximately one-quarter of the U.S. population, now permit medical use of marijuana under state law if a physician has recommended it. The newest such law was enacted by Michigan voters last November, passing with a record-setting 63 percent "yes" vote. Medical organizations which have recognized marijuana's medical uses include the American Public Health Association, American Nurses Association, American Academy of HIV Medicine, and American College of Physicians, which noted "marijuana's proven efficacy at treating certain symptoms and its relatively low toxicity," in a statement issued last year.

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ASA California Weekly Alert: 2-13-2009

Weekly Round Up
1. Advocates Meet with LA City Council Member to Contest Proposed Ordinance
2. Coachella Moratorium Set to Expire, Council Draws Plans for Dispensary Ban

Chapter and Affiliate Meetings
3. Tuesday, February 17th – Sacramento: ASA Affiliate Compassionate Coalition
4. Wednesday, February 18th – Fullerton: Orange County ASA Meeting
5. Saturday, February 21st – Los Angeles: L.A. ASA Meeting

6. Tuesday, February 24th - San Francisco: SF ASA Meeting
7. Wednesday, February 25th - Oakland: East Bay ASA Meeting

City and County Hearings
8. Wednesday, February 18th - Palm Springs: City Council to Consider Dispensary Ordinance

Court Support
9. Monday, February 23rd - Los Angeles: Protest to Support Charles Lynch Against Federal Injustice

Special Events
10. Saturday February 14th - San Francisco: Spread the Love Valentine Seed Planting
11. Saturday February 14th - Sebastopol: Valentine’s Day Heart Party!
12. Saturday February 14th - Sacramento: Gardening, Work day & BBQ at the Freedom House in Sacramento
13. Saturday February 14th - Berkeley : Natural Remedies Health Services Presents:
14. Sunday February 15th - San Francisco: Celebrating the History of 215: with Denis Peron featuring an unreleased documentary & local Medical Cannabis films.
15. Monday February 16th - Sacramento: Medical Marijuana Art show & Informational Nights.
16. Tuesday February 17th - Berkeley: Book signing and talk with Doug McVay author of Drug War Facts at BPG
17. Tuesday February 17th - San Francisco: CCA Party!
18. Tuesday, February 17th San Diego: San Diego Protest  Against Local Raids!  “A walk towards freedom”
19. Wednesday February 18th - Oakland: Medical Marijuana University 6pm-9pm
20. Thursday February 19th - Oakland: ASA Organizers Training and Open House
21. Friday February 20th - Oakland: Movie Night at Oaksterdam Student Union
22. Saturday February 21st - Los Angeles: LA-ASA Meeting & Activist Training
23. Sunday February 22nd - Oakland: East Bay Medical Cannabis Activists Mixer
24. Wednesday, March 11th - Riverside County AIDS Conference to Include Medical Cannabis Panel

Weekly Round Up

1. Advocates Meet with LA City Council Member to Contest Proposed Ordinance

The Los Angeles City Attorney issued a revised version of the proposed ordinance regulating medical cannabis dispensing collectives this week. However, the newest version of the draft ordinance changed little from the one published just hours before January's Planning and Land Use Management Committee (PLUM) meeting, to which there was community opposition. 


Patients and advocates who served on the city's working group and other community members joined LA Councilmember Dennis Zine in rejecting the City Attorney's draft and calling on the committee to request a new ordinance incorporating the working group's input.  Many provisions in the draft ordinance are problematic, including those which ban edibles and concentrates (both legal under California law), require disclosure of patient data, and seek to exclude storefront collectives from locating within the city with requirements more stringent than those applied to liquor stores or strip clubs, and despite being recognized as legal by California Attorney General Jerry Brown.  In addition, the City Attorney's draft ordinance is based on faulty assumptions about medical cannabis law and patients' associations.

The City Attorney insists that sales of medical cannabis and storefront facilities that provide it on behalf of legal patients' collectives and cooperatives are illegal. As a result of this outdated and incorrect opinion, the City Attorney developed a draft ordinance that seeks to regulate the collective cultivation of medical cannabis, instead of the storefront facilities from which medicine is provided.   In August of 2008, the California Attorney General published guidelines that make it clear that patient collectives and cooperatives are legal. Section IV(C)(1) of the Guidelines specifically recognizes that legal collectives and cooperatives may maintain storefronts to provide medicine to members.
 
Dozens of cities and counties in California have already adopted guidelines regulating storefront facilities, and none have seen negative legal consequences as a result of exercising their right and responsibility to enact sensible regulations. In fact, research and experience shows that jurisdictions that adopt regulations have fewer complaints and less crime surrounding facilities. 

Advocates met with LA City Councilmember Ed Reyes and city staff to discuss the City Attorney's draft. As Chairman of the PLUM Committee, Reyes will have a tremendous impact on whether the committee forwards the flawed ordinance to the full City Council or sends it back to staff for more work. Councilmember Reyes made no decision based on the meeting, but promised to confer with city staff before the issue comes back to the Committee later this month.  Community members must continue to let Councilmembers Reyes and Huizar on the PLUM Committee know that we do not support the City Attorney¹s draft ordinance! There is as yet no commitment that the committee will reject this unworkable ordinance.

Dear ASA Supporter,

There is a lot of important information out there about cannabis as medicine. Did you know there are over 17,000 published scientific articles on cannabis and “cannabinoids” since 1996? Did you know that DEA Judges have now twice ruled in favor of medical cannabis, and DEA Administrators have twice ignored the rulings? Can you recite ASA’s Federal Policy Recommendations? Spend a day reading and learning about why this issue is so profound.

According to the widely respected magazine, The Economist, “If cannabis were unknown, and bioprospectors were suddenly to find it in some remote mountain crevice, its discovery would no doubt be hailed as a medical breakthrough.” (Economist, May 5, 2006).

There’s a reason for all this excitement. Cannabis may soon be considered one of the defining medical discoveries of our generation. For 40 years, efforts to recognize the plant's medical properties have been denied, ignored, and suppressed - all because of a negative stigma. To fully understand this issue, you should know the science, the law, and the politics.

Learn about the science. Read about Dr. Mechoulam’s discovery of the human endocannabinoid system in the 1990’s and why major pharmaceutical companies are developing their own “cannabinoid” research departments. Read about some of the most important studies of today which show promise in the use of cannabis to treat an extraordinarily wide array of conditions.

www.safeaccessnow.org/researchdatabase
www.medicalcannabis.com/reference.htm
www.safeaccessnow.org/additionalresources

Learn about the law. Understand what court cases over the years have ruled for or against medical cannabis. Know why states have the right to enact medical cananbis laws, but the federal government also has the right to interfere with them. Read about the DEA’s own Administrative Law Judge Francis Young, who ruled, “It would be unreasonable, arbitrary and capricious for DEA to continue to stand between those sufferers and the benefits of this substance in light of the evidence in this record.” And read about the most recent DEA ruling, released by another DEA Judge in 2007, which demanded that DEA lift barriers to cannabis research. Understand how DEA Administrators ignored the rulings and acted directly contrary, putting cannabis research back over 20 years.

DEA Judge Francis Young Ruling
DEA Judge Bittner Ruling
Landmark Decisions in Medical Cannabis Law

Learn about the politics. Did you know that even before 1996, 35 states had some form of medical cannabis law on the books, but that they were all unworkable due to legal loopholes? Learn the "in’s and out’s" of medical cannabis laws in 13 states – and which ones are tentatively considered “the 14th and 15th medical cannabis states”. Learn all this and more here:

Medical Cannabis Laws in 14 States
ASA’s Federal Policy Recommendations

And when you're done, you'll be even better prepared to become an ASA Ambassador!

Sincerely,

George Pappas
Field Coordinator
Americans for Safe Access

Americans for Safe Access is the nation's largest organization of patients, medical professionals, scientists and concerned citizens promoting safe and legal access to cannabis for therapeutic use and research.

Monthly Public Meeting Minutes

Lawrence Township Library

Tuesday, February 10, 2009; 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM

7:20 PM:  Meeting called to order.  January 2009 minutes approved.  Discussion: 

Ø  “Come to Trenton to support medical marijuana, Monday, 2/23/09.”  The vote by the entire NJ Senate on “The New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act” (S119), as amended, is expected to take place on 2/23/09.  CMMNJ will send Press Releases before the vote to rally support, and after the vote to discuss the outcome.  Contact your senator today.  Members of the national organization, Patients Out of Time, plan to assist in passing this important legislation.  If the bill passes in the senate, it will then go to the NJ Assembly.

 

Ø  Upcoming events:  Chris Goldstein, CMMNJ & Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) will host a free, educational seminar on medical marijuana on Wed., 2/18/09 from 12:30 PM – 2:00 PM at the Rutgers/Camden Law School, Room 207.  Ken & Jim Miller will be on WIFI 1460 AM Radio on 2/12/09 at 4:30 PM.  NORML NJ is meeting on 2/21/09 at 7:00 PM in Toms River, NJ to rally support for medical marijuana.  (For NORML NJ meeting info, contact [email protected] ).  CMMNJ plans to join SSDP Rutgers on May 2, 2009 in a march for medical marijuana in New Brunswick, NJ.

 

Ø  Recent publications: The Times of Trenton published CMMNJ’s OP-ED, "Drug laws vs. medical science" 1/15/09.  The Nursing Spectrum published the article, “The Great Debate: Medical Marijuana or Not?  Will New Jersey legislators pass a law in 2009?”  on 1/26/09.  The Asbury Park Press published Jim Miller’s LTE, “Support warranted for medical marijuana” on 2/9/09.

 

Ø  Recent appearances:  CMMNJ appeared on WIBG 1020 AM Talk Radio on 1/20/09.   A podcast of the live radio show is expected to be available soon.  CMMNJ and Chris Goldstein hosted a free, educational seminar on medical marijuana on 2/3/09 at the Willingboro Public Library.

Ø  Update on Jackson, NJ Crohn’s patient Mike Miceli who was arrested for medical marijuana on 9/4/08.

Ø  CMMNJ has new photos, etc. on Facebook and Facebook Friends of CMMNJ.

 

Ø  CMMNJ attended the Americans for Safe Access (ASA) national conference call 1/28/09.  Federal policy towards medical marijuana is changing!  

Ø  Treasury report: Checking account: $1864.45.  PayPal account: $577.59.  Please consider a tax-deductible donation to CMMNJ, a 501(c)(3) organization, to support public education about medical marijuana.  Donations may be made securely through Paypal or checks made out to “CMMNJ” and sent to corporate headquarters at the address below.  Thank you for your interest and support.

  9:00 PM Adjourn meeting.

Next Meeting: March 10, 2009 from 7:00 PM until 9:00 PM at the Lawrence Twp. Library, 2751 Brunswick Pike (at Darrah Lane), Lawrence Twp., NJ (Tel. #609.882.9246).  All are welcome.  Snacks are served.  Meeting at the library does not imply their endorsement of our issue.  For more info, contact:

Ken Wolski, RN, MPA
Executive Director, Coalition for Medical Marijuana--New Jersey, Inc. www.cmmnj.org, 844 Spruce St., Trenton, NJ 08648, (609) 394-2137

Dear friends:

Fresh off our winning ballot initiative campaigns in Michigan and Massachusetts, the Marijuana Policy Project has just launched a campaign to pass a statewide medical marijuana ballot initiative campaign in Arizona.

If passed in November 2010, the initiative would protect Arizona patients from arrest and jail for using marijuana with their doctors' recommendation. This would make Arizona the 14^th medical marijuana state (or possibly the 15^th, 16^th, or even 17^th, depending on what successes we have between now and then).

We're feeling good about this campaign because in November we passed a similar initiative in Michigan with a whopping 63% of the vote — and we know we can do it again in Arizona.

But the first thing we need to do is get the initiative placed on the ballot. To do that, we must collect 153,365 valid signatures from Arizona voters, which means we need to collect about 250,000 gross signatures. We know from our past successful signature drives, like in Michigan, that it costs about $2 to collect every signature (because of the costs of paying canvassers, checking validity, and so forth), which means it will take $500,000 to fund this stage of the campaign.

Want to be part of this exciting campaign and help protect another state's medical marijuana patients from arrest and jail?  Please donate what you can here.

As you can see at the bottom of this message, a major philanthropist is willing to match your donation dollar-for-dollar, so we only need you and other MPP members to donate a total of $250,000. Arizona patients and I are grateful for anything you can do to help.

Sincerely,

Rob Kampia
Executive Director
Marijuana Policy Project
Washington, D.C.

P.S. As I've mentioned in previous alerts, a major philanthropist has committed to match the first $2.35 million that MPP can raise from the rest of the planet in 2009. This means that your donation today will be doubled.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE   
FEBRUARY 11, 2009

Medical Marijuana Bill Passes Senate Committee in Bipartisan Vote, 8-3

CONTACT: Former Rep. Chris DeLaForest (R-Andover)......................................................(763) 439-1178

ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA -- Minnesota's medical marijuana bill, S.F. 97, cleared its first major hurdle this afternoon, passing the Senate Health, Housing and Family Security Committee in a bipartisan vote of 8 to 3. The committee received spoken and written testimony from a number of patients and family members describing the relief provided by medical marijuana when conventional treatments had failed.

    "I believe this will be the year medical marijuana becomes law in Minnesota," said Sen. Steve Murphy (DFL-Red Wing), a sponsor of the bill. "We've seen now from the experiences of 13 states -- one-quarter of the country -- that these laws work well, and that the dire warnings of opponents simply don't come true. The voters understand that there is no reason to subject suffering patients to arrest and jail for using a doctor-recommended medicine."

    One of those testifying was Joni Whiting of Jordan, a disabled Vietnam veteran who had strongly disapproved of marijuana use until her daughter was diagnosed with melanoma and began suffering unbearable nausea and pain from the treatments. "I was opposed to marijuana," Whiting said, "but the nausea my daughter suffered from the chemotherapy was so bad she lost a lot of weight, and the pills the doctor prescribed didn't help -- including Marinol, the THC pill. Marijuana allowed her to eat and also helped ease her pain, and she looked better than I'd seen her in months. I would have rather spent the rest of my life in prison than have denied her the medicine that kept her pain at bay and allowed her to live 89 more days."

    "I'm pleased to co-author this important legislation that will empower doctors and patients while protecting sick and dying Minnesotans from the threat of criminal prosecution," said Sen. Debbie Johnson (R-Ham Lake). "Most FDA-approved drugs assist in managing short-term pain.  Chronically ill and terminal patients need alternatives. Medical marijuana is one of those alternatives."

    Written testimony from patients and others is available at http://www.minnesotacares.org/Health_Housing_and_Family_Security_Committee_Testimony.htm.

    Thirteen states, including one-quarter of the U.S. population, now permit medical use of marijuana under state law. The newest such law was enacted by Michigan voters last November, passing with a record-setting 63 percent "yes" vote. Medical organizations which have recognized marijuana's medical uses include the American Public Health Association, American Nurses Association, American Academy of HIV Medicine, and American College of Physicians, which noted "marijuana's proven efficacy at treating certain symptoms and its relatively low toxicity," in a statement issued last year.

####