Medical Marijuana Disconnect
Suzanne Wills, Drug Policy Chair
February, 2006
On December 20, the Drug Enforcement Agency raided the HopeNet medical cannabis dispensary in San Francisco. They seized plants and money. According to local activists, HopeNet is an exemplary dispensary which adheres scrupulously to local and state law.
Two weeks later, on January 3, the Rhode Island House voted to make Rhode Island the 11th state to legalize marijuana for medical use. The other states are Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont and Washington. Maryland law requires the court to consider medical use to be a mitigating factor in any state marijuana prosecution.
National surveys show that more than 75% of Americans oppose prosecuting patients who use cannabis as a medicinal herb. The conflict between these citizens and the federal government shows no signs of abating.