DdC

In 1968 Charles Breyer, then a 26-year-old assistant district attorney in=20 San Francisco, wrote in a Harvard College alumni publication, I am fearlessly prosecuting flower children and other insidious threats to our way of life. As if his self-deprecating irony could mitigate the cruelty of his actions, as if he were just following orders as a young DA Today Breyer, 61, is a bow-tie-wearing U.S. District Judge, and he's still in the business of sending flower children to prison, and he still employs ironic smiles, gestures, and intonations to imply that he's just following orders, i.e., federal law, although now he's in a position to interpret the law and breathe humanity and rationality into it, as we, the people of California, tried to when we passed the medical marijuana initiative.

Last week Judge Breyer rejected motions to dismiss federal marijuana cultivation charges against Ed Rosenthal, 58, who was providing cannabis clones (starter plants of known potency) for sale to Bay Area patients and caregivers entitled to grow their own under state law (Prop 215). Rosenthal is the author and publisher of numerous books on marijuana cultivation and related topics. His column Ask Ed was a popular feature in High Times for many years, and would still be running in its glossy pages, amidst the fake buds and fake boobs, if Ed hadn't accused the lawyers who control the magazine of embezzling profits that the deceased founder had willed to the employees. But that's another story. Ed was busted by DEA agents at his Oakland residence in February 02, on the same day that DEA Administrator Asa Hutchinson arrived in San Francisco to address the Commonwealth Club. (What a coincidence!) He was charged with cultivation of more than 100 plants, maintaining a place where illegal drugs are manufactured (a warehouse in Oakland), and conspiracy to grow more than 1,000 plants with Ken Hayes and Rick Watts, proprietors of the Harm Reduction Center on 6th St. in San Francisco. Hayes split for Vancouver and Watts was injured in a car crash, so Rosenthal is standing trial by himself. As we go to press on Tuesday Jan. 14 a jury is being selected in Breyer's courtroom on the 19th floor of SF's federal building (with the judge doing his utmost to exclude anyone who feels strongly about reforming the marijuana laws). Opening arguments are set for Tuesday Jan. 21.

Rosenthal's main hope for a dismissal was based on the fact that his grow-op had been authorized by the city of Oakland, whose City Attorney had determined that the same section of the Controlled Substances Act that makes it legal for undercover cops to obtain, handle, and sell illicit drugs makes it legal for city officers to obtain, handle and sell cannabis.

The relevant section of the CSA, 885(d), states that no civil or criminal liability shall be imposed on any state or local authorized officer who shall be lawfully engaged in the enforcement of any law or municipal ordinance relating to controlled substances.

Judge Breyer, in granting the US Department of Justice an injunction against the Oakland Co-op, ruled in September 98 that section 885(d) could not protect deputized cannabis providers because to apply it thus would violate the basic purpose of the Controlled Substances Act. Breyer seemed skeptical that Rosenthal was not familiar with his ruling that section 885(d) didn't apply. He seemed peeved that the defense lawyers kept citing it. He kept referring to his draconian interpretation as the common-sense reading of the statute, but in fact it's a convoluted re-writing. Laws are supposed to mean what they say. If Congress worded the CSA too loosely, Breyer could and should kick it back to them for revision, meanwhile freeing Ed and allowing Oakland and other California jurisdictions to serve as laboratories of reform with respect to the earth-is-flat marijuana laws.

One of Ed's lawyers, Joe Elsford, reminded Breyer that the stated purpose of the CSA was to promote the public health, and that Oakland's use of section 885(d) was consistent with, not antithetical to the act. Breyer's response a non-sequitur about the supremacy of federal law was delivered with a smile of triumph, and for a second I could see a smart-ass in the Harvard Freshman Union winning a verbal joust, not fair and square but by resort to false logic, false facts, and false authority.

More Free Advice Jury Nullification is as awkward and un-sexy a term as Harm Reduction. And the Fully Informed Jurors Association sounds self-congratulatory, to boot. FIJA and the movement it's trying to inspire should refer to Jurors Rights, and the exercise of those rights should be called Jury Power. And God knows we need it.

Dr. Fry's DEA Registration Revoked (part 2)

The September 28, 2001 DEA raid on Mollie Fry and Dale Schafer's house in rural El Dorado county could not have come at a worse time, says Dr. Fry. Dale was trying to learn to grow indoors. It's almost impossible. You have to spend three hours a day every day playing with the plants. Ours got covered with spider mites and died. I had put them under the deck, not under lights, figuring Dale would compost them. We had nine plants growing for me, maybe four feet tall, in full bloom, and three plants from a woman I knew, a legitimate patient, who was being evicted and had asked Dale to take care of her plants for her. So we had 12 viable plants, and two of them had toppled over in a windstorm so Dale brought them into my bedroom to trim. It must have looked like a Christmas tree farm.

And the house! At the time of the raid there was a mother and four children living here, so things were a little disordered. We've had about 50 people living in our house over the years. When they handcuffed me I put my hands above my head and said Thank you, praise you, thank you for making my book a bestseller! Thank you, praise you for electing my husband district attorney of El Dorado County! The El Dorado cops were there and the DEA. I must have prayed a 20-minute prayer. They would ask me a question and I would answer yes or no and go right back to praying. I needed help. And finally they went away. But I think [El Dorado County DA Gary] Lacy got the word that Dale was really running to win, and a few days after he was re-elected, we heard that he had gone to the grand jury to get Dale indicted.

A DEA official sent Fry an order-to-show-cause dated March 7 02 advising that her prescription-writing privileges would be revoked because It is inconsistent with the public interest for a DEA registered practitioner to live in a residence wherein large quantities of a controlled substance are being stored, cultivated, manufactured and/or processed for distribution and/or sale. In addition, it is inconsistent with the public interest for a DEA registered practitioner to be engaged in the illegal sale of a Schedule I controlled substance such as marijuana at the practioner's registered location. The notice gave Fry 30 days to request a hearing to defend herself.

Fry hired a San Francisco lawyer named J. David Nick to represent her. He apparently missed the 30-day deadline. A letter to Fry dated Dec.13 revoked her DEA license, noting that she hadn't responded to the original order to show cause and expanding the list of her alleged failures to comply with federal law. (Nick has not returned calls requesting his side of this fiasco.) Fry says that the revocation will have a significant impact on her practice because a surprising number of her patients prefer Marinol to the crude plant. Especially the chronic pain patients, says Fry. I started out not wanting to prescribe any pharmaceuticals, but quite a few people really love Marinol. It's hard to say how many, because it's so expensive [about $10/pill]. So unless they have the right insurance. All my Kaiser patients have to decline it because Kaiser will not pay for it. All my Welfare patients have to decline it, and I have quite a few, because I give massive discounts. I thought the whole idea was that it's not medicine for the rich, it's medicine for the sick.

Fry has now hired Nedra Ruiz to argue to the DEA that it would be arbitrary and capricious to revoke her prescription privileges without hearing. Dr. Fry has never been convicted of any offense, state or federal, says Ruiz. Usually when people have their privileges revokedthey've entered a plea or been found guilty of something, or a serious narcotic is involved In this case some undercover agents claim that Dr. Fry told them where they could get a discount on materials to grow marijuana. That kind of hearsay statement, unchallenged, is the basis for their action.

Ruiz intends to argue that Fry=92s activities were legal under state law, and that it would be a gross violation of her right to due process to not grant her a hearing. A negative ruling will be appealed to the Ninth Circuit Circuit. She will have an opportunity to refute the claims that she is recommending marijuana without conducting proper examinations, says Ruiz.

On Friday, Jan 3, state Medical Board Investigator Tom Campbell left a message on the answering machine. Mollie paraphrases it as, Heads-up to Dale. We've referred a couple of the cases over to the Attorney General=92s office, and we're going to be reviewing some more. Fry thinks that DA Gary Lacy sought the medical board investigation. Every patient I've been asked about by the medical board has passed through the criminal justice system in either El Dorado or Sacramento County, Fry points out, and the complaints all came from district attorneys, not the patients themselves. Dale is thinking of enjoining the Medical Board from making any moves against Mollie's license on the grounds that Prop 215 says, no physician in this state shall be punished, or denied any right or privilege, for having recommended marijuana to a patient for medical purposes. Fry's practice has dwindled to an estimated 100 patients/month, most of them seeking re-certification. Her physician's assistant is in training to become a paramedic fireman and she hasn't found a longterm replacement because, she says bluntly, everyone is scared. Last year she and Dale paid $3,000 in taxes, mostly in self-employment tax. They're in debt and have raided the kids college fund and can barely cover their bills.

Rekoon v. Mikuriya

This is how Barry Rekoon, the San Mateo lawyer who subpoenaed Tod Mikuriya costing the Berkeley psychiatrist a morning's worth of consultations rationalized his decision not to pay expert-witness fees: I'm only going to ask him a question or two to confirm that he wrote the letter of recommendation. Your correspondent asked Rekoon, What if the prosecutor asks the doctor questions that call for expertise like how he made his diagnosis? Rekoon replied that he would object on grounds of relevance and would be sustained without a doubt. As it turned out, THM drove down to San Mateo Jan. 3 to testify that he had indeed approved the cannabis use of Robert Whitacre, a 52-year-old man with a bad back. Rekoon asked 14 questions, after which Assistant DA Morris Maya asked 51 questions on cross-examination, delving into every aspect of Mikuriya's diagnosis and practice (over Rekoon's one futile objection). Rekoon then asked two more questions on re-direct, and Judge Mark Forcum asked three of his own, ending with Would marijuana help my acid reflux condition? Mikuriya restrained an impulse to advise the judge to limit his alcohol intake... Judge Forcum expressed strong disapproval of the law created by Prop 215 I don't like it. It invites people who have marijuana addiction to claim they're using it as medicine. It really troubles me that, in a case like this there's no way to know if the cultivation was for personal use or selling it. Robert Whitacre was busted by the San Mateo sheriff for cultivating two (2) plants! Judge Forcum said he was reluctant to assume that Whiteacre was growing for personal use, but that he had to, under the law, and given Mikuriya's testimony, and so he had to acquit. But the Department of Corrections decided to imprison Whitacre for six months for violating the terms of his parole, and so the poor man was led off by a bailiff while the judge commented, Your attorney did a nice job. It's no coincidence that San Mateo DA George Fox was a leading opponent of Prop 215. A young assistant DA dragging Dr. Mikuriya into court and conducting a somewhat insulting cross examination knows he's looking good in his boss's eyes... The three cases on Judge Forcum's calendar preceding Whitacre all involved violations of the drug laws.

From: "D. Paul Stanford" stanford@crrh.org
Subject: 002 CA: Judge Not That Ye Be Not, Chuck
Newshawk: The Hemp & Cannabis Foundation <a href="http://www.thc-foundation.org" target="_blank">http ://www.thc-foundation.org</A>
Pubdate: Wed, 15 Sep 2003
Source: Anderson Valley Advertiser (CA)
Contact: ava@pacific.net
Details: <a href="http://www.mapinc.org/media/2667" target="_blank">http ://www.mapinc.org/media/2667</A>
Author: Fred Gardner
Note: Fred Gardner was formerly the Public Information Officer for San Francisco's District Attorney, Terence Hallinan.

"In the face of the federal government's unprecedented assault on medical marijuana patients, caregivers and growers, Green Aid is an invaluable source of legal aid to those on the frontlines of the struggle." - Dale Gieringer, Coordinator, California NORML, Co-sponsor, Prop. 215

About Ed Rosenthal
<a href="http://www.green-aid.com/edrosenthal.htm" target="_blank">http ://www.green-aid.com/edrosenthal.htm</A>
The Trial of Ed Rosenthal
<a href="http://www.green-aid.com/index.htm" target="_blank">http ://www.green-aid.com/index.htm</A>
First Stage of Trial for Ed Rosenthal Underway
<a href="http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread15195.shtml" target="_blank">http ://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread15195.shtml</A>

The Right To Not Be in Pain
<a href="http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread15205.shtml" target="_blank">http ://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread15205.shtml</A>
Your Government Is Lying To You Again About Marijuana
<a href="http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread15199.shtml" target="_blank">http ://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread15199.shtml</A>
Drug Czar Asked for Explanation
<a href="http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread15202.shtml" target="_blank">http ://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread15202.shtml</A>
Declaring a Truce in the War On Drugs
<a href="http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread15198.shtml" target="_blank">http ://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread15198.shtml</A>
Just Say No To Easy Answers
<a href="http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread15201.shtml" target="_blank">http ://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread15201.shtml</A>
2002: The Year in Marijuana
<a href="http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread15190.shtml" target="_blank">http ://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread15190.shtml</A>



Date: Tue, 14 Jan 2003 05:04:00 -0800
From: "D. Paul Stanford" stanford@crrh.org
Subject: 001 CA: Judge Breyer Gags Discussion of Medical MJ in Rosenthal Trial

from Dale Gieringer

San Francisco, Jan 13: US Judge Charles Breyer issued an order effectively preventing medical marijuana defendant Ed Rosenthal from presenting the salient facts in his case from being presented to the jury. Beryer forbade testimony about California's Proposition 215, medical marijuana, or the Oakland city ordinance authorizing Rosenthal to be deputized as an official medical marijuana provider. The court deferred judgment about what Rosenthal would be allowed to testify. Jury selection is scheduled to begin Tuesday, Jan 14 at 8 am. Breyer ruled that jurors may be asked about their attitudes toward marijuana legalization, medical marijuana, and whether they can cast their opinions aside for purpose of reaching a verdict. Medical marijuana advocates view Judge Breyers' orders as a travesty of justice. They complain they Rosenthal has been denied the right to explain the context of his case to the jury, in particular the fact that he was endeavoring to provide medical marijuana to patients in lawful accordance with Prop. 215, under terms worked out with Oakland city officials.

Dale Gieringer (415) 563-5858 // canorml@igc.org
2215-R Market St. #278, San Francisco CA 94114
<a href="http://www.canorml.org" target="_blank">http ://www.canorml.org</A>

Medicinal Marijuana Feds' Big Target
<a href="http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread15189.shtml" target="_blank">http ://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread15189.shtml</A>
Medicinal Marijuana Feds' Big Target (thread)
<a href="http://pub3.ezboard.com/fendingcannabisprohi bitionlinx.showMessa ge?topicID=86.topic" target="_blank">http ://pub3.ezboard.com/fendingcannabisprohi bitionlinx.showMessa ge?topicID=86.topic</A>

Ed Rosenthal Raided and Arrested by DEA/New King George
<a href="http://pub3.ezboard.com/fendingcannabisprohi bitionprohibitionist wodjunkies.showMessa ge?topicID=52.topic" target="_blank">http ://pub3.ezboard.com/fendingcannabisprohi bitionprohibitionist wodjunkies.showMessa ge?topicID=52.topic</A>

Medicinal Cannabis Research Links
<a href="http://freedomtoexhale.com/research.htm" target="_blank">http ://freedomtoexhale.com/research.htm</A>
First Stage of Trial for Ed Rosenthal Underway
<a href="http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15195.shtml" target="_blank">http ://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15195.shtml</A>
Selection of Jury in Pot Case Moved Up
<a href="http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15169.shtml" target="_blank">http ://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15169.shtml</A>
Trial Looms for Medical Pot Figure from Oakland
<a href="http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15149.shtml" target="_blank">http ://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15149.shtml</A>

<a href="http://www.mikuriya.com" target="_blank">http ://www.mikuriya.com</A>


Related Articles & Web Sites

Fully Informed Jury Association
<a href="http://www.fija.org" target="_blank">http ://www.fija.org</A>
How FIJA Saved My Life!
<a href="http://serendipity.magnet.c h/jsmill/fija1293.htm" target="_blank">http ://serendipity.magnet.c h/jsmill/fija1293.htm</A>
<a href="http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread4055.shtml" target="_blank">http ://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread4055.shtml</A>
Medical Marijuana Information Links
<a href="http://freedomtoexhale.com/medical.htm" target="_blank">http ://freedomtoexhale.com/medical.htm</A>
Trial Looms for Medical Pot Figure from Oakland
<a href="http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15149.shtml" target="_blank">http ://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15149.shtml</A>
Dismissal Sought in Medical Pot Case
<a href="http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15128.shtml" target="_blank">http ://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15128.shtml</A>
Four Arrested in Connection with Pot Cultivation
<a href="http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread11994.shtml" target="_blank">http ://cannabisnews.com/news/thread11994.shtml</A>

DEA implements US police state
<a href="http://www.cannabisculture. com/articles/2281.html" target="_blank">http ://www.cannabisculture. com/articles/2281.html</A>
Yes, We're At War ... Against Sick Americans: <a href="http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread11085.shtml" target="_blank">http ://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread11085.shtml</A>

DR. FRY LOSES HER PRESCRIPTION PRIVILEGES
<a href="http://pub3.ezboard.com/fendingcannabisprohi bitionlinx.showMessa ge?topicID=85.topic" target="_blank">http ://pub3.ezboard.com/fendingcannabisprohi bitionlinx.showMessa ge?topicID=85.topic</A>

Jury selection continues at 8:30 a.m., Wednesday, January 15, in U.S. District Court, with trial commencing on Tuesday, January 21, 2003.

FOR MORE INFORMATION: Updates and background information on Ed Rosenthal’s case are available on the web at <a href="http://www.green-aid.com" target="_blank">http ://www.green-aid.com</A> or <a href="http://www.safeaccessnow.or g" target="_blank">http ://www.safeaccessnow.or g</A>
ARON KAY-
<a href="http://www.pieman.org" target="_blank">http ://www.pieman.org</A>

The Ganjawar is a Product Sold by D.E.A.th to Profit Fascist ... DdC
<a href="http://pub3.ezboard.com/fendingcannabisprohi bitionprohibitionist wodjunkies.showMessa ge?topicID=58.topic" target="_blank">http ://pub3.ezboard.com/fendingcannabisprohi bitionprohibitionist wodjunkies.showMessa ge?topicID=58.topic</A>

]

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Governor

Excellent. Thanks for all the links. Should keep me busy for a couple days....

__________________
'Marijuana is responsible for evolution itself' Dr. Robert Melamede
"Fuck the monkeys" Ken Gorman
potgov@yahoo.com
420 Medicine

GirlsHateMe_

I was just about to post asking about what hapend to him..

Doesnt this country give us the right to a quick and speedy trial....what the fuck...he got arested like a long ass time ago and hes just now hoping to get off of those charges?

No jury in the world will convict him if thats whats going on(the shit was long so I skimmed it).

Warezlord

Very interesting stuff I opended this because my dentists name is Ed Rosenthal and it looks just like him in the picture but its not.

DdC

Thanks all...

The United States Of America Has Gone Mad
<a href="http://pub3.ezboard.com/fendingcannabisprohi bitionlinx.showMessa ge?topicID=87.topic" target="_blank">http ://pub3.ezboard.com/fendingcannabisprohi bitionlinx.showMessa ge?topicID=87.topic</A>
Opinion By John le Carré
Times Online.co.uk 1-15-3
From: ARON KAY pieman@pieman.org
<a href="http://www.pieman.org" target="_blank">http ://www.pieman.org</A>

"To oppose the policies of a government does not mean you are against the country or the people that the government supposedly represents. Such opposition should be called what it really is: democracy, or democratic dissent, or having a critical perspective about what your leaders are doing. Either we have the right to democratic dissent and criticism of these policies or we all lie down and let the leader, the Fuhrer, do what is best, while we follow uncritically, and obey whatever he commands. That's just what the Germans did with Hitler, and look where it got them." Michael Parenti, author <a href="http://deoxy.org" target="_blank">http ://deoxy.org</A>
<a href="http://www.votenowar.org" target="_blank">http ://www.votenowar.org</A>

Fascism Watch
<a href="http://www.thirdworldtravel er.com/Fascism/Fascism.html" target="_blank">http ://www.thirdworldtravel er.com/Fascism/Fascism.html</A>
THIRD WORLD TRAVELER
<a href="http://www.thirdworldtravel er.com" target="_blank">http ://www.thirdworldtravel er.com</A>
Common Dreams
<a href="http://www.commondreams.org " target="_blank">http ://www.commondreams.org </A>

"Certain American industrialists had a great deal to do with bringing fascist regimes into being in both Germany and Italy. They extended aid to help Fascism occupy the seat of power, and they are helping to keep it there." - William E. Dodd, U.S. Ambassador to Germany, 1937. Continued... <a href="http://www.sumeria.net/politics/shadv3.html" target="_blank">http ://www.sumeria.net/politics/shadv3.html</A>

Cannabis Fuel <a href="http://www.angelfire.com/ca7/ddc/Fuel.html" target="_blank">http ://www.angelfire.com/ca7/ddc/Fuel.html</A>
Cannabis Fiber <a href="http://www.angelfire.com/ca7/ddc/Fiber.html" target="_blank">http ://www.angelfire.com/ca7/ddc/Fiber.html</A>

U.S. law enforcement spends $7.5 to $10 billion annually enforcing marijuana laws. According to the FBI, 720,000 Americans were arrested on marijuana charges in 2001.
Keith Stroup, (NORML) <a href="http://www.norml.org" target="_blank">http ://www.norml.org</A>
<a href="http://www.novembercoalitio n.org" target="_blank">http ://www.novembercoalitio n.org</A>

"The Constitution of the Republic should make provision for medical freedom as well as religious freedom. To restrict the art of healing to one class of men and deny equal privilege to others will constitute the Bastille of medical science." - - Benjamin Rush

D.E.A.th Deceptions <a href="http://www.angelfire.com/ca7/ddc/DEAth.html" target="_blank">http ://www.angelfire.com/ca7/ddc/DEAth.html</A>

"We shall by and by want a world of hemp more for our own consumption."
—John Adams as Humphrey Ploughjogger, 1763 <a href="http://www.masscann.org" target="_blank">http ://www.masscann.org</A>

The State vs. Doctors by Congressman Ron Paul, MD
<a href="http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig/paul3.html" target="_blank">http ://www.lewrockwell.com/orig/paul3.html</A>
THE POLICE STATE COMETH by Rep.Ron Paul
<a href="http://www.house.gov/paul/congrec/congrec97/cr062597b.htm" target="_blank">http ://www.house.gov/paul/congrec/congrec97/cr062597b.htm</A>

"You waste my coin Sam, all you can
To jail my fellow man
For smoking all the noble weed
You need much more than him
You've been telling lies so long
Some believe they're true
So they close their eyes to things
You have no right to do"
"Don't Step on the Grass, Sam" by Steppenwolf

The Ganjawar is a Product Sold by D.E.A.th to Profit Fascist ... DdC
<a href="http://pub3.ezboard.com/fendingcannabisprohi bitionprohibitionist wodjunkies.showMessa ge?topicID=58.topic" target="_blank">http ://pub3.ezboard.com/fendingcannabisprohi bitionprohibitionist wodjunkies.showMessa ge?topicID=58.topic</A>

"No class or group or party in Germany could escape its share of responsibility for the abandonment of the democratic Republic and the advent of Adolf Hitler. The cardinal error of the Germans who opposed Nazism was their failure to unite against it. ....the 63% of the German people who expressed their opposition to Hitler were much too divided and shortsighted to combine against a common danger which they must have known would overwhelm them unless they united, HOWEVER TEMPORARY, to stamp it out." -William L. Shirer

How some things never seem to change...

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