Jim Finnel
Fallen Cannabis Warrior & Ex News Moderator
Elisa Clark is one in a long line of advocates for safe and accessible access to medical marijuana. For over a year, Clark, a Vancouver resident living in the downtown area, has been networking and building relationships, working towards what she hopes will be Clark County’s first medical marijuana collective.
Clark already has a name, Pacific Northwest Compassionate Care (PNWCC), and a business license, but there is a lot of work and precautions in the way of her goal coming to fruition.
“The fact is this: collectives are popping up all over the state,” Clark said. “Patients are bonding together and they have been for year.”
Washington voters passed the legalization of medical marijuana (I-692) in 1998. The law allows patients, with permission from a physician, to receive medical marijuana from one caregiver (grower). But, the one patient, one seller law is being criticized for being too unclear when it comes to access and leaves too much to the interpretation of law enforcement and courts.
“That’s the fatal flaw of these laws, no provisions for access,” said Clark, a paralegal and medical marijuana patient. “You can have 20 different lawyers look at the law and have 20 different interpretations.”
Medical card holders can still be arrested. I-692 only allows patients to present a medical marijuana defense in court, which should lead to acquittal.
Clark County Sheriff’s Sergeant Tony Barnes of the Clark/Skamania Drug Task Force advises Clark County deputies let anyone with a medical marijuana card and under 24 ounces to keep their supply. If the person can’t produce a card, he advises them to take the herb.
In the case of drug tips via the Task Forces tip line, Barnes said an investigation proceeds, which usually entails deputies going to a house and talking with the grower.
“Our sole objective is to make sure they are in compliance of the law,” he said. If a grower has over the limit, they are asked to destroy the extras, “we educate them, and leave it at that.”
Since drug trafficking is a felony, it is up to county enforcement to choose to arrest collective organizers and county attorneys to prosecute.
Barnes talked with Clark after a Forum at the Library discussing Medical Marijuana in May. He referred her to the county prosecutor’s office. Barnes said the Task Force’s stance is that it will enforce state law. His understanding is that nothing in state law allows a cooperative organization to legally exist.
The only place in the state that currently ‘allows’ collectives and cooperatives to function is King County. Elsewhere in the state, legal showdowns are popping up, and Clark is watching closely.
Earlier this year, Darren J. McCrea of Spokane, Wash. was arrested and faces trial for running SpoCannabis, a dispensary run out of his home. This may turn out to be the fate for Chet Biggerstaff, too, Founder of Three River Collective in Kennewick, Wash.
“I’m sure it will be [my fate]. I’ll be more than happy to slap them with a false arrest suit,” Biggerstaff said over the phone. “The law doesn’t say each patient has to grow at their own place. But, that’s not the issue. The issue is it’s already being done. If it can be done in part of the state, it can be done in all of the state.”
Three River Collective is currently setting up an operation in a Kennewick church, which has offered the organization space to grow and dispense medicine, as well as room for public and private meetings, “for a very reasonable price,” Biggerstaff said.
Biggerstaff said it more than likely will take Clark getting arrested for the county prosecutor’s to come to the table on the matter.
Phil Meyers, Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney for Clark County, said he could not comment about if the attorney’s office has discussed the matter. He said he’s unaware of the criminal case pending in Spokane.
“If a case is referred to us, we will review it under the statute to determine if a cime is committed,” Meyers said.
But, Clark does not seem interested in following Biggerstaff’s lead in being arrested to fight the cause.
“I’m trying to keep lines of communication open with the powers at be and build positive relationships,” Clark said.
PNWCC ideally wants a spot in Uptown Village, but Clark said a more low-key place, further from the Interstate, would likely be a better starting point.
Clark stresses that the “stoner” stereotypes need to be busted. She is organizing a group of mothers who are medical marijuana patients to advocate.
Patience for patients
Like a lot of medical marijuana growers, Troy Williams started out in the black market. When he gave to a friend’s uncle who was going through chemotherapy, however, he saw how much the drug helped, and it inspired him to go medical.
“I have seen people die both ways: with opiates and with marijuana,” Williams said. “Some people die with a smile on their face.”
Williams has been growing for medical purposes for almost a decade. He is currently a designated provider for a women who suffers from chronic pain due to deconstructive surgery.
“It’s a feel good thing, be that selfish or not,” he said.
Williams is also a patient. He suffers from epilepsy, brought on by an electrocution he endured earlier in the year while setting up a grow operation. With marijuana, he is able to control his affliction to a mild seizure about every two week.
Like many medical marijuana advocates, Williams points out the many gaps in marijuana laws and perceptions. He said the one patient, one grower system creates inefficient, high costing and lower quality medicine. On top of everything is the need for more research and education.
“I’m confident that a lab could figure out what I’ve learned over the last decade in less than a year,” he said. “We need assistance and care from a professional market.” Williams said if this were available, he could have hired proper electrical help and never would have been electrocuted.
Williams said his neurologist “definitely backs” his use of marijuana to treat epilepsy (specifically, sativa strains), but his doctor cannot prescribe medical marijuana because his hospital, like many, forbids the practice unless it is an end of life scenerio. Most hospital organizations forbid its doctors from prescribing marijuana. Physicians of Southwest Washington Medical Center cannot prescribe marijuana to hospitalized patients, a policy developed with the Department of Health Board of Pharmacy, but they “would not be prohibited from prescribing the herb for home use,” according to Ken Col, Manager of Public Affairs and Communications.
The more open discussions that occur regarding medical marijuana advnancement, the better, Williams said.
“Medical Mariuana would be an option for a lot more people if we were allowed to pool our resource.
NewsHawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: vanvoice.com
Author: Ossie Bladine
Copyright: 2009 Digital Press Consortium
Contact: Contact Us - Vancouver Voice
Website: Legally speaking - Vancouver Voice
Clark already has a name, Pacific Northwest Compassionate Care (PNWCC), and a business license, but there is a lot of work and precautions in the way of her goal coming to fruition.
“The fact is this: collectives are popping up all over the state,” Clark said. “Patients are bonding together and they have been for year.”
Washington voters passed the legalization of medical marijuana (I-692) in 1998. The law allows patients, with permission from a physician, to receive medical marijuana from one caregiver (grower). But, the one patient, one seller law is being criticized for being too unclear when it comes to access and leaves too much to the interpretation of law enforcement and courts.
“That’s the fatal flaw of these laws, no provisions for access,” said Clark, a paralegal and medical marijuana patient. “You can have 20 different lawyers look at the law and have 20 different interpretations.”
Medical card holders can still be arrested. I-692 only allows patients to present a medical marijuana defense in court, which should lead to acquittal.
Clark County Sheriff’s Sergeant Tony Barnes of the Clark/Skamania Drug Task Force advises Clark County deputies let anyone with a medical marijuana card and under 24 ounces to keep their supply. If the person can’t produce a card, he advises them to take the herb.
In the case of drug tips via the Task Forces tip line, Barnes said an investigation proceeds, which usually entails deputies going to a house and talking with the grower.
“Our sole objective is to make sure they are in compliance of the law,” he said. If a grower has over the limit, they are asked to destroy the extras, “we educate them, and leave it at that.”
Since drug trafficking is a felony, it is up to county enforcement to choose to arrest collective organizers and county attorneys to prosecute.
Barnes talked with Clark after a Forum at the Library discussing Medical Marijuana in May. He referred her to the county prosecutor’s office. Barnes said the Task Force’s stance is that it will enforce state law. His understanding is that nothing in state law allows a cooperative organization to legally exist.
The only place in the state that currently ‘allows’ collectives and cooperatives to function is King County. Elsewhere in the state, legal showdowns are popping up, and Clark is watching closely.
Earlier this year, Darren J. McCrea of Spokane, Wash. was arrested and faces trial for running SpoCannabis, a dispensary run out of his home. This may turn out to be the fate for Chet Biggerstaff, too, Founder of Three River Collective in Kennewick, Wash.
“I’m sure it will be [my fate]. I’ll be more than happy to slap them with a false arrest suit,” Biggerstaff said over the phone. “The law doesn’t say each patient has to grow at their own place. But, that’s not the issue. The issue is it’s already being done. If it can be done in part of the state, it can be done in all of the state.”
Three River Collective is currently setting up an operation in a Kennewick church, which has offered the organization space to grow and dispense medicine, as well as room for public and private meetings, “for a very reasonable price,” Biggerstaff said.
Biggerstaff said it more than likely will take Clark getting arrested for the county prosecutor’s to come to the table on the matter.
Phil Meyers, Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney for Clark County, said he could not comment about if the attorney’s office has discussed the matter. He said he’s unaware of the criminal case pending in Spokane.
“If a case is referred to us, we will review it under the statute to determine if a cime is committed,” Meyers said.
But, Clark does not seem interested in following Biggerstaff’s lead in being arrested to fight the cause.
“I’m trying to keep lines of communication open with the powers at be and build positive relationships,” Clark said.
PNWCC ideally wants a spot in Uptown Village, but Clark said a more low-key place, further from the Interstate, would likely be a better starting point.
Clark stresses that the “stoner” stereotypes need to be busted. She is organizing a group of mothers who are medical marijuana patients to advocate.
Patience for patients
Like a lot of medical marijuana growers, Troy Williams started out in the black market. When he gave to a friend’s uncle who was going through chemotherapy, however, he saw how much the drug helped, and it inspired him to go medical.
“I have seen people die both ways: with opiates and with marijuana,” Williams said. “Some people die with a smile on their face.”
Williams has been growing for medical purposes for almost a decade. He is currently a designated provider for a women who suffers from chronic pain due to deconstructive surgery.
“It’s a feel good thing, be that selfish or not,” he said.
Williams is also a patient. He suffers from epilepsy, brought on by an electrocution he endured earlier in the year while setting up a grow operation. With marijuana, he is able to control his affliction to a mild seizure about every two week.
Like many medical marijuana advocates, Williams points out the many gaps in marijuana laws and perceptions. He said the one patient, one grower system creates inefficient, high costing and lower quality medicine. On top of everything is the need for more research and education.
“I’m confident that a lab could figure out what I’ve learned over the last decade in less than a year,” he said. “We need assistance and care from a professional market.” Williams said if this were available, he could have hired proper electrical help and never would have been electrocuted.
Williams said his neurologist “definitely backs” his use of marijuana to treat epilepsy (specifically, sativa strains), but his doctor cannot prescribe medical marijuana because his hospital, like many, forbids the practice unless it is an end of life scenerio. Most hospital organizations forbid its doctors from prescribing marijuana. Physicians of Southwest Washington Medical Center cannot prescribe marijuana to hospitalized patients, a policy developed with the Department of Health Board of Pharmacy, but they “would not be prohibited from prescribing the herb for home use,” according to Ken Col, Manager of Public Affairs and Communications.
The more open discussions that occur regarding medical marijuana advnancement, the better, Williams said.
“Medical Mariuana would be an option for a lot more people if we were allowed to pool our resource.
NewsHawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: vanvoice.com
Author: Ossie Bladine
Copyright: 2009 Digital Press Consortium
Contact: Contact Us - Vancouver Voice
Website: Legally speaking - Vancouver Voice
