PROVIDENCE – While a special Senate commission continues studying the prohibition of marijuana and perhaps a Massachusetts-style decriminalization of the drug, two House members have submitted legislation to tighten up the state's medical marijuana law.
The Senate commission, chaired by Sen. Joshua Miller, will meet Wednesday at 5 p.m. to hear from Rhode Island Public Defender John J. Hardiman, Esq.; Jack Cole of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition; a representative of the Massachusetts Police Chiefs Association; and commission member Joe Osediacz, a retired state trooper. Osediacz will discuss state laws concerning the taxation of marijuana.
At the same time, two state representatives from Providence, both retired police officers, have introduced a bill that would set stricter limits on who can possess the otherwise illegal drug under the state's medical marijuana law.
Reps. Joseph Almeida and John Carnevale want to phase out the "caregivers" who are authorized to grow, possess and provide marijuana to certified patients once the state opens up the "compassion center" established last year over Gov. Donald Carcieri's veto.
Highlighting the need for tweaking the medical marijuana law, first passed in 2006, the legislators pointed to the recent motion by a man with a history of drug arrests to have drug possession charges dismissed because he was authorized for a medical marijuana identification card months after his arrest.
Almeida and Carnevale, while they support the concept of medical marijuana, worry that the language in existing laws can be abused to cover those who use the drug recreationally or sell it on the street.
"We both support compassion for sick people and believe medical marijuana should be available to those who legitimately need it for medicinal purposes," Almeida said in a written statement. "But there are places where the law leaves too much room for abuse. We can fix those and create a law that better serves Rhode Islanders by reducing abuse and preventing crime on our streets. Rhode Island is one of the frontrunners in medical marijuana, so the whole country is watching how we do this. It's really important that we get it right."
Under the current law, caregivers are allowed to grow or procure up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana or up to 12 mature plants for one or two registered medical marijuana patients. The Almeida-Carnevale legislation would eliminate licenses for caregivers one year after the first compassion center opens, perhaps sometime this year. It would ban those with convictions for drug felonies or capital offenses from being caregivers.
It also eliminates a provision that allows registered users to give marijuana to other registered users, saying that in no other case are patients allowed to swap their prescription drugs. It also requires that medical marijuana program ID cards include the date of birth of its holder to prevent misuse.
The lawmakers say the changes are aimed at limiting the handling and distribution of the drug to patients and professional staff at compassion centers to prevent abuse and trafficking of marijuana.
Carlevale says other provisions would tighten up controls on the compassion centers when they do open. For one, the bill would shift responsibility for inspections of those facilities from the Department of Health to the State Police and would allow unannounced inspections. It would also allow some of the members of a compassion center's board of directors to be residents of another state. Any out-of-state board members would be required to sign a waiver of extradition in advance, so the state would not be hampered in its ability to charge them in any criminal investigation related to their work.
The idea, he said, is to allow professional companies who have successfully run such centers in other states to bring their expertise in the field to Rhode Island.
"Rhode Island doesn't have people with experience in running compassion centers professionally," Carnevale said in a press release. "If we ban people from other states from serving on the board, we're preventing ourselves from having seasoned experts running them. We need those people because it's important that compassion centers are run professionally, with state-of-the-art security and safety measures in place. What we are looking to do with this bill is to provide medical marijuana to patients safely and securely, minimizing abuse of the program. Preventing misuse will keep patients safer and will ensure the success of the program for years to come."
Co-sponsors of the bill include East Providence Rep. Roberto DaSilva, a current Pawtucket police officer, Pawtucket Rep. Peter Kilmartin, a retired Pawtucket police captain and North Providence Rep. Arthur Corvese.
News Hawk- Weedpipe 420 Magazine - Cannabis Culture News & Reviews
Source: Woonsocket Call
Author: JIM BARON
Contact:Woonsocket Call - Home
Copyright: 2010 Woonsocket Call
Website:Marijuana gets treatment from House, Senate
The Senate commission, chaired by Sen. Joshua Miller, will meet Wednesday at 5 p.m. to hear from Rhode Island Public Defender John J. Hardiman, Esq.; Jack Cole of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition; a representative of the Massachusetts Police Chiefs Association; and commission member Joe Osediacz, a retired state trooper. Osediacz will discuss state laws concerning the taxation of marijuana.
At the same time, two state representatives from Providence, both retired police officers, have introduced a bill that would set stricter limits on who can possess the otherwise illegal drug under the state's medical marijuana law.
Reps. Joseph Almeida and John Carnevale want to phase out the "caregivers" who are authorized to grow, possess and provide marijuana to certified patients once the state opens up the "compassion center" established last year over Gov. Donald Carcieri's veto.
Highlighting the need for tweaking the medical marijuana law, first passed in 2006, the legislators pointed to the recent motion by a man with a history of drug arrests to have drug possession charges dismissed because he was authorized for a medical marijuana identification card months after his arrest.
Almeida and Carnevale, while they support the concept of medical marijuana, worry that the language in existing laws can be abused to cover those who use the drug recreationally or sell it on the street.
"We both support compassion for sick people and believe medical marijuana should be available to those who legitimately need it for medicinal purposes," Almeida said in a written statement. "But there are places where the law leaves too much room for abuse. We can fix those and create a law that better serves Rhode Islanders by reducing abuse and preventing crime on our streets. Rhode Island is one of the frontrunners in medical marijuana, so the whole country is watching how we do this. It's really important that we get it right."
Under the current law, caregivers are allowed to grow or procure up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana or up to 12 mature plants for one or two registered medical marijuana patients. The Almeida-Carnevale legislation would eliminate licenses for caregivers one year after the first compassion center opens, perhaps sometime this year. It would ban those with convictions for drug felonies or capital offenses from being caregivers.
It also eliminates a provision that allows registered users to give marijuana to other registered users, saying that in no other case are patients allowed to swap their prescription drugs. It also requires that medical marijuana program ID cards include the date of birth of its holder to prevent misuse.
The lawmakers say the changes are aimed at limiting the handling and distribution of the drug to patients and professional staff at compassion centers to prevent abuse and trafficking of marijuana.
Carlevale says other provisions would tighten up controls on the compassion centers when they do open. For one, the bill would shift responsibility for inspections of those facilities from the Department of Health to the State Police and would allow unannounced inspections. It would also allow some of the members of a compassion center's board of directors to be residents of another state. Any out-of-state board members would be required to sign a waiver of extradition in advance, so the state would not be hampered in its ability to charge them in any criminal investigation related to their work.
The idea, he said, is to allow professional companies who have successfully run such centers in other states to bring their expertise in the field to Rhode Island.
"Rhode Island doesn't have people with experience in running compassion centers professionally," Carnevale said in a press release. "If we ban people from other states from serving on the board, we're preventing ourselves from having seasoned experts running them. We need those people because it's important that compassion centers are run professionally, with state-of-the-art security and safety measures in place. What we are looking to do with this bill is to provide medical marijuana to patients safely and securely, minimizing abuse of the program. Preventing misuse will keep patients safer and will ensure the success of the program for years to come."
Co-sponsors of the bill include East Providence Rep. Roberto DaSilva, a current Pawtucket police officer, Pawtucket Rep. Peter Kilmartin, a retired Pawtucket police captain and North Providence Rep. Arthur Corvese.
News Hawk- Weedpipe 420 Magazine - Cannabis Culture News & Reviews
Source: Woonsocket Call
Author: JIM BARON
Contact:Woonsocket Call - Home
Copyright: 2010 Woonsocket Call
Website:Marijuana gets treatment from House, Senate
