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In the wake of Colorado and Washington legalizing the recreational use of marijuana, efforts to change the laws in Ohio are being debated statewide.
On May 2, Democratic state Rep. Robert F. Hagan of Youngstown introduced House Bill 153, which would allow for the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes. The bill did not make it very far through the state legislature, though.
Simon Dunkle, director of media relations for the Ohio Rights Group, said a hearing was not scheduled for the bill, and it died in the committee stage.
In the face of this setback for the medical marijuana cause, on May 29 ORG launched the campaign for the Ohio Cannabis Rights Amendment.
The group must get about 385,000 signatures from registered voters of at least 44 counties by July 3, 2014, to place the constitutional amendment on the November 2014 ballot. ORG hopes to gather 1 million signatures.
"This really is – pardon the expression – a grassroots effort," Dunkle said.
In addition to permitting medicinal marijuana use for those 18 and older, the amendment would allow Ohioans to grow hemp for use in creating various products including paper, fuel, foods and clothing.
Dunkle claimed that hemp, a type of marijuana that does not have enough THC for people to use it as a drug, is about a billion dollar business in Canada; he wants to help bring that industry to Ohio farms.
"You can basically use the whole plant," he said. "What we want to be is sort of an example for the rest of the country."
Officer George "Pat" Willis, of the Lake County Narcotics Agency and supervisor of the P.L.U.S. Program, said the medicinal benefits of marijuana have been in use for decades, so smoking it for medicinal purposes is unnecessary.
A synthetic version of THC, a chemical in marijuana that can be used for medicinal purposes, has been a part of a drug called Marinol since the 1980s, Willis said.
The natural form found in marijuana is called "delta-9 THC," he said.
One of Willis' biggest issues with legalizing medical marijuana by way of a constitutional amendment is the long time that would be required to outlaw the drug if problems arose. Medication approved by the FDA can be pulled from the market the next day should any negative side effects or other issues come about. But if a constitutional amendment such as the Ohio Cannabis Rights Amendment were passed, it would most likely take two to three years to bring another ballot initiative to voters to pull the medication from the market, Willis said.
He said other medications must reach multiple criteria to gain government approval.
"When you put the research out there for marijuana, it can't even reach one," Willis said.
To help regulate the proposed legal marijuana use, Dunkle said a commission would be created to decide which people and businesses would qualify.
Part of the nine-member commission would be appointed by a legislative committee and part by the governor.
Willis said marijuana use can lead to use of other, more dangerous drugs. While it will not appear on a drug test after about a month, delta-9 THC remains on the receptors in the brain for months. Over time, marijuana users often build up a tolerance to THC.
"When that happens, you move on to something else," he said.
Painesville Municipal Court Judge Michael Cicconetti – while not stating whether marijuana should be legalized – said he hopes any law that is passed goes further than just legalizing medical or industrial use.
"If they're going to introduce a bill, don't go the diluted way," he said. "It becomes more difficult for law enforcement to cite."
While possessing up to 100 grams is decriminalized in Ohio – basically making that level of possession equal in severity to a traffic citation – people charged with possession still have the right to fight it in court.
"It's very consuming both to prosecute and to judge," Cicconetti said.
The judge said those resources can be better spent elsewhere, specifically in fighting heroin abuse, which has seen a spike in recent years. Heroin is becoming as cheap as marijuana, but is far more dangerous.
"I don't ever remember having a crime of violence go along with only marijuana," Cicconetti said.
In his experience, treatment centers are having trouble helping people fight heroin addiction. People often return to court soon after leaving treatment centers – or worse, die from overdosing.
"I don't have the answers. All I have is frustrations," he said.
News Hawk- Truth Seeker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: news-herald.com
Author: Matthew Skrajner
Contact: The News-Herald - Latest News, Sports, Opinion, Business, Life
Website: Ohio Rights Group seeks signatures to put constitutional amendment about medical marijuana on ballot - news-herald.com
On May 2, Democratic state Rep. Robert F. Hagan of Youngstown introduced House Bill 153, which would allow for the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes. The bill did not make it very far through the state legislature, though.
Simon Dunkle, director of media relations for the Ohio Rights Group, said a hearing was not scheduled for the bill, and it died in the committee stage.
In the face of this setback for the medical marijuana cause, on May 29 ORG launched the campaign for the Ohio Cannabis Rights Amendment.
The group must get about 385,000 signatures from registered voters of at least 44 counties by July 3, 2014, to place the constitutional amendment on the November 2014 ballot. ORG hopes to gather 1 million signatures.
"This really is – pardon the expression – a grassroots effort," Dunkle said.
In addition to permitting medicinal marijuana use for those 18 and older, the amendment would allow Ohioans to grow hemp for use in creating various products including paper, fuel, foods and clothing.
Dunkle claimed that hemp, a type of marijuana that does not have enough THC for people to use it as a drug, is about a billion dollar business in Canada; he wants to help bring that industry to Ohio farms.
"You can basically use the whole plant," he said. "What we want to be is sort of an example for the rest of the country."
Officer George "Pat" Willis, of the Lake County Narcotics Agency and supervisor of the P.L.U.S. Program, said the medicinal benefits of marijuana have been in use for decades, so smoking it for medicinal purposes is unnecessary.
A synthetic version of THC, a chemical in marijuana that can be used for medicinal purposes, has been a part of a drug called Marinol since the 1980s, Willis said.
The natural form found in marijuana is called "delta-9 THC," he said.
One of Willis' biggest issues with legalizing medical marijuana by way of a constitutional amendment is the long time that would be required to outlaw the drug if problems arose. Medication approved by the FDA can be pulled from the market the next day should any negative side effects or other issues come about. But if a constitutional amendment such as the Ohio Cannabis Rights Amendment were passed, it would most likely take two to three years to bring another ballot initiative to voters to pull the medication from the market, Willis said.
He said other medications must reach multiple criteria to gain government approval.
"When you put the research out there for marijuana, it can't even reach one," Willis said.
To help regulate the proposed legal marijuana use, Dunkle said a commission would be created to decide which people and businesses would qualify.
Part of the nine-member commission would be appointed by a legislative committee and part by the governor.
Willis said marijuana use can lead to use of other, more dangerous drugs. While it will not appear on a drug test after about a month, delta-9 THC remains on the receptors in the brain for months. Over time, marijuana users often build up a tolerance to THC.
"When that happens, you move on to something else," he said.
Painesville Municipal Court Judge Michael Cicconetti – while not stating whether marijuana should be legalized – said he hopes any law that is passed goes further than just legalizing medical or industrial use.
"If they're going to introduce a bill, don't go the diluted way," he said. "It becomes more difficult for law enforcement to cite."
While possessing up to 100 grams is decriminalized in Ohio – basically making that level of possession equal in severity to a traffic citation – people charged with possession still have the right to fight it in court.
"It's very consuming both to prosecute and to judge," Cicconetti said.
The judge said those resources can be better spent elsewhere, specifically in fighting heroin abuse, which has seen a spike in recent years. Heroin is becoming as cheap as marijuana, but is far more dangerous.
"I don't ever remember having a crime of violence go along with only marijuana," Cicconetti said.
In his experience, treatment centers are having trouble helping people fight heroin addiction. People often return to court soon after leaving treatment centers – or worse, die from overdosing.
"I don't have the answers. All I have is frustrations," he said.
News Hawk- Truth Seeker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: news-herald.com
Author: Matthew Skrajner
Contact: The News-Herald - Latest News, Sports, Opinion, Business, Life
Website: Ohio Rights Group seeks signatures to put constitutional amendment about medical marijuana on ballot - news-herald.com
