SUGGESTED ACTIONS IN RESPONSE TO THE RAICH DECISION PLEASE COPY AND DISTRIBUTE DrugSense FOCUS Alert #309 - Monday, 6 June 2005 The Supreme Court ruled Monday that state medical marijuana laws don't protect users from a federal ban on the drug - allowing federal authorities to prosecute sick people for their use of medical cannabis, even if on the advice of their doctors. The decision is on line in various formats here http://straylight.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/03-1454.ZS.html and as a 79 page .pdf file here http://www.supremecourtus.gov/opinions/04pdf/03-1454.pdf In its majority opinion against Raich and Monson (page 6), the Supreme Court issued a significant word of warning about the wisdom of current federal laws: "The case is made difficult by respondents' strong arguments that they will suffer irreparable harm because, despite a congressional finding to the contrary, marijuana does have valid therapeutic purposes. The question before us, however, is not whether it is wise to enforce the statute in these circumstances; rather, it is whether Congress' power to regulate interstate markets for medicinal substances encompasses the portions of those markets that are supplied with drugs produced and consumed locally." Organizations are calling for you to act and providing detailed advice on the best ways to respond. Please see: http://actioncenter.drugpolicy.org/action/index.asp?step=2&item=25197 http://www.mpp.org/raich/ http://www.raichaction.org/ http://hinchey.kintera.org http://www.norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=6550 http://www.angeljustice.org Here are a few points to consider: The single most important thing to understand is that state and local laws on the books protecting medical cannabis patients and their doctors will continue to stand and are not at all affected by this ruling. As you can see from this split decision, the Court has ruled on very technical legal grounds, particularly on medical cannabis as a commerce issue. However, we are heartened that the Court was clear in recognizing the medical necessity for seriously ill patients like Angel. The Attorney General and the federal government now have a choice: They can choose to continue wasting taxpayers' dollars raiding the homes of sick and dying patients-- suffering from diseases like cancer, chronic pain, leukemia, multiple sclerosis and AIDS--who are abiding by state and local laws, or they can choose more worthwhile priorities, like national security or arresting terrorists. The federal government should not compound the suffering of sick and dying patients. The federal government actually makes only 1% of all marijuana related arrests in the country. While 99% protection from arrest isn't perfect, it is still substantial. It is more urgent than ever before for states to act to protect patients from arrests and harassment. The press will have a field day with this story - and will likely make factual errors in their reporting which will enhance your chances of being published if you write letters. Expect many targets for letters to the editor in the days ahead. Please check this link frequently, watching for news clippings with a "Pubdate" of Mon, 06 Jun 2005 or later, to help you find targets for your letters: http://www.mapinc.org/topics/Raich Thanks for your effort and support. It's not what others do it's what YOU do Additional suggestions for writing LTEs are at our Media Activism Center: http://www.mapinc.org/resource/ Or contact MAP Media Activism Facilitator Steve Heath for personal tips on how to write LTEs that get printed. PLEASE SEND US A COPY OF YOUR LETTER Please post a copy of your letter or report your action to the sent letter list () if you are subscribed, or by E-mailing a copy directly to if you are not subscribed. Your letter will then be forwarded to the list so others can learn from your efforts. Subscribing to the Sent LTE list () will help you to review other sent LTEs and perhaps come up with new ideas or approaches as well as keeping others aware of your important writing efforts. To subscribe to the Sent LTE mailing list see http://www.mapinc.org/lists/index.htm#form Prepared by: Stephen Heath, MAP Media Activism Facilitator =

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