Pubdate: Tue,  3 Jun 2003
Source: Taipei Times, The (Taiwan)
Copyright: 2003 The Taipei Times
Contact:  http://www.taipeitimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1553

'GURU OF GANJA' FACES JAIL FOR PROVIDING POT

HIGHER CAUSE: The US Government Says The Trial Of Ed Rosenthal Is A Key 
Battle In The War On Drugs, But California Politicians See It As A Fight To 
Defend State's Rights

A high-profile American campaigner for the legalization of marijuana will 
be sentenced today in what has become a national cause celebre.

The case of the "guru of ganja" -- who is backed by the attorney general of 
California -- is seen as a constitutional battle between the US President 
George W. Bush administration and the state.

Ed Rosenthal, 58, who writes a monthly advice column, "Ask Ed," for 
Cannabis Culture magazine, is a leading proponent of medicinal marijuana use.

In 1996, California's voters legalized the use of marijuana for patients 
suffering from illnesses such as AIDS, cancer and glaucoma if recommended 
by a doctor. Similar acts have been passed in other states. Oakland City 
Council duly asked Rosenthal, as an expert cultivator, to grow plants for 
medicinal use at a warehouse.

However, the federal government does not recognize state laws on drugs. 
Since John Ashcroft became US attorney general in 2000, the Drugs 
Enforcement Administration (DEA) has opposed medicinal marijuana 
initiatives, saying they represent the thin end of the wedge.

Rosenthal was arrested by federal officers last year and charged with 
marijuana production. He was convicted and he will be sentenced in San 
Francisco today.

On the instructions of presiding Judge Charles Breyer, the jury was not 
told that Rosenthal was growing the 100 or so plants officially for the 
city council and for the use of patients, including the terminally ill. 
When jurors discovered this after the conviction, five of them issued a 
public apology to Rosenthal and asked in vain for a retrial.

"I really feel manipulated," said one juror, Pam Klarkowsky. "I feel the 
jury was railroaded into making this decision."

Rosenthal, author of books such as Ask Ed: Marijuana Law, Don't Get Busted, 
said he believed that he had been arrested because of his high profile and 
as a warning to others.

"I was a well-known figure," he said as he prepared for his court 
appearance. "I was a trophy."

The case was not so much about him as about the constitutional rights of 
Americans to have their votes respected by their government. Rosenthal 
believed that Ashcroft had personally supported the prosecution.

"The United States is currently in the control of a rightwing cabal that 
has taken over the government," he said.

Rosenthal, married with two children, said he had received widespread 
support "from every sector of society, including the church and seniors. My 
position is a majority position."

He has also won the backing of many locally elected officials, including 
San Francisco's district attorney, Terence Halinan. Bill Lockyer, 
California's attorney general who is a likely gubernatorial candidate in 
2006, has written to Breyer asking for leniency and reminding him of the 
state's 1996 Compassionate-Use Act.

The prosecution is seeking a five-year sentence on the grounds that 
Rosenthal has expressed no remorse.

Rosenthal is the latest medicinal supplier in California to be targeted by 
the DEA. Many medical marijuana clubs have been closed after federal raids.

The Rosenthal case has raised the constitutional issue of states' rights 
which the Bush administration came to office vowing to defend. California's 
Supreme Court ruled last July that people who grew marijuana for medicinal 
use were immune from prosecution if use was authorized by a doctor.

The case coincides with a crackdown on sellers of marijuana paraphernalia. 
Last month, Tommy Chong, half of the 1970s comedy duo Cheech and Chong, 
pleaded guilty to selling marijuana pipes via the Internet. Chong, 64, who 
is based in Los Angeles, will be sentenced in September and could face five 
years in prison.

Sanho Tree, of the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington, said the 
prosecutions of Rosenthal and Chong came at a time when other countries, 
such as Canada, were relaxing marijuana laws

"Ashcroft and the DEA are fighting a culture war, not a drugs war. It 
smacks of a last, desperate attempt," he said.
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MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens