Pubdate: Wed,  8 Jun 2005
Source: Eagle-Tribune, The (MA)
Copyright: 2005 The Eagle-Tribune
Contact:  http://www.eagletribune.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/129
Author: Dan  Touhy
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/topics/Raich (Gonzales v. Raich)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/decrim.htm (Decrim/Legalization)

REPS L'ITALIEN AND KEENAN SUPPORT MEDICINAL MARIJUANA USE

BOSTON - State Rep. John Keenan watched his mother slowly  succumb
to lung cancer, taking morphine to try to blunt her pain.

When Emma Keenan died in 1994, she was just 56. Her son was a
prosecutor whose family experience led to his eventual support for
marijuana for medicinal purposes. "To see the pain and suffering she
went through was enough," he said yesterday as the Massachusetts
Legislature's Judiciary Committee reviewed bills  to allow medical
marijuana.

Keenan, D-Salem, is cosponsoring one of the bills. Rep. Barbara
L'Italien, D-Andover, is cosponsoring another bill.

"There are people who have tried the whole realm of prescription drugs
and not seen relief," L'Italien said.

The lawmakers said the marijuana use would have strong regulatory
oversight. And neither wants to decriminalize marijuana.

Both are unsure what to make of the U.S. Supreme Court's 6-3 ruling
Monday that people smoking marijuana for medicinal purposes could be
prosecuted for violating federal drug laws.

The ruling conflicted with medicinal marijuana laws in 10 states,
including Maine and Vermont. Though it did not strike down those laws,
it may pose an immovable barrier for states wishing to pass similar
laws. Supporters said they would take their efforts to Congress.

The Massachusetts Legislature passed legislation in the 1990s that
recognized the therapeutic value of marijuana.The latest bills would
provide legal protections for possession, manufacturing or
distribution of marijuana if the patient, caregiver or physician has
acted after a qualified medical diagnosis. Brian Fitzgerald, a
57-year-old Springfield man who has multiple sclerosis, testified in
support of the bills from his wheelchair, his cannabis pin stuck
through his tie. He said marijuana provided relief where prescription
drugs fell  short.

"I don't get high any more," he said. "I just get by." The National
Multiple Sclerosis Society, a nonprofit group dedicated to ending the
neurological disease that affects the central nervous system, does 
not endorse medical marijuana. The society's Medical Advisory Board
maintains there is insufficient data to recommend it. The board also
called smoking marijuana unwise because health effects can be worse
than tobacco smoking. Steven Epstein, an attorney from Georgetown and
the founder of the Massachusetts Cannabis Reform Coalition, testified
in support of the bills. He dismissed the Supreme Court's decision as
a barrier to states' rights to allow  for medical marijuana.

"It's doubtful that the federal government has the resources to reach
everyone," Epstein said in an interview before the hearing. The
coalition is promoting other bills to decriminalize marijuana, making
possession of small amounts of the drug subject to the equivalent of a
traffic ticket violation. The group cited past nonbinding referendums
on the issue and statistics from the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental
Health Services Administration that about 400,000 Bay Staters smoke
marijuana every month. Gov. Mitt Romney's office declined to comment
on the pending legislation, having not read the bills before the
Judiciary Committee. Essex County District Attorney Jonathan W.
Blodgett, who is fighting an increase in reported abuse of opiates and
heroin, was at a conference yesterday afternoon. Steve O'Connell, his
spokesman, said he was uncertain of Blodgett's position. "He's sworn
to uphold the law," he said.

Keenan said allowing for marijuana use with a doctor's recommendation
would not hurt the war on illicit drug use and the abuse of legal
prescription drugs like OxyContin.

L'Italien agreed. "Let's not confuse the issue here," she said.
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MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin