Pubdate: Thu, 22 Mar 2007
Source: Monterey County Weekly (CA)
Copyright: 2007 Milestone Communications Inc
Contact:  http://www.montereycountyweekly.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3959
Author: Zachary Stahl
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Marijuana - Medicinal)

POLITICS OF CARING

Personal Experiences Lead Salinas Council Members to Support Medical Marijuana.

When City Council-member Jyl Lutes' then-husband lost his appetite 
during a battle with bone cancer more than 20 years ago, Stanford 
doctors gave him an experimental prescription: a vile of 
tightly-rolled joints. The marijuana cigarettes, she recalls, had a 
stamp from the Department of Agriculture on them and the directions 
read, "smoke at the first sign of nausea." Lutes says the pot helped 
ease the pain of his last days -- he died at the age of 30.

"He had access to a drug that doctors felt he needed, that was 
beneficial, that was giving him a better quality of life," she says.

Now that medical marijuana is legal in the state of California, Lutes 
says the city of Salinas shouldn't deny sick people access by 
outlawing pot clubs.

"As a caring family member you would want to do anything that would 
help them relieve the pain or help them live a more comfortable life."

The schoolteacher is one of three Salinas council members who support 
the medicinal use of marijuana. All of their reasons are personal. 
Councilman Sergio Sanchez worked in a cancer ward. Doctors prescribed 
marijuana pills to Councilwoman Gloria De La Rosa's dying brother.

While the City Council voted unanimously on March 6 to put a 
moratorium on dispensaries, the three council members made it clear 
that they would support a cannabis club if enough patients need access.

The council approved the 45-day moratorium to give staff time to 
study the issue, since Salinas' city code doesn't address medical 
marijuana dispensaries. On April 3, staff will give the council an 
update on its findings. Two weeks later, the City Council will 
consider extending the moratorium or amending the city code to either 
allow or ban dispensaries.

With the three council members likely to vote in favor of medical 
marijuana, a swing vote could open the door for Monterey County's 
first cannabis club.

When Monterey County voters went to the polls in 1996, nearly 60 
percent voted yes on state Proposition 215, which legalized marijuana 
for patients and doctors.  Eleven years later, several Monterey 
County cities have either outlawed or avoided marijuana dispensaries.

Last month, the Marina City Council voted to prohibit marijuana 
dispensaries. Seaside's one-year moratorium on cannabis clubs expires 
next month. In 1997, the Salinas Planning Commission voted against 
changing the city zoning code to accommodate medical marijuana dispensaries.

Local municipalities are hesitant to open dispensaries because 
selling and buying pot is still a federal crime. A 2005 Supreme Court 
ruling upheld Congress' right to regulate marijuana even in states 
where it's legal. Federal drug agents routinely raid pot clubs.

This hasn't stopped their proliferation, however. The state has 
approximately 300 medical marijuana dispensaries. San Francisco and 
San Jose have them, as do Kern County and Visalia.

The closest dispensary to Monterey County is in Santa Cruz. Sanchez 
says this is a long distance to drive for a patient who is terminally 
ill with cancer or AIDS.

Sanchez worked in various hospitals for 15 years and says he will 
never forget the moans of anguish from patients in a Fresno cancer unit.

"They'd be suffering," Sanchez says. "They couldn't eat. They had a 
hard time keeping their weight. All you hear is a lot of crying, a 
lot of moaning because people were in so much pain."

At the time, Sanchez says, he didn't know about the medical benefits 
of marijuana, which include the relief of nausea after chemotherapy. 
But now he wishes that all families have access to the drugs they need.

"As a caring family member you would want to do anything that would 
help them relieve the pain or help them live a more comfortable life," he says.

Lutes says the city has an obligation to provide medicinal marijuana 
to its residents, just like morphine or other pharmaceuticals.

"As part of our bigger medical system, marijuana is just one tool 
that people have to control their illness," she says.

Lutes says she would welcome a dispensary next to the police station. 
But she is going to have a hard time convincing Mayor Dennis Donohue 
to go along with that idea.

During his weekly press conference on March 6, Donohue made it clear 
that the only thing green that Salinas should be known for is 
lettuce. He said marijuana dispensaries were "out of tone and 
character" for Salinas. Patients who need the drug can drive to Santa 
Cruz, he said.

The dialogue changed, however, at the City Council meeting that evening.

Councilwoman De La Rosa, who is a nurse, said she has seen the 
benefits of medical marijuana. Before her brother died of AIDS in 
1984, doctors prescribed him marijuana pills. "I think the community 
needs to be educated on how these dispensaries work," De La Rosa 
said. "We need to show compassion."

A few members of the public spoke against medical marijuana.

Two high school students with the Safe Teens Empowerment Project, a 
program designed to reduce teen drinking and driving, said allowing a 
pot club would send the wrong message to young people.

Sanchez told the students that there is a big difference between 
recreation use and medicinal use of marijuana: "The day that you have 
someone in your life that is dying...you are going to want to give 
them whatever is needed." 
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake