Pubdate: Mon, 27 May 2013
Source: Sun-Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale, FL)
Copyright: 2013 Sun-Sentinel Company
Contact: http://drugsense.org/url/mVLAxQfA
Website: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/159
Author: Michael Mayo

HIGH-PROFILE ORLANDO ATTORNEY SEEDS MEDICAL MARIJUANA FIGHT

After Father's Experience, John Morgan Backs Petition Drive to Amend 
Florida Constitution

John Morgan already has the battle cry for his upcoming fight to 
change Florida's constitution to legalize medical marijuana.

"I'll take God's plant over Big Pharma's pills," Morgan says.

Morgan, a high-profile Orlando attorney whose firm employs former 
Florida governor Charlie Crist, says he is willing to pour up to $3 
million of his own money into a petition drive to get the issue on 
the November 2014 ballot.

Morgan is organizing "an army of angels" to gather the 788,000 
signatures needed statewide. In his view (and mine too), marijuana is 
safer, better and more natural than synthetic opioids and painkillers 
like oxycodone and hydrocodone, which he says kill thousands through 
abuse and addiction.

If the petition drive succeeds, the amendment will need 60 percent 
voter approval to pass.

"Sixty percent could be a problem - it's a tough hurdle for any 
initiative," Morgan told me earlier this month.

Morgan says he's willing to roll the dice because the issue is 
personal for him. When his father was dying of esophageal cancer and 
emphysema more than 20 years ago, Morgan said marijuana helped.

"He was in pain, had no appetite," Morgan said. "At that point in 
life, you don't have much." As soon as his father tried some pot 
brownies at his brother's suggestion, Morgan said his father's 
quality of life improved: "He was able to have a nice meal, no 
anxiety. ... It took away the nausea from his treatments."

Medical marijuana is now legal in 20 states and the District of 
Columbia, but the "Just Say No" mentality still prevails in the 
Florida Legislature. A pair of medical marijuana bills went up in 
smoke in the 2013 session without even getting one committee hearing. 
And federal law still bans marijuana for medical use, with pot 
classified as a dangerous drug akin to heroin and LSD.

Some polls have shown that more than 70 percent of Floridians support 
legalizing medical marijuana. But Morgan says most politicians are 
afraid of being labeled soft on drugs. Morgan emphasizes his movement 
isn't for full-scale legalization, but for use overseen by a 
physician for conditions like cancer, Lou Gehrig's disease and glaucoma.

He has hired Jan Mills, a former Florida House speaker and University 
of Florida constitutional law professor, to draft the amendment 
language for the petition and ballot. "We have to make sure it's 
bulletproof," Morgan said. He said those interested in volunteering 
to gather signatures can contact him at I asked if this was a way to boost Democratic turnout for the midterm 
elections and governor's race. Morgan, a Democrat, said he's spent a 
lot of time with President Obama's top campaign strategists and "they 
don't believe [this issue] moves the needle much. ... But anybody who 
turns out for this is compassionate, and I like when polls are filled 
with compassionate voters."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom