Pubdate: Tue, 29 Apr 2014
Source: Gainesville Sun, The (FL)
Copyright: 2014 The Gainesville Sun
Contact: http://drugsense.org/url/yMmn4Ifw
Website: http://www.gainesville.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/163
Author: Bill Thompson

SHERIFF DARNELL JOINS IN RESOUTION AGAINST MEDICAL MARIJUANA

Sheriff Sadie Darnell is on board with derailing the push for medical
marijuana in Florida.

Darnell supports a resolution adopted by the Florida Sheriffs
Association that denounces the legalization of cannabis for any
purpose, said Nanette Schimpf, spokeswoman for the
association.

The Tampa Tribune recently reported that 63 of Florida's 67 county
sheriffs have signed on to the document, which was formally adopted in
December, based on the results of an email poll conducted by the
association.

The other four sheriffs abstained from the vote.

While the association's resolution does not specifically oppose the
amendment, it does say the group "strongly" opposes legalization of
pot for use, sale or possession, and it maintains that cannabis, as
designated under the federal Controlled Substances Act, "has no
accepted medical use in the U.S."

To that end, the Tribune also noted that the association is seeking to
ramp up a public awareness campaign - dubbed "Don't Let Florida Go To
Pot" - that seeks to add voices from anti-drug and substance-abuse
outlets that are concerned about the public health effects of limited
legalization.

Voters will decide the issue in November. The ballot will contain a
proposed constitutional amendment, advocated by well-known trial
lawyer John Morgan, that would green-light pot use to combat
"debilitating" medical conditions.

Those conditions include cancer, glaucoma, HIV and AIDS, hepatitis C,
amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (or Lou Gehrig's disease), Crohn's
disease, Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, or other conditions
"for which a physician believes that the medical use of marijuana
would likely outweigh the potential health risks for a patient."

Medical pot would be prescribed by licensed doctors and obtained from
so called "treatment centers" that would be licensed and regulated by
the Department of Health, the amendment says.

Federal and state laws prohibiting the illegal use of pot would still
apply.

For his part, Morgan recently told the Orlando Sentinel that he does
not believe the bulk of Florida's sheriffs personally oppose the amendment.

He has predicted it will pass in the fall.

The University of North Florida released a public opinion poll last
month indicating that the amendment was favored by 74 percent of 485
voters surveyed - well above the 60 percent threshold required to pass
a constitutional amendment in Florida.

"We're talking about very, very sick people having access to something
that works," Morgan told the Sentinel.

Schimpf said the sheriffs association has not taken a position on the
amendment itself.

But the resolution backed by Darnell clearly announces the group's
staunch opposition to legalizing pot for any reason, and raises some
familiar arguments to support its stance.

The group maintains that legalization would "most assuredly" drive up
both illicit drug use and healthcare costs.

Regarding illegal drugs, the sheriffs argue that marijuana, now more
potent than ever as a hallucinogenic, has a "high potential" for abuse
and is a "gateway" drug whose use correlates with a "high incidence of
progression" toward using heroin and cocaine.

And making marijuana legal would "potentially" boost black market
sales by the drug cartels that would bypass a regulatory system.

The addictive power of marijuana, meanwhile, also poses "significant
health consequences" to users, the resolution says.

It indicates that studies have tied marijuana use to birth defects,
mental illness, violence, infertility and other physical and social
ills.

The document notes that prestigious groups like the American Medical
Association and the American Cancer Society have rejected "smoked"
marijuana as a medical treatment.

To proponents of the amendment, the association counters that some
marijuana derivatives are openly available now, without the presence
of THC, the plant's intoxicating chemical.

"The sheriffs believe the effort to legalize marijuana is contrary to
the interests of the public health, safety and welfare, and desires to
preserve the rights of citizens to live and work in a community where
drug abuse is not accepted and citizens are not subjected to the
adverse effects of drug abuse," the resolution states.

In an email, Schimpf observed that the medical marijuana amendment's
language broad and engenders serious concerns related to public safety.

The sheriffs' answer to pro-legalization forces was to assemble the
"Don't Let Florida Go To Pot" coalition in order to educate people
about the risks of marijuana use and the potential consequences
Florida may face if the amendment passes.

"The Florida Sheriffs Association understands the complexity of the
issue and the importance of providing relief to those with extensive
health issues," she added, saying that is why the group supports
legislation that would permit doctors to prescribe a low-THC strain
known as "Charlotte's Web."

Proponents of that move maintain that sufferers who believe relief is
only available from pot will still benefit from its medicinal value
without the effects of getting high, Schimpf said.

"The safety and well being of Floridians will always be a primary
concern for our sheriffs and this association," she added.

Finalizing legislation that authorizes the use of Charlotte's Web is a
key remaining issue as lawmakers wind up the 2014 session this week.

The state Senate overwhelmingly passed a bill authorizing limited use
of Charlotte's Web on Monday. The House is still considering it.
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MAP posted-by: Matt