The Illinois House on Thursday narrowly turned down a measure that would have allowed the medical use of marijuana.

The measure, House Bill 30, known as the Compassionate Use of Medical Cannabis Act, failed in a 53-61 vote, with four members voting "present."

The bill's sponsor, Rep. Lou Lang, D-Skokie, said the measure would have allowed patients with prescriptions to get marijuana from one of 59 state-approved, nonprofit dispensaries, whose owners and workers would have to pass criminal background checks.

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The Illinois legislature is close to legalizing medical marijuana. Before you scream in protest, or launch into a Cheech and Chong joke, give this some consideration. Illinois could pass a model law for the rest of the country.

The Compassionate Use of Medical Cannabis act, sponsored by Rep. Lou Lang (D-Skokie), could pass the House this week, thanks in large part to a change in position by House Republican leader Tom Cross (R-Oswego). The timing may finally be right.

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Illinois House Republican leader Tom Cross' change of heart could mean a change in the prospects for medical marijuana in Illinois.

Cross, R-Oswego, had opposed the legislation in the past, but changed his mind after hearing from constituents and members of the medical community, spokeswoman Sara Wojcicki said.

Cross' position does not represent that of the rest of the Republican caucus, she said. However, his backing of the idea could clear the way for Illinois to join 15 other states in legalizing medical marijuana.

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Tough New Bill, Surprise Political Alliance Boost Chances

SPRINGFIELD - A stricter set of rules and a surprise political alliance are helping build momentum for a long-thwarted effort to legalize marijuana for medical purposes in Illinois.

Some lawmakers are looking to make cannabis available for people seeking relief from symptoms of maladies that include multiple sclerosis, cancer and HIV/AIDS.

To pick up support, they must allay fears by opponents concerned that the measure is the first step toward decriminalizing marijuana and worried that Illinois will end up like California, where pot is easily available to anyone with a doctor's note and complaints about headaches or anxiety.

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Reasonable people see a difference between using marijuana to treat the symptoms of a serious illness and passing out joints on a playground. Yet both acts, under current law, are criminal.

State lawmakers can fix that by passing a pending bill, which in previous years has been shot down, that would legalize the medical use of marijuana by people with cancer, HIV, Crohn's disease and several other illnesses.

Fifteen other states and the District of Columbia have legalized medical marijuana, which has been shown to reduce the nausea and vomiting that are typical side effects of anti-cancer drugs. It also is effective in improving the appetite of AIDS patients, treating the pain of multiple sclerosis and treating the pressure within the eye caused by glaucoma.

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House Republican Leader Tom Cross recently announced that he now supports HB 30, the medical marijuana legalization bill. This is very disconcerting. Marijuana activists are working hard to decriminalize marijuana and impede the U.S. anti-drug policy. The first step is for medical use.

Does Cross think the Illinois General Assembly should circumvent the medical and scientific experts at the Federal Drug Administration? Should state lawmakers ignore the many warnings by federal authorities like the National Institute on Drug Abuse and the Drug Enforcement Agency? Should lawmakers ignore the law enforcement community objections, including the Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police and Illinois Sheriffs' Association, among others? Federal drug laws supersede state laws. HB 30 would create a licensing scheme contrary to federal law, making property owners, landlords and citizens liable to federal action. Lastly, Illinois lawmakers shouldn't disregard Illinois's DUI laws. HB 30 allows a medical marijuana patient to operate a motor vehicle after six hours of consuming marijuana, while research shows that a single joint with a moderate level of THC can impair a person's ability to drive for more than 24 hours!

Medical marijuana is bad policy, bad for families, bad for society, and will cost the state more money for drug rehab.

David E. Smith

Executive Director, Illinois Family Institute, Carol Stream

[end]

I'm writing about Joan Keener's thoughtful letter, "Taxes curb marijuana" (April 1).

I'd like to add that many employed in law enforcement and the prison industry are opposed to re-legalizing marijuana.

That's because we would need far fewer law enforcement personnel, far fewer prison guards and no prison builders. Thus, many employed in law enforcement and the prison industry would be looking for a job or working at a quickie mart for a living.

Of course, those opposed to re-legalizing marijuana because it would affect their livelihood will not say so.

Instead they will cite noble reasons such as protecting children. As if our current policies are protecting children.

Kirk Muse, Mesa, Ariz.

[end]

Freeport, Ill. -- This week Illinois lawmakers voted, 28-82, to reject House Bill 1383, which would have allowed Illinois farmers to obtain permits to grow and produce industrial hemp.

The bill was co-sponsored by Rep. Jim Sacia (R-Pec), and was also supported by the Illinois Farm Bureau.

Not to be confused with cannabis as both come from the same plant, industrial hemp is grown to maximize the fiber content, not the THC level, which means it will not get smokers high. It is grown in tighter rows and harvested much earlier.

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I read with interest the article about all the marijuana plants found in this area.

However, I found the following statistics from the February American Legion magazine very amazing.

In 2001, 316,441 marijuana plants were seized in national forests. This was done with $5.32 million in U.S. Forest Service expenditures.

In 2010, 3.1 million marijuana plants were seized in these forests. This was done with $15.9 million in U.S. Forest Service expenditures.

Just thought I'd let you know how some of our taxes are being spent and why.

- -Joan Keener

Rockford

[end]

CLARK LAKE - Dr. Timur Baruti, as reported by the newspaper March 17, told the Human Relations Commission that marijuana is not addictive, not a gateway drug and has many positive health benefits. He added that hospitals, pharmacies and pharmaceutical companies oppose legalization because it will hurt their business, a claim I believe is not true.

The federal government has made the use, the importation and the growing of marijuana illegal. If legal, it would be a great source of business for drug manufacturers. Reduction of nausea induced by cancer-fighting drugs has been demonstrated certainly. There are other drugs equally effective, of course. However, marijuana has the additional effect of inducing a drug euphoria, which is why people use it.

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In response to the letter against medical cannabis: It is should be noted that cannabis was one of the most widely used medications prior to it becoming illegal in 1937.

Racist bigots who were protecting big industries like forestry for paper production and a newly immerging synthetic fiber market made cannabis and hemp illegal. The letter writer should look into the history of cannabis prohibition before making such outlandish claims such as the "bill has nothing to do with the medical treatment of serious illness."

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It may be a little easier for police officers in Illinois to find drugs after the Illinois Supreme Court this week OK'd drug sniff "set-ups" in one of a handful of decisions.

The opinion in People v. Bartelt centers on a 2006 traffic stop in Quincy. Police officers said Cheryl Bartelt was suspected of buying methamphetamine. Officers pulled over her car, and called for a drug-sniffing dog.

As they waited for the dog, officers told Bartelt to roll up the windows of her car and to then turn on her car's fans. Once the dog arrived, it alerted officers to the presence of drugs. The police searched Bartelt's car, found methamphetamine and arrested her for possession of methamphetamine, according to court records.

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Once again, the Illinois House of Representatives has nothing better to do than consider the legalization of medical marijuana.

The bill is fraught with questionable content, such as allowing 2.5 ounces in a two-week period. There is enough there to keep the average pot-head strung out for the whole two weeks, while allowing leftovers for several friends.

The legislation also does not address the well-documented increase in crime that will surround marijuana dispensaries. Home rule is ignored in this bill, denying local communities the right to ban dispensaries. Will the state pay local law enforcement costs?

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In January, two men from the West Coast, heading east on Interstate 88 in a Chevrolet Impala with Oregon plates, blew past Route 31 in North Aurora without paying the 60-cent toll.

A Kane County sheriff's deputy pulled them over and found 60 pounds of high-grade marijuana in the truck -- a haul with an estimated street value of $1 million.

On March 12, a Ford Econoline van with Arizona plates was motoring west on Interstate 90 near Hampshire -- at a leisurely 35 mph.

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It looks like the taxpayers of Illinois are going to be paying for the room and board of another felony gardener. ("Area drug agents seize cannabis plants, suspect still at large" 3-10-11).

Have your local police solved all of your rapes, robberies and murders? If not, why are they going after gardeners?

If you would regulate, control and tax cannabis, the state of Illinois could make money off it instead of giving free housing to non-violent gardeners.

Kirk Muse

Mesa, Ariz.

[end]

Freeport, Ill. - Area drug agents seized a number of cannabis plants on Friday, shutting down an apparent growing operation in rural Freeport.

A suspect [redacted] is still at large.

The State Line Area Narcotics Team in conjunction with the Stephenson County Sheriff's Department executed a search warrant at a rural Freeport home, [redacted] on Friday.

As a result of the search, agents seized 39 cannabis plants, drug paraphernalia and all the necessary equipment used in an indoor cannabis growing operation.

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How can we be surprised when Illinois Governor Pat Quinn's threatens to cut almost the entire budget for alcohol and drug abuse prevention and treatment in Illinois ("Borrowing trouble," Feb. 22)? This cavalier decision also speaks to the stigma that addicts have a disease.

In 1956, the American Medical Association said that alcoholism is a disease. Despite that and the many various statements of medical professionals since then, the stigma is alive and well.

Recovery from the illness is not only possible but probable with proper treatment.

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Regarding "Borrowing trouble" (Feb. 22): As far as I know, Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn is not turning his back on people with cancer, heart disease or diabetes. Why is he proposing to eliminate existing non-Medicaid funding for treatment of addictions to alcohol and other drugs? Addictions are long-recognized by the established medical community as organic brain diseases, and they deserve the same respect and funding as any other medical condition. If addictions are not treated, they frequently contribute to the development of various forms of cancer, heart disease and other illnesses, further increasing pain and suffering and the cost of continuing medical care.

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Illinois' executive branch is currently not pleasing anyone. After a raise in income tax, we still see cuts in public interest spending.

Our state must be in a really sticky situation if the executive branch has decided to turn to such an unpleasant method of decreasing our state's deficit. Is there a better way to get rid of our state's debt?

California failed to pass Proposition 19 in 2010. This would have allowed regulated sale of cannabis, which would have been taxed. I've heard that there is a very high potential revenue in this. Marijuana is our nation's largest cash crop. Why don't we benefit from this?

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This is in response to "Blacks more likely to be imprisoned for drug crimes; African-Americans nearly 5 times more likely than whites to get prison sentence for low-level violations, Illinois study says" (News, Jan. 31).

This Chicago Tribune headline, broadcasting prison sentencing disparities Illinois African-American citizens face, underscores what our nation is unwilling to address: From housing to hunger, employment and prison, racial disparities are all too real.

The article plainly states our reality. Blacks in Illinois are almost five times more likely to be sentenced to prison for low-level drug crimes than whites. And in Cook County blacks charged with low-level drug possession were eight times more likely than whites to be sentenced to prison.

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