Medical Marijuana Lawsuit Headed to Federal Court to Challenge Schedule I Status

[joedogsong]

Nothing ever seems to be cut & dry. There is yet to be extensive politicking. With the size of the V.A. and all the vets that use mmj on the downlow. This is TOO big a deal now for things to not get way more complicated. To use The United States of America Veterans Administration as a bat to swing at the Federal Drug Enforcement Administration. My God, that is, as "Arthritis Sucks" says; 'monumental'

 

[dpfour20]

DEA Administrative Law Judge Rules that Cannabis Research is "in the public interest"

U.S. Department of Justice-appointed Administrative Law Judge Mary Ellen Bittner issued an 87-page ruling today in favor of removing the government obstruction to medical cannabis research in the United States. University of Massachusetts-Amherst Professor Lyle Craker has led a six-year struggle to gain a DEA license to grow research-grade cannabis so that studies can be conducted to determine the full extent of marijuana's medical value. Judge Bittner's ruling, which concluded that "Respondent's registration to cultivate marijuana would be in the public interest," came on the same day as a study released in Neurology on the positive effects of cannabis on neuropathic pain for people living with HIV/AIDS.


http://www.safeaccessnow.org/article.php?id=4181

 

[Bud buster]

Very cool they can't hide the truth for ever now will the dipshits at the dea listen?

 

[Stonefree69]

Very cool they can't hide the truth for ever now will the dipshits at the dea listen?

I think the DEA wants to listen when the government wants to maintain it's own bridges and roads instead of still beefing up it's military beyond reason. IOW I haven't seen the DEA make any common sense since it's inception. BTW, the DEA was formed in 1973 by president Richard Nixon. They might have a reply with something like "pry from my cold dead hands" in it. So be it!

 

[Bi0hazard]

DEA Administrative Law Judge Rules that Cannabis Research is "in the public interest"

U.S. Department of Justice-appointed Administrative Law Judge Mary Ellen Bittner issued an 87-page ruling today in favor of removing the government obstruction to medical cannabis research in the United States. University of Massachusetts-Amherst Professor Lyle Craker has led a six-year struggle to gain a DEA license to grow research-grade cannabis so that studies can be conducted to determine the full extent of marijuana's medical value. Judge Bittner's ruling, which concluded that "Respondent's registration to cultivate marijuana would be in the public interest," came on the same day as a study released in Neurology on the positive effects of cannabis on neuropathic pain for people living with HIV/AIDS.

http://www.safeaccessnow.org/article.php?id=4181

Unfortunately, I'm pretty sure this is from February 12, 2007. Still waiting on this actual ruling...

Sources:
February 12, 2007- http://americansforsafeaccess.org/section.php?id=317
The Actual federal document, also says February 12, 2007:
www.safeaccessnow.org/downloads/Craker_Ruling.pdf

 

[Stonefree69]

Unfortunately, I'm pretty sure this is from February 12, 2007. Still waiting on this actual ruling...

Sources:
February 12, 2007- http://americansforsafeaccess.org/section.php?id=317
The Actual federal document, also says February 12, 2007:
www.safeaccessnow.org/downloads/Craker_Ruling.pdf

 

[SCF]

we have wanted this for a long time. i think we should do it state by state. like we are.. before the feds do something....

 

[Avinash.miles]

http://americansforsafeaccess.org/m...t-alleging-federal-policy-harmful-to-patients

"Medical Marijuana Advocates File Brief with D.C. Circuit Alleging Federal Policy Harmful to Patients
Appeals court issued rare order last week for supplemental briefing on "standing" in landmark federal case


Washington, D.C. -- Less than a week after oral arguments in the landmark federal case to reclassify marijuana for medical use, the plaintiffs filed an additional brief late yesterday at the request of the court. In the case Americans for Safe Access v. Drug Enforcement Administration, the D.C. Circuit issued an order last week seeking details on the harm sustained by plaintiff and disabled U.S. Air Force veteran Michael Krawitz as a result of the federal government's policy on medical marijuana.

The federal appeals court will use this additional briefing to decide whether the plaintiffs have legal "standing" to bring such a lawsuit against the government. The lawsuit argues that the government has acted arbitrarily and capriciously by keeping marijuana classified as a Schedule I substance, a dangerous drug with no medical value. By ignoring the overwhelming scientific evidence, ASA argues that the federal government has kept marijuana out of reach for millions of Americans who would otherwise benefit from its therapeutic value.

"The court's request for clarification is a sign that this case is being taken very seriously," said Joe Elford, Chief Counsel with Americans for Safe Access (ASA) and the attorney who is arguing before the D.C. Circuit. "The experience of plaintiff Michael Krawitz being denied treatment by the Department of Veterans Affairs is real and emblematic of many other patients caught up in the federal government's harmful policy on medical marijuana." According to Krawitz, his denial of Veterans Affairs (VA) treatment has forced him to "expend significant economic and other resources to be treated by an Oregon physician outside the VA system, which I pay for on my own."

The brief filed yesterday by ASA argues that, "The injuries suffered by Krawitz are caused by marijuana's placement in Schedule I and would be redressed by a favorable decision in this case." Specifically, the brief states that Krawitz was "denied prescription pain medication for a time and compelled to this day to seek pain treatment outside the VA system because he refused to sign a VA pain contract that would require him to abstain from the use of medical marijuana."

Legal "standing" is where the courts consider the harm endured by the plaintiffs. If standing is satisfied, the court can then rule on the merits of a case. The previous legal challenge to the classification of marijuana was rejected by the D.C. Circuit in 2002 because of inadequate standing, however no actual medical marijuana patients were part of that case. Not only are there several patient plaintiffs in the current legal challenge, but ASA is also alleging harm by having to counter political rhetoric with scientific information.

The case Americans for Safe Access v. Drug Enforcement Administration is the result of a petition to reclassify marijuana that was filed in 2002 by the Coalition for Rescheduling Cannabis, but denied last year by the federal government. In January, ASA appealed the denial of the petition and got the chance last week to argue marijuana's medical efficacy before the D.C. Circuit. This is the first time in nearly 20 years that the court is hearing arguments on the scientific evidence of medical marijuana.

"What's at stake in this case is nothing less than our country's scientific integrity and the imminent needs of millions of patients," continued Elford. Nevertheless, it could take weeks or even months before the D.C. Circuit renders a decision in the case."

 

[Bud buster]

Cocaine must be so much safer or are they making too much money bringing it in then policing it and running prisons.this is from another post.

"I presume that yours was a rhetorical question, though, because the answer is "YES! ... Absolutely YES!". The USA is the single largest contributor to the United Nations, and was instrumental in passage of the UN Single Convention on Narcotics. And the USA continues to support a global War on Drugs through a number of venues -- DEA, FBI, USAID, War on/of Terror leverage, DoD and DHS grants, etcetera.

This massive coordinated effort is, of course, hypocritical considering the US government's own long involvement in the illicit drug trade. This hubris is dismissed with excuses about American Exceptionalism, the USA's role as the "World's Policeman", or else Imperialism disguised as "Globalization". All of this will end, of course -- it has to."

The government is so corrupt Maxine Waters' testimony in front of Porter Goss and Nancy Pelosi - the late Gary Webb sits right behind her:

Rep. Maxine Waters on CIA Drug Trafficking Part 1 of 4
Rep. Maxine Waters on CIA Drug Trafficking Part 2 of 4
Rep. Maxine Waters on CIA Drug Trafficking Part 3 of 4
Rep. Maxine Waters on CIA Drug Trafficking Part 4 of 4
If the links don't work the thread is here https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=190562&page=5

I guess this is why coke is a schedule 2 because the cia make tons of money on it.

 

[Agaricus]

Do these people in the DEA really, truly, honestly believe their own bullshit? Or are they just trying to sweep all the lives they've ruined under the rug, trying to justify their actions? Not to mention the billions they bleed from the body politic.

 

[crazybear]

I toast those trying to get cannabis recognized as actual medicine & a big F**K you to the DEA. & others keeping cannabis from the sick!

 

[DankSide]

Anyone know when we can expect the decided result after ASA had the chance to appeal the case?

 

[Avinash.miles]

^NOT ME. i got no clue, doubt any one else does

 

[Avinash.miles]

2% on health 20% on defense, no wonder the best medicine available is illegal

 

[Tony Aroma]

DEA Administrative Law Judge Rules that Cannabis Research is "in the public interest"

U.S. Department of Justice-appointed Administrative Law Judge Mary Ellen Bittner issued an 87-page ruling today in favor of removing the government obstruction to medical cannabis research in the United States. University of Massachusetts-Amherst Professor Lyle Craker has led a six-year struggle to gain a DEA license to grow research-grade cannabis so that studies can be conducted to determine the full extent of marijuana's medical value. Judge Bittner's ruling, which concluded that "Respondent's registration to cultivate marijuana would be in the public interest," came on the same day as a study released in Neurology on the positive effects of cannabis on neuropathic pain for people living with HIV/AIDS.

That's really old, but I'm afraid history is going to repeat itself. In that case, the judge ruled in favor of rescheduling, but the DEA overruled their decision and nothing changed.

Basically, a court has no power with which to enforce its decisions. Because of separation of powers in our government, the judicial branch interprets the law and the executive branch enforces it. So obviously the DEA is not going to enforce a decision against themselves, anymore than a cop would give himself a speeding ticket. Bottom line, I see no reason to expect the same thing won't happen this time. Regardless of the court's decision in this case, the DEA will not reschedule marijuana. I think Oakland's case against the feds (see the other thread in this forum) has a much bigger chance of actually making a difference.

 

[Bi0hazard]

Full Article @ http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/oct/23/medical-marijuana-disabled-veteran-drugs

The UK Guardian interviews ASA v DEA plaintiff Michael Krawitz about the harm caused to him by the classification of cannabis in the Controlled Substances Act - which could be the issue that prompts a federal court ruling on the medical value of marijuana, for the first time in decades.

" A disabled veteran has told an appeals court that the department of veteran affairs policy on medical marijuana has caused him pain and significant economic harm, in a development campaigners say is a positive step in the battle to push for the drug's reclassification.

Michael Krawitz, one of five plaintiffs involved in a legal case before the court of appeal for the District of Columbia Circuit, told the Guardian that the VA denied him pain treatment after they discovered he had been prescribed medical marijuana while abroad.

He told the court in an affidavit that the withdrawal of care by the department, which has rated him 100% permanently disabled and thus eligible for all medical treatment under its auspices, has meant he now has to travel 130 miles from his home to see a doctor for pain relief.

Krawitz, 49, who is the executive director of Veterans for Medical Marijuana Access, said: "The bottom line is its unethical to take away someone's pain treatment. This conflicts with standards of medical care."

Krawitz sustained his injuries in a car accident while serving in the US air force, which has left him suffering debilitating pain.

The case, the result of a long-standing battle by medical marijuana advocates to reclassify the drug, is the first time in 20 years that scientific evidence regarding the therapeutic benefits of cannabis will be heard by a federal court.

This current case "looks more promising" than previous efforts, because of the court's focus on Krawitz and the request for more details, according to the ASA.

Joe Elford, the chief counsel with ASA, said: "It clearly demonstrated that the court is taking this case very seriously."

"This is something that demonstrates real harm to a real individual and that individual is Michael Krawitz.

"He is 100% disabled and supposed to get all his medical treatment from the VA. But because of the VA's policy on medical marijuana, which is clearly motivated by the schedule 1 status, that cannot happen."

After an initial oral hearing last week, the court ordered Americans for Safe Access, a advocacy group for medical marijuana use and research to file a brief in order to "clarify and amplify the assertions made [by] Michael Krawitz regarding his individual standing", and to "more fully explain precisely the nature of the injury that gives him standing".

ASA said they hope that if they can demonstrate that Krawitz was harmed by a federal policy that says medical marijuana has no medical value, they may also get the court to rule on the merit of the case. In that case, it would decide whether the scientific evidence is enough to reclassify the drug from its current status as a schedule 1 substance – as a dangerous drug on a par with heroin – to that of a safe drug that can be used in medicine.

The issue of "standing", of which the court sought more details, is a legal concept that restricts the right to sue to those who are directly harmed by what they are fighting and can get relief from a legal ruling. No plaintiffs were involved in the last appeal of the Drug Enforcement Agency's classification of the drug, and it was thrown out of court over the issue of standing.
There are veterans out there who are suffering

Krawitz had been receiving opiate-based pain relief from the VA until they discovered a prescription for medical marijuana he had received while abroad. They asked him to take a drug test and when he refused, they stopped his treatment.

"It said right there in the contract that if they find illegal drugs in your system they they will not give you any pain treatment," he said. "I found that offensive. I've been getting this pain treatment for years."

In an affidavit to the court, filed on Monday night which the Guardian has seen in draft form, Krawitz said he now has to travel to see a doctor 130 miles from his home in order to get pain treatment. The VA will not pay for this treatment, he said.

The affidavit details how his use of cannabis has allowed him to reduce his use of opiate-based drug oxycodone and has lessened the "deleterious side-effects" he had experienced.

He now divides his time between Oregon, the only state that allows non-residents to use medical marijuana, and his family's home state Virginia, where medical marijuana is illegal. His needs are now met by three different physicians, with his medical records split accordingly, he said.

Under the department's rules, veterans can be denied pain medication if they are found to be using illegal drugs. In 2010, the policy changed, to formally allow patients living in states where medical marijuana is legal to use it. VA doctors, however, are not allowed to prescribe it or recommend its use.

Krawitz said he has come across other veterans who, as a result of the VA's policy, or confusion over it, have been denied pain treatment.

"In the VA, it's really a big problem. There are veterans out there who are suffering.""

 

[Avinash.miles]

^^^ thanks biohaz just read that off the guardian site, was about to post here,
sound like good news....

 

[SCF]

Hell yeah, great news!! We need more like this brave Solder. We are Victims Twice, Once with our Health, Second by the laws. Write letters, to judges on the panel, im sure with a quick google search you can find out how you can help...

 

[gingerale]

Hell yeah, great news!! We need more like this brave Solder.

Airman

Krawitz sustained his injuries in a car accident while serving in the US Air Force, which has left him suffering debilitating pain.

Hoo-ah Air Force!

 

[Bud buster]

Everybody should write congress the squeaky wheel gets the grease get everybody you know to write spread the word. this site has a zip code box to give anybody there representatives addresses and phone numbers http://thesilvertour.org/ plus a video should grandma smoke pot.