RELIGION DEFENSE FOR POT USE CONSIDERED

A Big Island judge will weigh Jonathan Adler's proclaimed religious right
to smoke marijuana against the state's interest in outlawing the drug's use.

Adler, a declared candidate for governor, is charged with commercial
promotion of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia. His first
trial ended in a mistrial when a jury was unable to reach a verdict in August.

At that trial, Adler never denied growing the 82 marijuana plants and seven
seedlings or possessing the four smoking pipes that police found at his
Hawaiian Paradise Park home on Aug. 25, 1998.

He said the marijuana was a sacrament in his church and, therefore, his
right to use it was protected by the Hawaii Constitution, which forbids the
government from passing laws that prohibit the free exercise of religion.

After the mistrial, Adler and the state agreed to several key points, and
to let Circuit Judge Greg Nakamura decide the remaining issues rather than
going through another jury trial.

Under the agreement, the judge will assume as fact that Adler possessed the
plants and the paraphernalia, that he is a reverend in the Religion of
Jesus Church, that the state has issued him a license to perform marriage
ceremonies, that he is sincere in his religious convictions concerning the
use of marijuana and that he sincerely believes that his religion mandates
the sacramental use of the drug.

Based on the transcript of the first trial and testimony from four
witnesses who testified Thursday, the judge will decide whether Adler's
religion does, in fact, mandate pot smoking, whether the state has a
"compelling interest" in prohibiting Adler's use of cannabis and, if so,
whether that interest outweighs Adler's constitutional right to freely
exercise his religion.

Most of Thursday's testimony concerned the "compelling interest" issue,
with prosecution and defense witnesses offering contradictory testimony
about the effects of marijuana use.

Tonya Canono, a substance abuse counselor on Oahu, testified smoking
marijuana causes a wide range of harmful effects, including short - term
memory loss, decreased coping skills, lack of motivation and legal and
social problems.

Canono, director of the Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center, said the
drug is addictive. She said the most prominent symptom of addiction is
continued use despite negative consequences. "They would rather go to jail
than quit smoking marijuana," she said. "That is a fairly high degree of
addiction."

The doctor who certified Adler's marijuana use for medical reasons
testified that the drug is less harmful than any medication he can
prescribe legally.

William Wenner, a Big Island general surgeon, testified that Adler
approached him four or five years ago and told him marijuana helped his
asthma. "I said, 'Look. This works for you. It's not toxic and your biggest
problem with it is that it is illegal,'" Wenner said.

"Did the benefits that he enjoyed outweigh the risks of his consumption?"
asked Adler's attorney, Michael Glenn.

"No question," Wenner said.

The doctor said taking the oral prescription drug Marinol, which contains
the same active component as marijuana, would be "useless" in treating an
asthma attack because it takes 45 minutes to get into the blood stream.

Wenner testified that marijuana is rarely highly addictive. He said most of
his patients admit to having smoked marijuana at some point but most have
stopped. "Marijuana doesn't get a life of its own," he said.

Another witness, Keith Kamita, who issues certificates for medical
marijuana on behalf of the state, testified that 471 patients across the
state have the certificates.

Adler, 49, testified that he would be unable to practice his religion
without being able to consume cannabis.

Judge Nakamura told Glenn and Deputy Prosecutors Kevin Hashizaki and Mel
Fujino to submit their closing arguments in writing within one month of
receiving transcripts of the first trial. The judge will then issue his
verdict.

If convicted, Adler faces up to 15 years in prison.