ASSEMBLY OKS MEDICAL POT USE

CARSON CITY, Nev. - A measure authorizing medical use of marijuana and
easing Nevada's harsh penalties for possessing small amounts of the illegal
weed won approval Wednesday in the state Assembly.

AB453, sponsored by Assemblywoman Chris Giunchigliani, D-Las Vegas, lets
seriously ill Nevadans have up to seven marijuana plants for personal use
despite a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the issue.

"This implements the will of the people. This is a state's rights issue
which Nevadans hold dear," Giunchigliani said as the bill moved to the
Senate on a 30-12 vote.

The medical marijuana plan was backed by Assemblywoman Vivian Freeman,
D-Reno, who said she's "puzzled why there are so many hoops to jump through
for something that's so helpful."

"There's no reason why we didn't (approve medical marijuana) a long time
ago," added Freeman, a retired nurse.

Assemblyman Greg Brower, R-Reno, opposed the bill, urging lawmakers to heed
a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that a federal law classifying the drug
as illegal makes no exception for ill patients. The court's action leaves
those distributing the drug for that purpose open to prosecution.

"This bill puts Nevadans in a Catch-22," Brower said. "It says we're not
going to prosecute for use - it's a federal crime - but don't worry about
that."

Nevadans voted overwhelmingly in 1998 and 2000 to amend the Nevada
Constitution to authorize use of marijuana by those suffering from cancer,
AIDS, glaucoma and other painful and potentially terminal illnesses.

The task of implementing the voters' mandate was left to the Legislature.

Besides Nevada, voters in Arizona, Alaska, California, Colorado, Maine,
Oregon and Washington have approved ballot initiatives allowing medical
marijuana. In Hawaii, the legislature passed a similar law and the governor
signed it last year.

The Nevada bill also would create a state registry for all patients whose
doctors recommend they use marijuana for medical reasons.

The reduced penalty for possessing marijuana, from a felony to a
misdemeanor, goes beyond the constitutional amendment by changing the law
on possession of an ounce or less of marijuana. Nevada is one of only a few
states with a felony law for marijuana possession.

Under AB453, a person with an ounce or less of marijuana could be charged
with a misdemeanor and fined up to $600. A second offense would result in a
higher fine and assignment to a treatment or rehabilitation program.
Third-time offenders would be charged with a gross misdemeanor and have to
pay an even steeper fine.