HIGH COURT CONSIDERS MEDICAL EXCEPTIONS TO MARIJUANA BAN

WASHINGTON -- The Supreme Court took a first look at prescription pot
on Wednesday, hearing arguments on an issue that has pitted the
federal government against cancer, AIDS and other patients who
sometimes regard marijuana as a wonder drug.

As far as the federal government is concerned, marijuana is illegal
and should remain so. Federal enforcement efforts have led to
confrontations and arrests in California and other Western states.

The issue for an openly skeptical Supreme Court is whether a
patient's need for marijuana trumps a 1970 federal law that
classifies it as an illegal substance with no known medical value.

President Bush supports federal prohibitions on marijuana, but also
respects states' rights to pass voter initiatives, as was the case in
California.

Lawyers for the Oakland Cannabis Buyers' Cooperative in California
want to make what they call a "medical necessity" defense in federal
court. They argue that federal judges and juries have the power to
decide if the drug is warranted.

Several justices seemed to think that approach was a stretch at best.
"I thought the medical necessity defense was for an individual,"
Justice Antonin Scalia said. "You would extend it to the person
prescribing the drug and even to opening a business."

The court's ruling is expected by the end of June.

A ruling for the Oakland club would allow special marijuana clubs to
resume distributing the drug in California. A ruling for the federal
government would not negate the California voter initiative, but
effectively would prevent clubs like Oakland's from distributing the
drug openly.