MEDICAL MARIJUANA TO GET JUSTICES' REVIEW

WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court announced Monday that it would hear the
Bush administration's claim that federal drug agents have the
authority to arrest seriously ill Californians who use homegrown
marijuana to relieve their pain.

The court agreed to hear an appeal filed by Atty. Gen. John Ashcroft,
who contends that federal law prohibits the use of marijuana "in all
instances."

The case, to be heard in the fall, is a clash between the strict
federal drug laws and the California initiative that allows patients
to use marijuana on the advice of their doctor. It will also determine
the fate of similar laws in eight other states.

The case focuses not on whether using marijuana makes medical sense,
but whether the federal authority extends to regulating a plant that
is grown at home.

The U.S. Constitution says Congress and the federal government have
the power to regulate "commerce among the states." This is the basis
for most federal regulatory laws.

But defenders of the medical marijuana law in California questioned
how that federal power can be extended to cover plants that are grown
by a patient for his or her own use.

"It is a pretty far-fetched argument for them to say this involves
interstate commerce, because there is no commerce and no interstate
activity," said Oakland attorney Robert Raich, whose wife, Angel, is
one of two plaintiffs in the case.

The other, Diane Monson, suffers from a degenerative disease of the
spine. Like Angel Raich, who has an inoperable brain tumor, Monson
said marijuana had been especially effective at easing her pain and
restoring her appetite.

In August 2002, however, U.S. drug agents raided Monson's home and
destroyed her six cannabis plants.

Late last year, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals agreed that the
federal agents had overstepped their authority and issued an order
that bars the Drug Enforcement Administration from enforcing the drug
laws against patients whose marijuana is grown at home.

The "noncommercial cultivation, possession and use of marijuana for
personal medical purposes" is protected under California law and is
beyond the federal authority, said Judge Harry Pregerson in a 2-1
decision. It is "different in kind from drug trafficking," he added.

The Justice Department appealed that decision, and on Monday the
Supreme Court said it would hear the case, Ashcroft vs. Raich, during
the court's next term.

"The Supreme Court has a chance to protect the rights of patients
everywhere who need medical cannabis to treat their afflictions," said
Steph Sherer, executive director of the medical-marijuana advocacy
group Americans for Safe Access. "Too many have gone to prison, and
too many have been denied access to the medication their doctors
recommend."