MONTEL WILLIAMS CAUGHT WITH DRUG PARAPHERNALIA

ROMULUS -- Syndicated television talk show host Montel Williams was fined
after airport authorities found him with marijuana paraphernalia, which he
says he uses to help treat the disease multiple sclerosis.

"He has prescriptions for many different medications for MS," a Williams
spokeswoman said in a prepared statement. "One of the medications he has
been prescribed to alleviate his chronic pain is medical marijuana."

Williams paid a $100 fine in the incident Monday night at Detroit
Metropolitan Airport, boarded his flight and left, she said.

In 1999, Williams was diagnosed with the disease, which affects the central
nervous system.

Police referred calls to airport spokesman Mike Conway, who declined to
comment.

Despite federal laws that ban the use of medical marijuana, eight states
have enacted laws that allow its use in certain cases, according to the
Marijuana Policy Project.