PATIENTS PROTEST FOR POT

Group Says Marijuana Helps Them Cope With Pain

A yellow daisy tucked behind one ear, Willa Elam intentionally broke the
law Friday, pulling out a marijuana joint and lighting up in the Viera
office of U.S. Rep. Dave Weldon, R-Palm Bay.

Elam, a Cocoa Beach resident, wants marijuana legalized for patients who,
like her, are dying of a terminal illness.

"I tried morphine for the pain, and it made me deathly ill," said Elam,

who is dying of breast cancer and uses a wheelchair. "I want to be alive
and kicking for the time I have left. I smoke a joint, and it makes me want
to party."

The 58-year-old Elam was staging a protest with a handful of members of

the Melbourne-based Florida Cannabis Action Network and another patient,
Cathy Jordan, who has amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig's disease.

The group wants Weldon to reverse his stand against legalization for
medicinal purposes and support a bill now in Congress that would allow for
limited patient access to marijuana, which comes from the cannabis plant.
They also want the issue put on the state ballot and have what they say is
a box full of signed petitions to that effect.

Weldon, a physician, has opposed the medical use of marijuana, pointing

to concerns that legalizing marijuana, even for dying patients, would lead
to a "slippery slope" legalization of harder drugs, such as cocaine. He was
not in his office Friday.

"I heard he might not be here," Elam said. "But we need to speak out,
regardless of where Weldon is."

Weldon's aide, Brian Chase, spoke with the group and attempted to restate
the congressman's position. As a physician, Weldon has treated many
patients in pain using those medications that are now available, Chase
said. And while Weldon is sympathetic to the needs of dying patients, he
does not believe allowing physicians to prescribe marijuana is the answer.

As part of the demonstration, the group carried signs, two of which read:
"God's Plant, My Choice," and "Zero Tolerance Makes Zero Sense."

Although nine states have implemented laws since 1996 allowing seriously
ill patients to possess and use medicinal marijuana under a doctor's
supervision, the laws do not protect patients or doctors from federal
prosecution, said Kevin Aplin, the action group's president. States also
lack the authority to establish ways of distributing marijuana to patients
who need it, he said.

"If a patient is in pain, they should be the ones choosing the course of
therapy," Aplin said. "Our issue is not to debate the science. The issue is
compassion."

In 1997, the Florida Medical Association passed a resolution asking "for
expedited research into the therapeutic potential of smokable marijuana,"
said Lisette Gonzales, a spokeswoman for the association. But the
resolution does not call for limited patient access to the drug, she said,
and the association has no further position on the matter.

Elam and Jordan, who was diagnosed in 1986, say the marijuana helps with
their depression and pain. Elam broke down only once during the hourlong
demonstration. When asked about the flower in her hair, she said it was
given to her by a little boy "who knows what it's like to be sick."