FEDS, MEASURE 4 PROPONENTS AT ODDS OVER POT

A White house drug official, the state attorney general and local law
officials panned a proposed measure to legalize medical marijuana at a
news conference Thursday at the Rapid City Police Department.

"This is about asking yourself whether making more drugs available in
the state of South Dakota to young people is a good thing," deputy
drug czar Scott Burns said of Initiated Measure 4, which, if passed on
Nov. 7, would legalize marijuana for medicinal use.

That would include those with debilitating illness such as cancer and
glaucoma.

Burns was joined at the news conference by Pennington County State's
Attorney Glenn Brenner, South Dakota Attorney General Larry Long,
Pennington County deputy sheriff Dave Bramblee and State Rep. Don Van
Etten, who all spoke out against the measure, saying it would cause
medical and legal problems.

Burns, who flew in from the White House where he works as National
Drug Policy deputy director, called the measure a "con" to make the
drug legal and that, if passed, it would "normalize this endeavor of
smoking marijuana" and lead to more access to the drug for young people.

Long denounced the measure, too, saying that the way it is written
goes beyond merely helping those who need it.

"If Initiated Measure No. 4 was narrowly tapered to provide relief
simply to those people who have serious and terminal medical
conditions, I probably wouldn't be here today," he said.

He said the law, which would make it legal for people with
"debilitating medical conditions," to use marijuana, would be subject
to abuse because chronic pain is included under that distinction and
that the term could be interpreted too broadly.

Valerie Hannah, a Deerfield native who has used marijuana to ease
ailments stemming from her exposure to sarin gas in the Gulf War, disagreed.

"If a physician is upright, and the person is upright, I don't see it
being abused that way," she said. "Everything can be abused in one
sense or another. (Long should) stop politicking and using scare tactics."

Hannah has a degenerative illness similar to multiple sclerosis. Her
illness causes her deep inner-muscle pain, which marijuana has helped
alleviate, she said.

"Other drugs put you in more of a stupor," she added. "(And) there's
never been a case of anyone overdosing (on) marijuana."

Long also said the measure also includes language that would provide a
"get out of jail free card" to medical marijuana users and their
caregivers, who would be allowed to posses the drug if the measure to
passes.

Section 11 of Initiated Measure 4 reads, "no qualifying patient or
caregiver who possesses a registry identification card issued pursuant
to this Act may be arrested, prosecuted, or penalized in any manner,
or be denied any right or privilege."

Long said that means either the patient or caregiver of the patient
would be immune from any type of arrest if they possess the card,
which would be approved by the health department.

One of the sponsors of the initiative, Hermosa resident Bob Newland,
said a few words were left out of the bill, leaving it to the broad
interpretation Long suggested.

"That read broadly would suggest a patient can commit any crime he
wants with impunity," Newland said. "The word 'for any act committed
pursuant to this act' should have been put at the end of that sentence."

He said the courts could fix the problem.

"The courts are allowed to interpret a law based on the intent of the
drafter, or in this case of the people who voted for it," he said.
"Obviously, we did not intend to allow somebody with a marijuana
department of health registry card to be able to sell marijuana or to
be able to commit any other crime."

Burns said that legalizing marijuana would vastly increase the amount
of marijuana smokers, increasing it to "at least" the current numbers
of cigarette smokers in the U.S., about 60 million. He estimated the
current number at 15 million.

But Newland maintained that the bill is merely a measure to help those
who are sick.

"It's for anyone who needs medical marijuana who isn't already buying
it off the street," he said.

He said Long should quit "nitpicking."

"Attorney General Long should be working with doctors and patients to
assure that sick, disabled, and dying people have safe access to the
medicines they need."