HUNDREDS CALL FOR LEGALIZATION OF MEDICINAL MARIJUANA IN TEXAS

AUSTIN --Hundreds of people chanting "Free the weed," "Legalize the
herb" and other slogans converged Saturday on the Capitol, calling for
the legalization of marijuana.

Demonstrators said the government should spend their time on violent
criminals, not on recreational pot smokers. About 300 people were in
the demonstration.

"This is not our biggest issue, and they shouldn't be incarcerating
people for it," a 38-year-old computer hardware designer said. He
asked not to be identified.

Many compared laws banning the possession of marijuana to Prohibition.
They sported signs that read "Free the Weed and You Free Us," in
addition to fake garlands of marijuana and a few branches that looked
suspiciously real. Many wore costumes and carried drums. One man
marched on stilts.

Zeal Stefanoff, a Hays County man who in 1991 protested drug laws by
smoking a joint in the San Marcos police station, called Saturday for
more civil disobedience.

"We're living under more draconian laws than existed during
Prohibition," Stefanoff said. "Every 45 seconds, someone in the U.S.
is arrested for marijuana."

Stefanoff asked supporters to turn themselves in.

"Walk in the police station and turn yourselves in. If we put every
one of you into the courthouse, it's over," he said, predicting the
county could not handle that many arrests.

Other speakers Saturday called for legalization of medicinal uses of
marijuana. A few states, including California, have legalized
medicinal marijuana.

"If you want it to be seen as a medicine, we need to use it as such,"
said Cristal Allen, a speaker at the event who also uses the plant for
religious worship as a member of the Native American church. She
admonished the crowd to cut back on recreational uses for the drug in
favor of medicinal purposes.

"You're not just supposed to use it when you're out sitting with your
brothers drinking beer," she added.

Tourists inside the Capitol who accidentally walked into the middle of
the flamboyant crowd, appeared confused. Similar marches were held in
more than 90 cities Saturday.