LEGAL POT FOR VERY ILL GETS LIFT

Big Petition Seeks State Vote

LANSING -- Michigan residents may get a chance to vote next fall on
whether to decriminalize the use of marijuana for medical purposes,
after supporters of the idea submitted nearly a half-million petition
signatures to state elections officials Tuesday.

The Michigan Coalition for Compassionate Care claimed to have gathered
the signatures of 496,000 registered voters, far in excess of the
304,000 required to put the issue before the Legislature and, if no
action is taken, to state voters.

Dianne Byrum, a former state legislator from Ingham County now working
with the coalition, said the use of medical marijuana enjoys broad
support around the country and in Michigan.

Twelve states allow citizens some access to medical marijuana, giving
seriously ill patients the right to use the drug, mainly for pain
relief. They also may be able to grow it. Voters in five cities in
Michigan -- Detroit, Flint, Ann Arbor, Ferndale and Traverse City --
have approved similar ordinances in recent years.

But use and possession of marijuana for any purpose remains illegal
under state and federal laws.

Byrum said the Michigan initiative has been narrowly crafted to
restrict marijuana use to people who have specific, serious illnesses
certified by physicians. It has been endorsed in concept by resolution
of the state Democratic Party, said Byrum, a former Democratic state
senator and representative who runs a political consulting firm.

Marijuana Helps This Patient

Jan Paliza, 53, of Ann Arbor said that she would vote to allow medical
marijuana use statewide if given a chance.

She suffers from fibromyalgia, a rheumatic disorder characterized by
pain, tenderness and stiffness of muscles and connective tissue, and
osteoarthritis. She takes various painkillers.

"It makes me feel good, period," Paliza said of smoking
marijuana.

"I am not for young kids smoking pot and getting high. It's about
those of us who it does help."

Paliza, a member of the National Organization for the Reform of
Marijuana Laws, said she felt too weak to gather signatures for the
petition submitted to elections officials.

Legislators are unlikely to rush to embrace the measure.

Matt Marsden, spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop,
R-Rochester, said he expected Senate leaders to wait to see whether
the group collected enough valid petition signatures.

But the fact that the Legislature could have taken up medical
marijuana legislation at any time but did not suggests "there may not
be much interest in it," Marsden said.

The proposal might be slightly more attractive to the
Democrat-controlled House, where medical marijuana legislation has
been considered before, very briefly.

Greg Bird, spokesman for Speaker Andy Dillon, D-Redford Township,
declined immediate comment.

Typically, proposals on medical marijuana draw intense criticism from
some federal antidrug officials who question its efficacy and suggest
that legalization of any kind sends a mixed message to young people.

Opponents also view medical marijuana as impetus for widespread
legalization of marijuana and other recreational drugs.

The Difficulty for Law Enforcement

Macomb County Sheriff Mark Hackel said he opposes the Michigan
proposal.

Hackel said regulating distribution, like weeding out valid
prescriptions from fake ones, would be challenging. And determining
"what is legitimate versus what is not" during traffic stops or home
raids would be "cumbersome" for law enforcement agencies, he said.

Byrum said backers of the proposal have no interest in other
legalization initiatives. The Michigan coalition is sponsored in part
by the Marijuana Policy Project in Washington, D.C., a group that
advocates decriminalization of marijuana use generally.