MEDICAL MARIJUANA ACTIVISTS PLEAD GUILTY

Two medical marijuana activists pleaded guilty Friday to federal drug
charges for cultivating a marijuana farm inside a Bel-Air mansion.

Todd McCormick and Peter McWilliams pleaded guilty Friday evening to
one count of conspiracy to manufacture and distribute marijuana, said
Thom Mrozek, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney's office. A judge
earlier this month ruled that McCormick, 29, and McWilliams, 50, could
not use ''medical necessity'' as a defense.

McCormick agreed to five years in prison and the right to raise the
medical necessity issue with the appellate court. McWilliams, a
self-help publisher, faces up to five years with no appeal rights.

Sentencing for both men was set for Feb. 28.

McCormick, who has bone cancer, and McWilliams, who has AIDS and
cancer now in remission, were arrested in July when more than 6,000
plants were found in a Bel-Air mansion and three other leased
locations in Los Angeles County.

Voters in California approved Proposition 215 in 1996, which
recognizes marijuana use under a licensed doctor's care. Federal
officials have not recognized the measure, reasoning state laws do not
apply to federal offenses.