POT RULING MAY AFFECT ALASKANS

Court Clears Way For Reconsideration Of Medical Marijuana Case

A federal appeals court ruling in California is good news for Alaskans who
smoke pot for medical reasons, according to an advocate of the state's
medical marijuana law.

``This case that went to the appeals court in California turns out to have
huge implications for Alaska because we're in the appeals court district,''
said David Finkelstein of Alaskans for Medical Rights.

A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday said
a federal judge should have considered patients' medical needs for
marijuana when he ordered a cannabis club in Oakland, Calif., to stop
distributing the drug last year.

The ruling ``means that the federal law is not an absolute barrier to
distribution of marijuana,'' said University of Santa Clara law professor
Gerald Uelmen, who helped represent the Oakland center.

``It requires courts to exercise discretion to look at the circumstances of
individual patients and weigh that against the public interest.''

The court did not overturn U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer's injunction
against the club, but said he must consider the case again, taking into
account evidence that some patients need cannabis to treat debilitating and
life-threatening conditions.

If the decision stands, Alaskans who use marijuana for medical reasons will
not need to feel intimidated by the federal law, Finkelstein said.

Although voters in Alaska and several other states have passed initiatives
legalizing the use of marijuana to treat some medical conditions, it
remains illegal under federal law.

``It's the one weakness in our law that's been pointed out over and over,''
Finkelstein said.

As a practical matter, the fact that marijuana is illegal at the federal
level doesn't affect people who have small quantities of marijuana for
their personal medical use. That's because the federal government doesn't
bother to prosecute such cases.

Karen Loeffler, chief of the Criminal Division in the U.S. Attorney's
Office in Anchorage, said earlier this year she's not aware of federal
prosecutions for simple marijuana possession.

But Finkelstein said some patients and doctors are still uncomfortable with
medical use of marijuana because of the federal prohibition.

``I've had a significant number of doctors tell me it makes a difference to
them. They're intimidated by the federal treatment.''

Under Alaska law, medical marijuana users must have a doctor's
recommendation and register with the state.

Loeffler of the U.S. Attorney's Office in Anchorage said she didn't know
enough about the ruling to comment on its implications in Alaska.