MAN'S PROP.215 DEFENSE FAILS AT FEDERAL LEVEL

Courts: B.E.Smith Gets 27 Months In Prison For Growing Marijuana He Said Was
Medicinal On Federal Land.

Sacramento-The first Californian to fight federal drug charges using the
state's voter approved medical marijuana law was sentenced Friday to 27
months in prison.

B.E. Smith, an outspoken proponent of Proposition 215 accused of growing pot
on federal land, was convicted in May of felony marijuana possession and
cultivation.

U.S. District Judge Garland Burrell, imposing a higher sentence than
prosecutors sought, said Smith has shown an "utter disdain for federal
marijuana law."

"Marijuana is an evil in American society and a serious threat to people,"
Burrell told a courtroom packed with Smith's supporters. "The public is only
going to be protected from further crimes if Mr.Smith is incarcerated."

Prop. 215, approved in 1996, permits the growth and consumption of pot for
medical use.

The law could have shielded Smith in state court because he has a doctor's
recommendation to grow and smoke the plant to relieve post-traumatic stress
disorder from service in Vietnam.

But possession and cultivation of marijuana remains illegal under U.S. law.
Federal officials have medical marijuana users risk federal prosecution.

"Marijuana is a political tool, but this is an issue of compassion, and
patients are caught in the middle of this politicking," said Thomas
Ballanco, Smith's attorney. "And B.E.Smith was brave enough to stand up and
put his foot in the middle of that wheel."

Smith plans to appeal his conviction, Ballanco said.

Prosecutors contended Smith was trying to make a statement by growing
marijuana on federal land.

"His conduct was blatant; he did it intentionally, knowingly, and
blatantly," Assistant U.S. Attorney Nancy L. Simpson told the judge.

Still, Simpson recommended that Smith, 52, receive a "mid-range" sentence of
21 months to 27 months.

In September 1997, federal agents seized 87 marijuana plants that Smith
planted on federal land near his home. Two months later, Smith was charged
in a federal grand-jury indictment.

Smith tried to use Prop. 215 in his defense, but the judge barred mention of
it in court, saying it is a state law and is superseded by federal law.