JURY FINDS MAN USING MEDICAL MARIJUANA DEFENSE GUILTY

BRONSON, Fla. -- (AP) -- A jury Thursday rejected a man's claim that he
needs marijuana to cope with the side effects of potent painkillers and
convicted him on marijuana possession charges.

Joe Tacl, 46, acknowledged smoking marijuana. But his lawyers argued the
prohibition against the drug in this case should be ignored. Marijuana was
the only thing he found that eased the nausea caused by painkillers he took
for his severely damaged back.

On his way out to the courtroom Tacl said he wanted to leave the country.

``I'm not going to live in Nazi Germany,'' he said. ``I'm very angry.''

In their closing argument to jurors, prosecutors Tim Browning and John
Wentzlaff argued that regardless of Tacl's pain, the law was broken.

``If you let sympathy cloud your common sense and if you let sympathy sway
you away from a lawful verdict, then justice will have been left on the
floor of the jury room,'' Browning said.

The case was one of the first to go to a jury in a felony marijuana
possession case in Florida since the state Supreme Court in June
effectively said defendants were free to use the medical necessity defense
for marijuana possession.

The jury took less than two hours to find Tacl and his 20-year-old son,
Michael, guilty of growing marijuana on their property, having the drug in
their possession at their house and misdemeanor charges of possessing drug
paraphernalia.

Sentencing for both was set for Sept. 1. Defense attorney Gary Wainwright
said the case will be appealed.

Tacl lives with his wife, Anne, and his son in this rural area west of
Gainesville.

The prosecution said Tacl didn't exhaust every legal possibility to try to
ease his pain and nausea before deciding on marijuana, citing several legal
drugs that he had never taken.

Prosecutors didn't produce any expert witnesses to testify that medical use
of marijuana for Tacl's symptoms is not legitimate. ``I guess they couldn't
find one,'' Wainwright said.

Tacl's doctor had testified that he has had to take powerful painkillers,
including methadone, morphine, and fentinil -- a narcotic so potent it can
only be delivered through a patch on the skin in small doses.

Tacl claimed he had near-constant back pain since being run over by a van
six years ago. He had back surgery that left him with four 8-inch titanium
rods in his back, held there by metal screws.

A pharmacologist testified during the trial that scientific tests have
shown that claims of marijuana easing nausea were valid. He also testified
that marijuana was relatively harmless -- at least compared to the legal
prescription painkillers Tacl was taking.

Michael Tacl was not allowed to use the medical need defense. His attorneys
argued that the state didn't prove that the son ever smoked pot or that any
of it was his.

But Wainwright attacked a system in which family members might be
prosecuted along with medical marijuana users because they live in the same
house.

Wainwright said that police were using that as a tactic, saying to medical
marijuana users, ``If you can get off, we're going to get your family.''

Six states allow marijuana possession for certain people who can document a
medical need.

Florida isn't one of them, although supporters of the idea are collecting
signatures to get the issue on the 2000 ballot.

The drug is still illegal under federal law, so even in the six states
allowing medical marijuana people could face federal prosecution.

The trial drew the attention of several activists who favor legalization of
marijuana for medical purposes. Many attended the trial, while others
camped on the courthouse lawn and offered literature about medical
marijuana to passersby.

During closing arguments, Browning urged jurors to focus on the alleged
crime at hand.

``Despite the appearances, this is a jury trial,'' Browning said. ``It is
not a political platform for the legalization of marijuana.... A criminal
trial is not a soapbox to espouse a political or social agenda.