JUDGE PROPOSES DOJ ESTABLISH PROGRAM TO DISTRIBUTE MARIJUANA TO SICK FOLKS

A federal judge is urging the Justice Department to establish a program to
make marijuana available to anyone whose medical condition could be
improved by it.

Yesterday, the Justice Department asked for 60 days to think it over.

According to court papers, U.S. District Judge Marvin Katz made the
suggestion as a proposed settlement in Kuromiya et al. v. United States, a
class-action suit brought on behalf of citizens who claim that the
prohibition of marijuana is unconstitutional since it is the best cure for
their ailments -- everything from AIDS to Lou Gehrig's disease.

The 128-page lawsuit, filed by Lawrence Elliott Hirsch of the Hirsch &
Caplan Public Interest Law Firm, tells the stories of about 160 plaintiffs
from 49 states. Many say they have been forced to break the law and to pay
exorbitant prices for the drug. Others say they simply suffer because they
fear jail. Hirsch argues that enactment of laws prohibiting the use of
cannabis without amending the constitution is unconstitutional.

"The right to consume, ingest or smoke a plant that grows wild in nature,
such as cannabis, is antecedent to, and more fundamental than the right to
vote," Hirsch wrote. The Justice Department moved to dismiss the case,
saying Hirsch has no chance of winning any relief. "It is well-settled that
the Controlled Substances Act provisions are a valid exercise of Congress'
Commerce Clause powers," attorneys Arthur R. Goldberg and Gail F. Levine of
the Justice Department's civil division argued.

But just two weeks after that brief was filed, it seems Judge Katz is
urging DOJ to think about settling the case instead of fighting it. In a
recent conference, Katz proposed a settlement under which the government
would agree to establish a "carefully monitored" and "scientifically
controlled" program to distribute marijuana to "individuals whose medical
conditions could be improved by it," according to court papers filed
yesterday. The settlement would also require the government to provide any
useful, scientific research results "that would help decide whether
marijuana is medically beneficial or not."

According to court papers, Katz asked the Justice Department how much time
it needed to consider his proposal. The answer came yesterday in a two-page
court filing by Goldberg and Levine that said DOJ would need "at least 60
days." That much time is needed, they said, "to consult the appropriate
management officials within the agencies and divisions of agencies
implicated by the proposal." Attorney Hirsch could not be reached for
comment.

Checked-by: Richard Lake