JUDGE ASKS BOARD IF MARIJUANA HAS SAFE MEDICAL USES

A Polk County judge has ruled that the Iowa Board of Pharmacy must
examine whether marijuana has an accepted medical use - a decision
some said could thaw the debate on its use for medical purposes in Iowa.

The ruling Thursday by District Judge Joel Novak does not legalize
medical marijuana in Iowa. Instead, it requires the pharmacy board to
consider whether marijuana is properly classified as a Schedule I
controlled substance under state law.

"What this does is it forces the board to address medical marijuana,"
said Randall Wilson, the attorney who handled the case for the
American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa.

Lloyd Jessen, executive director of the pharmacy board, said he did
not want to comment on the ruling until he and other board members
had a chance to discuss it with their lawyer.

To be classified as a Schedule I substance, among the most tightly
regulated drugs under state law, a drug must be shown to have a high
potential for abuse and no safe medical use within the United States.

Proponents of medical marijuana contend that by listing the drug
under Schedule I, the state is implying that the drug has no
acceptable medical use.

Forcing the board to acknowledge marijuana's use in medicine would be
a symbolic victory that could force lawmakers to address the issue
more seriously, Wilson said.

Last summer, a group including the ACLU petitioned the pharmacy board
to remove the drug from the Schedule I classification.

The board ruled against the petition in October and the ACLU appealed.

Novak's ruling stipulates that the board must now review the
classification and decide whether the drug has a safe medical application.

If the drug does have a safe medical use, the board can recommend
that the Iowa Legislature reclassify it, Wilson said.

Marijuana can now be used under medical supervision in at least 13
states to battle nausea, pain and other symptoms brought on by
diseases such as cancer and AIDS, the ACLU says.

"The pharmacy board has been saying, 'We should wait for the feds to
do something.' but the law doesn't say to wait," Wilson said. "We're
trying to unfreeze the issue and open up the debate."

Earlier this year, state Sen. Joe Bolkcom, D-Iowa City, proposed a
bill that would have legalized medical marijuana in Iowa. The bill
iied for lack of support.

The bill called for creating not-for-profit organizations known as
"compassion centers" that would cultivate and distribute marijuana
for qualified patients.

"I'm pleased with the court's decision," Bolkcom said Friday.

"I think having the pharmacy board review the classification brings
the issue forward again in an important way."