MEDICAL MARIJUANA BACKER ON HUNGER STRIKE IN JAIL

Supporters Rap Decision To Move Case To Federal Court

Supporters of a jailed medical marijuana activist say the 58-year-old
Merced man detained on federal drug charges is on a hunger strike.

Since his arrest on Thursday, Dustin Costa has become the county's focal
point in a philosophical debate about medical marijuana.

Costa's backers are placing him on a pedestal, describing him as an
effective political organizer, while prosecutors are dismissing him as a
drug dealer hiding behind the state's medical marijuana laws.

Underscoring the issue are lingering contradictions between federal drug
laws and voter-approved state measures legalizing the use of medical marijuana.

Costa, who goes by the nickname "Rev. D.C. Greenhouse," is president of the
Merced Patients Group, a private cannabis club in Merced that claims 230
members.

In recent months, the group has lobbied against local ordinances banning
medical marijuana dispensaries.

The federal case against Costa repackages marijuana cultivation charges
that he has fought in Merced County Superior Court for more than a year.

Those charges stem from a February 2004 pot bust in which local narcotics
agents netted close to 1,000 plants at Costa's Winton home.

Costa's attorney planned on putting up a medical marijuana defense in state
court, but that argument is useless now that it is in federal court. He
faces a maximum of 45 years in prison for the drug and weapons charges.

"He wanted to box it out in state court," said Auburn-based lawyer Bill
McPike, who defended Costa in Merced County.

McPike said he believes local prosecutors, who do not agree with state law,
"went out of their way" to forward the case to federal prosecutors.

"Their duty is to prosecute state law," he said. "It's not to prosecute
somebody for 18 months, then chicken out and turn it over to the feds."

In June, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the federal government can
prosecute people who use marijuana for medicinal purposes.

But California Attorney General Bill Lockyer argues that the ruling doesn't
overturn the state's medical marijuana laws.

"Either Merced County doesn't read directives from the Attorney General or
it ignores them," said McPike.

It is not clear how Costa's case was picked up by federal prosecutors.

District Attorney Gordon Spencer declined to discuss Costa's case, saying
it is now a federal matter.

Merced County Sheriff Mark Pazin said Costa's medical marijuana defense
lacked merit and was merely a smokescreen to evade prosecution.

"It was a disservice to those who may need medical marijuana," he said.

The outspoken club president has attracted attention with mock campaign
T-shirts that read "D.C. for D.A." and for his efforts to assemble a
medical marijuana marching band.

The Merced club helps connect people with doctors who give recommendations
for marijuana, and people who supply the drug.

To join the club, members pledged to become politically active and be named
in a lawsuit.

Dr. Tom O'Connel, a Redwood City-based surgeon who works with the Merced
club, said he thinks the transfer to federal court may be legal, but is
"grossly unfair."

"It's like a football game where the referee comes in at halftime with a
soccer ball," he said.

O'Connel is currently researching chronic marijuana users, and believes
that many are self-medicating to relieve a number of ailments, including
anxiety disorders.

"Pot was Prozac and Paxil before those drugs were even thought of," he said.

O'Connel said he has tried to persuade Costa not to refuse meals at Fresno
County Jail, where he is being held. Jail officials could not confirm Costa
is on a hunger strike.

Costa's detention hearing is scheduled in Federal District Court in Fresno
this morning. Members of his club say they will hold a rally outside the
courthouse to protest the transfer of his case.