AMERICA AWAITS REASON ON MARIJUANA

ON JUNE 6, the Supreme Court ruled that the federal government may
continue arresting patients for using medical marijuana in compliance
with state medical-marijuana laws. But the court did not overturn
state medical-marijuana laws or in any way interfere with their
continued operation.

In its ruling, the Supreme Court indicated that Congress -- not the
court -- must be the institution to change federal law to protect
AIDS, cancer and other medical-marijuana patients from arrest. Last
month, Congress got the chance, but decided not to change policy.

Although some media reports have failed to make this clear, the
validity of the medical-marijuana laws of Alaska, California,
Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont and
Washington were never at issue in the Supreme Court's
medical-marijuana case, Gonzales v. Raich. These state laws
protecting patients from arrest and jail remain in full force.

The court has continued the status quo as it has existed since
California passed the first of the 10 state medical-marijuana laws,
in 1996: Patients and caregivers in these states who legitimately
possess or grow medical marijuana are protected under state law,
although they are not exempt from prosecution under federal anti-drug statutes.

This is unfortunate. No one fighting for dignity and life against an
illness such as cancer, AIDS, or multiple sclerosis should have to
face arrest for using a medicine that reduces suffering.

Yet all is not lost. Federal authorities make only 1 percent of the
country's 700,000-plus annual marijuana arrests. Ninety-nine out of
100 marijuana arrests are made by state and local police, enforcing
state and local laws. So in practical terms, state medical-marijuana
laws reduce patients' risk of arrest by 99 percent. This isn't
perfect, but it is real and substantial.

Still, though other court cases focusing on other legal issues will
move forward, it's safe to assume that for now patients cannot count
on the federal courts for protection. This makes the path clear for
officials at all levels.

First, the Bush administration should realize that just because it
can arrest the sick and suffering, it can also choose not to. The
administration can listen to the public and the medical community,
and end this cruel war on the sick now.

In a 1997 editorial, the editor in chief of The New England Journal
of Medicine called the federal ban on the medical use of marijuana
"misguided, heavy-handed, and inhumane." That judgment is as true
today as it was then. Sadly, there is no indication that the
administration will change course -- which leaves it up to Congress.

Many Americans don't realize that the federal ban on the medical use
of marijuana was not put in place by the Food and Drug Administration
or any medical or public-health agency. The ban was enacted by
Congress; therefore, Congress can change it.

Congress has rejected the chance to use its spending authority to
stop the Drug Enforcement Administration from attacking
medical-marijuana patients and caregivers in states that allow
medical use. Representatives Maurice Hinchey (D.-N.Y.) and Dana
Rohrabacher (R.-Calif.) offered such an amendment, but the House
rejected it when the appropriations bill to fund the Justice
Department reached the House floor, last month.

By passing the Hinchey-Rohrabacher amendment, Congress could have
stopped these pointless attacks on patients.

In any event, state officials must continue to do everything they can
to protect patients under state law. In states with medical-marijuana
laws, this means continuing to implement the laws exactly as before.
And in states without such laws, legislators must realize that they
are the best hope for sick and suffering patients. They must act now
to protect patients under state law.

Make no mistake: The Gonzales v. Raich decision is disappointing to
anyone who has compassion for the seriously ill. But it doesn't set
us back. It simply maintains the status quo.

The day will come -- soon -- when Americans will look back at our
policy of arresting patients for using medical marijuana and see it
as every bit as bizarre as the laws that used to call for the burning
of witches.

Rob Kampia is executive director of the Marijuana Policy Project (www.mpp.org).