ACQUITTAL SOUGHT FOR POT CHARGES

Man: Marijuana Use Was Medical

A Madison man will try to convince a jury today to acquit him on charges of
possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia because he needs the drug for
medicinal purposes.

Steven S. Wessing, 42, uses marijuana five to six times a day, according to
court records, to relieve the pain and other symptoms of a variety of maladies
including spina bifida occulta, which causes chronic back pain and muscle
spasms. He also suffers from severe headaches, anxiety and depression.

Wessing claims marijuana usage relieves the pain and is his medicine of choice.
In arguments filed with the court by attorney Peter Steinberg, Wessing also
says he has a constitutional right to choose his medicine and argues the state
has no reason to deny him that right.

"My client believes very strongly that he has a fundamental human right to the
medicine that will make him better," Steinberg said.

Steinberg's marijuana as medicine defense was shortcircuited earlier this week
when Bartell granted a motion brought by Assistant District Attorney Jason
Hanson to prohibit testimony about medical uses of marijuana as being
irrelevant to whether Wessing is guilty of possession of the drug.

Hanson argued the only issues for the jury to decide are whether Wessing
possessed a controlled substance and whether he knew it was a controlled
substance.

Although Bartell granted that motion, she also said Wessing could testify that
he had illnesses, and that is why he used and possessed the drug. She also said
she would revisit the issue before the start of the trial today.

Wessing was arrested last Oct. 16 after U.S. Customs agents, federal Drug
Enforcement Administration agents as well as state and local narcotics agents
raided his East Mifflin Street home. The raid came after Customs agents seized
13 packages of hashish sent to the house from Amsterdam.

Agents found more than half a pound of marijuana as well as a large supply of
hashish in the house, as well as numerous pipes used for smoking the drugs.

Also seized in that raid were a variety of books and literature, such as
"Barney's Menu of Marijuana," "Big Book of Buds," "Grandpa's Marijuana
Handbook" and "Pot Stories for the Soul."

Two weeks after his arrest, Wessing traveled to Oregon, one of 10 states which
have passed laws allowing the medical use of marijuana, and was seen by Dr.
Phil Leveque. In a brief filed with the court, Steinberg said Leveque
"confirmed that Mr. Wessing's debilitating medical conditions may be mitigated
by the use of medical marijuana," and added that in the state of Oregon Wessing
would be recognized by the state as a registered user of medical marijuana.

Steinberg argues that by not recognizing Oregon's law, Wisconsin is violating
the full faith and credit clause of the U.S. Constitution.

Steinberg also argues that Wisconsin's ban on marijuana usage, with no
exception for medical marijuana use, is unconstitutional.

While no court in the United States has agreed with that argument, Steinberg
points to a ruling in Ontario in 2000 in the case of Terry Parker, who suffers
from epilepsy and uses marijuana to help him deal with that condition.

"I have concluded that forcing Parker to choose between his health and
imprisonment violates his right to liberty and security of the person," wrote
Canadian Justice A.J. Rosenberg in that case, which threw out criminal charges
leveled against Parker.

"It is irrational to deprive a person of the drug when he or she requires it to
maintain their health," Rosenberg said.

Steinberg is asking Bartell to apply the same reasoning for his client.
"Prohibiting Steven Wessing from using marijuana in order to function with less
pain and suffering in his daily life fulfills no rational purpose," he wrote in
his brief.