EHRLICH SIGNS CONTROVERSIAL MEDICAL MARIJUANA BILL

ANNAPOLIS (AP) - Gov. Robert Ehrlich's decision to sign a medical marijuana
bill strongly opposed by the Bush Administration will help many patients
end their suffering, supporters said Thursday.

"These are people who are suffering. They're dying. It will help those
people," said Del. Dan Morhaim, D-Baltimore County, a sponsor of the bill
and an emergency room doctor at Sinai Hospital in Baltimore.

The new law does not legalize marijuana, but reduces the penalty to a
maximum $100 fine with no jail time. Defendants, however, must convince a
judge they need marijuana for medical reasons.

Previously, possession or use of marijuana brought penalties of up to a
year in prison or a $1,000 fine.

Erin Hildebrandt of Smithsburg, who had lobbied lawmakers to pass the law,
went to Thursday's bill-signing ceremony in Annapolis.

"It was really exciting. The bottom line, it means I won't have to go to
jail if I need my medicine again," said Hildebrandt, 32, who has smoked
marijuana in the past to treat migraine headaches and Crohn's Disease.

Despite opposition from some Republicans, Ehrlich had indicated support for
the bill early on because of his belief that people can differentiate
between legalizing the drug and allowing those dying of chronic illnesses
to alleviate their pain.

"This is a position I've had for many, many years," Ehrlich said at
Thursday's signing ceremony. "It is not without controversy. It's not
without controversy across parties, across chambers, across states, across
the country."

Ehrlich said he didn't think signing the bill would damage his relationship
with the White House.

"Certainly we received a lot of pressure from the administration," the
first-term governor said. "This is an issue I have dealt with for a decade.
My views are well known."

Ehrlich is the first Republican governor to sign a bill protecting medical
marijuana patients from jail, according to the Marijuana Policy Project in
Washington. "Governor Ehrlich's courageous action in the face of a hostile
White House shows that our campaign to protect medical marijuana patients
is truly nonpartisan," said Executive Director Robert Kampia.

Ehrlich's former GOP colleagues in the House of Representatives are acting
to take drug enforcement money from state and local police officers in
states where marijuana for medical use has been legalized.

Eight other states - Hawaii, Alaska, Washington, Oregon, California,
Colorado, Nevada and Maine - have medical marijuana laws.

Backers of the legislation say smoking marijuana can ease the symptoms of
serious illnesses such as cancer, HIV or AIDS, multiple sclerosis and
Crohn's disease, and help patients suffering from nausea hold down food and
medications.

Opponents, including White House drug czar John P. Walters, have been
pressuring Ehrlich to veto the measure, which they say offers a false and
illegal remedy to the sick. "I suspect that Governor Ehrlich acted with the
best of intentions, with an honest desire to help people, but it looks like
he may have been misled on the actual science and public health issues
here," Walters said Thursday in response to the signing. "It would be truly
unfortunate if today's actions led, however unintentionally, to greater use
or availability of dangerous drugs in Maryland."

Joe McGeeney, Elks State Drug Awareness Chairman for Maryland, Delaware and
the District of Columbia, said he was disappointed in the governor's
decision to sign the bill and vowed to help repeal it.

"It's sending the wrong message to our kids that it's OK to use because
there is medicinal powers," he said. "Other states that have approved
(similar bills) have seen a sharp increase in the youth smoking marijuana."

Staff writer Laura Ernde contributed to this story.