FEDERAL WAR ON MARIJUANA IS MISGUIDED

Common sense will tell you that something went terribly wrong in the
courtroom of federal Judge Charles R. Breyer.

Justice wasn't blind. It was blindsided.

Late last month a federal jury in San Francisco found Ed Rosenthal of
Oakland guilty of marijuana cultivation and conspiracy. He faces a mandatory
minimum sentence of five years in prison.

Reaction was swift.

``Kangaroo court.'' ``Railroaded.'' ``He didn't deserve this.'' ``He's not a
criminal.''

And that's the jury who convicted him talking.

You see, no one told the jury that Rosenthal was working for the city of
Oakland's medicinal marijuana program when he was arrested. Breyer would not
allow it.

A single ``not guilty'' vote would have resulted in a hung jury.

Once some members of the jury learned the truth, they became angry.

Five of them, in an unusual, courageous move, showed up Tuesday in front of
the courthouse to denounce the trial and their decision, and apologize to
Rosenthal.

``It was like a kangaroo court,'' juror Marney Craig told reporters.

``I really feel manipulated in a way,'' said another juror, Pam Klarkowsky.
``I feel the jury was railroaded into making this decision.''

``I feel like I made the biggest mistake in my life,'' Craig said. ``We
convicted a man who is not a criminal.''

Out of control

Unfortunately, I don't think this is an isolated instance.

For many months now, the federal judicial system has been spinning out of
control. People have been arrested and kept incommunicado. There have been
secret hearings closed to the scrutiny of the press and the public.
Whistle-blowers who have revealed federal wrongdoing have been punished. Big
Brother is watching what you say, do and even what books you check out of
the library.

It's un-American.

In the name of security and law and order, the feds are slowly chipping away
at our liberty, slowly squeezing us into conformity.

Rosenthal's case came about because although growing medicinal pot is legal
in California, it is illegal under U.S. law.

Watching from afar, the New York Times called the federal attack on people
like Rosenthal a ``misguided marijuana war.''

``The Bush administration's war on medical marijuana is not only misguided
but mean-spirited,'' the Times said in an editorial this week. ``Doctors
have long recognized marijuana's value in reducing pain and aiding in the
treatment of cancer and AIDS, among other diseases.''

And, the Times pointed out, a recent poll found 80 percent of Americans
support legalized medicinal marijuana.

Bullying

The Times alluded to one of the characteristics I've spotted in our federal
government: In the eyes of many, our federal government has become a bully.

It is even picking on Us the People, trying to thwart the will of California
voters.

In 1996, Californians approved Proposition 215, the medicinal marijuana
initiative that made what Rosenthal did legal.

``If the Bush administration really believes Proposition 215 has no legal
authority, it should seek to strike down the law itself,'' said the Times.
``Or it could go after cities like Oakland, which make medical marijuana
available as part of municipal policy. Such an approach could be
inconvenient for an administration that favors greater autonomy for state
and local governments. But it is less vindictive than a strategy that
attacks doctors and people like Mr. Rosenthal.''

In other words, Mr. Bully, stop picking on the little guys.

Meanwhile, other cases are pending against medicinal marijuana growers.

I find it strange that, given the state of the country and the world,
federal law enforcement people seem to have a lot of time on their hands.

Now that's scary.