WHY MEDICAL MARIJUANA IS WRONG FOR MINNESOTA

I have voted "no" five times on the "medical marijuana" bill in Senate
Committees and now on the Senate floor. I feel great compassion and
concern for the Minnesota residents who believe that marijuana might
help them to relieve their pain at the end of their life. Nonetheless,
I cannot help them.

The Federal Drug Administration (FDA) has never approved marijuana for
medicinal use; accordingly, doctors are prohibited from prescribing
it, and pharmacists may not dispense it. There is no way for the
terminally ill to obtain marijuana except from an illegal source.

Current law makes it illegal to buy or sell plants, seeds, or any
marijuana plant product. The proposed legislation would allow for
chronically ill (not just terminally ill) residents to possess up to
2.5 ounces of the strongest marijuana available, and to do so with
legal immunity. Everyone may apply, with the written "recommendation"
from a nurse, physician assistant or licensed physician. No one can be
denied a "user card" not even those who have been convicted of violent
crimes, drug crimes, or are still on supervision. For a fee of $1,000
you can buy your way to unfettered, unlimited, legal use and
possession of marijuana.

The bill also authorizes "primary caregivers" to pick-up and deliver
this drug with legal immunity. And the bill authorizes the development
of dispensaries ("registered nonprofit organizations") that may grow
up to 12 plants (three pounds) per patient. They may sell this
marijuana to people with "user cards" out of business centers,
shopping malls, in storefronts in our smallest towns, and down on the
corner in North Minneapolis. With this legislation, growing and
dispensing marijuana will become a legal business in Minnesota.

Several other states have approved the use of medicinal marijuana, but
the U.S. Supreme Court has held that all such uses and sales of
marijuana are still violations of federal drug laws. Violators can and
will be prosecuted even if Minnesota law exempts them from penalties
in Minnesota. More importantly, the experiences of those states show
significant issues of abuse; in California one psychiatrist
"recommended" 11,000 patients for such treatment; kids in California
have started a black market on the "user cards" and are bringing
marijuana to school with the legal immunity provided by the card.

This proposal sends a horribly mixed set of messages -- to law
enforcement, to kids, to drug dealers, and to law-abiding residents of
our state. Imagine what our world would look like if an officer pulls
over someone and finds 2.5 ounces of marijuana on the front seat. The
driver pulls out a "user card," so now the officer must stop his work.
The officer would need separate probable cause to search for a gun or
other drugs in the vehicle. How do we train officers for dealing with
the crime that will occur around these dispensaries, when many of the
people at these so-called "businesses" will have a "user card,"
creating legal immunity?

Do we really think that the same people who might need this drug to
address their illness might not also need money and be willing to sell
their excess marijuana? Do we really think that those intending to buy
and sell marijuana to feed their own habits of crack and meth won't
find a way to steal it or buy it from the vulnerable? And what about
the violent gang members who make it their business to buy and sell
drugs? Last year there were more than two dozen murders in Minneapolis
where marijuana transactions were involved.

Imagine a world where school teachers, bus drivers and custodians can
legally possess marijuana, and the superintendent, parents, and school
board don't know. Imagine a world where sickly grandparents and
patients in nursing homes have marijuana in their drawers. Our
children know how to find ways to buy alcohol and cigarettes
illegally, and they know how to sneak liquor from cabinets.

If adopted, this legislation will increase access, increase abuse, and
increase crime. The risks and consequences associated with being
compassionate in this case are too great. I believe that if we temper
our compassion with our good judgment, we simply cannot allow this
proposal to become law in Minnesota.

Proponents of "medical marijuana" should direct their efforts at the
FDA to investigate, study and approve marijuana for medicinal use.
Then doctors and physicians can manage the use of this drug like all
others. Until then, the American Medical Association, the Federal Drug
Enforcement Administration, the Minnesota Chiefs of Police, the
Minnesota Sheriff's Association, the Minnesota County Attorneys
Association and Julianne Ortman are all against it.

State Sen. Julianne Ortman was elected to her first term in 2002.
Senator Ortman is Assistant Minority Leader and Lead Republican
Senator on Tax Committee. She encourages and appreciates constituent
input, and can be reached at (651)296-4837, by mail at 125 State
Office Building, 100 Rev. Dr. MLK Jr. Blvd., St. Paul, MN 55155, or
via e-mail at sen.julianne.ortman@senate.mn.