ADLER HOPES LAW'S WORDING KEEPS HIM IN GOV'S RACE

HILO -- Just when it seemed that a marijuana conviction would knock Natural
Law Party candidate Jonathan Adler out of the race for governor, Adler has
found wording in state law that he says may keep him running.

Adler, 50, was convicted in June of felony commercial promotion of marijuana
for possessing 89 marijuana plants in 1998. His sentencing is set for Aug.
26.

Once sentencing is completed, it was believed he would be barred from
running.

But the law says a person convicted of a felony may not file to run for
elective office, Adler says in a letter to state elections chief Dwayne
Yoshina.

Adler filed to run on April Fool's Day, three months before he was
convicted.

"No mention is made (in the law) regarding candidates who file before any
subsequent court action resulting in conviction," Adler says in the Aug. 9
letter.

Yoshina said he submitted Adler's letter to the attorney general for review.

During a nonjury trial, Adler argued he had a religious right to possess the
89 plants. Judge Greg Nakamura ruled that he did not have a right to
commercial quantities of the plants.

Adler says he plans an appeal and will ask Nakamura to hold off sentencing
during the appeal. Adler faces comedian Kaui "Bu La'ia" Hill in the Natural
Law Party primary, although the party has declared its unhappiness with both
candidates.

Adler said yesterday if either is elected, the winner will appoint the other
as a "deputy governor."

Meanwhile, a Hilo District Court clerk returned about an ounce of medical
marijuana to Adler yesterday on a judge's order.

Police seized the marijuana in October from Adler's wife Nuansawat, who
mistakenly brought it to the Hilo police station where Adler was being held
for another matter.

Adler had wanted his wife to bring his legal synthetic marijuana Marinol
pills, used for head pain from a car accident. Police who relayed the
message told Nuansawat to bring Adler's "medication," which she thought
meant his marijuana. She was eventually fined $25 for a misdemeanor
possession charge.