JUDGE RULES AGAINST MEDICAL MARIJUANA SALES

San Francisco -- A federal judge ruled Friday that a California medical
marijuana distributor has no constitutional right to dole out cannabis to
the sick.

The decision was another blow to the Oakland Cannabis Buyers' Cooperative.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled last year that the group had no right to sell
marijuana to the sick under California's 1996 voter-approved medical
marijuana law, which requires the sick to have a doctor's recommendation.

The cooperative had sought to reopen the 5-year-old case under new legal
arguments, but U.S. District Judge Charles R. Breyer rejected them at the
government's urging. At the same time, Breyer declined to lift an order
barring the club from distributing cannabis.

"With or without medical authorization, the distribution of marijuana is
illegal under federal law," Breyer wrote.

The federal government, which declined to comment Friday, argues marijuana
has no medical benefits and is an illegal drug.