Marijuana Blog

Starting Wednesday morning the Montana Supreme Court will begin hearing oral arguments in two separate appeals of a 2011 law that severely restricted medical marijuana access in the state, one appeal by the Montana Cannabis Industry Association and one by the state of Montana.

The state is appealing whether the District Court Judge James Reynolds was wrong to block the law’s ban on medical marijuana cardholders compensating providers for marijuana products and its limit that a provider can provide pot for a maximum of three cardholders. The MCIA is appealing the same judge’s ruling that denied a preliminary injunction against the enforcement of the entire 2011 Medical Marijuana Act as the Cannabis Industry had sought instead of just the five sections he blocked.

As many of you know, the medical marijuana industry has been decimated in Montana with over 90% of caregivers eliminated, thanks to federal crackdowns and state Senate Bill 423, which destroyed much of the 2004 MMJ law that was approved by voters.

Lawyers for the MCIA called SB 423 “an unconstitutional broadside on the rights of Montanans” and said in the brief the filed in their appeal that “The central problem with the act… is that it is calculated to deny all reasonable access to medical marijuana” and it seeks “to choke off access to medical marijuana for those in need by eliminating caregiver producers.”

Attorneys for the state say that commercially selling marijuana is illegal under federal and state law.

Arguments are expected to begin at 9:30 am local time in a case that will likely decide Montana medical marijuana law for some time to come. Hopefully patients have their access restored. Lawyers for the state can strut around all they want talking about their version of “the law,” but all they are really doing is hurting sick people.

Source: http://billingsgazette.com

There are currently 44 people under the age of 18 with medical marijuana cards in Michigan. Three of them are even under the age of 10.

This has been described as controversial, but kids are put on anti-depression and anti-anxiety medication all the time. Millions of kids take ADHD medication every day. So where is the controversy with kids and prescription pills? Marijuana is a non-toxic plant yet suicidal thoughts are a side effect of every depression medication there is.

Consider the case of 14 year-old Cooper Brown. He suffers from epilepsy and his mother – fed up with the inconsistency and dangerous side effects of every prescription epilepsy medication they tried – turned to medical marijuana.

So Rebecca Brown is considered controversial. Yet her son has dramatically less seizures now that he is being medicated with cannabis edibles. What exactly is controversial about that?

Doctors say the lack of clinical trials is a problem, but when you are a desperate mother watching your child suffer from drugs that have plenty of “clinical” trials behind them, you may begin to wonder if the FDA has any idea what it’s talking about.

Rebecca Brown doesn’t have time to wait for the federal government and the FDA to stop playing politics and approve medical marijuana. Her son suffers daily, or at least he did so before she began medicating him with cannabis.

"This isn't something we entered into lightly," Rebecca said. "I've done a lot of reading and a lot of research. I have everything tested.

"I am not a pot smoker and never in a million years thought of trying this," she said. "But when your child is suffering and you feel desperate, you consider things you may not have before.

"Parents, when their kids are healthy, they take it for granted."

And when their kids aren’t healthy, parents take action – or at least they should. Rebecca Brown took action, and her son is better for it.

Source: http://www.freep.com