A Whiff of Greed May Cost Janice Her MMJ

[Jim Finnel]

Several months ago the very first email I received after I announced my intention to carry a medical marijuana bill was from Janice Beecher. Little did I know how spot on her prediction would be. She pleaded:

Good Morning Senator Romer, I am alarmed by the ease in which I obtained my permit and would love to see some defined laws set down that put some controls on the whole process, as I am afraid that it's spiraling out of control. I am equally alarmed at the prospect of the dispensaries going up in places where they don't belong simply because there are no good regulations in place.

I can see this giving the medical marijuana community a black eye, as some of our fellow citizens are more concerned with the almighty dollar than the safety and comfort of their neighbors when they choose to dispense in places where a liquor store couldn't get a license for various reasons, forcing the hand of the law to regulate.

I have rarely gotten involved with anything in my community for years, but I feel this is something that we all need to help along to make sure that it's a workable plan for everyone because the benefits of medical marijuana for so many people...well we can't just let it slip backwards at this point.

Thanks so much for your time

Janice Beecher


A Colorado resident since 1968, Janice suffers from osteoarthritis and chronic back pain. Until recently she had to take up to four oxycodone just to be able to make it through the day. Fortunately for her, she received a permit to use marijuana legally and is now able to live without debilitating pain and able to go days without taking the highly addictive oxycodone. Janice explained to me "the blessing comes with the knowledge that I can pick what works for me at the dispensary. I don't have to just take what I can get on the black market."

Sadly for Janice--and thousands of patients like her--access to sophisticated care is being jeopardized because both sides in this debate cannot seem to grasp the importance of finding common ground. Having tried my best to urge the medical marijuana community to educate the public on patient needs, we instead find ourselves in a situation in which the Wild West explosion of dispensaries and the outbreak of greed has become the public face of this debate. Public backlash has manifested across the state, including in friendly cities like Denver. From Lodo to Stapleton to West Denver, neighborhoods are now organizing and opposing all dispensaries. My own neighbors are up in arms with the 31 dispensaries now licensed in our zip code.

Without a patient face like Janice Beecher or an effective lobbying and education campaign by the MMJ community, I see more and more obstacles to any editorial, bi-partisan or even limited partisan support for a set of common sense rules.

So my attempts to bring medical marijuana out of the shadows through a complex regulatory structure are now over. Significant portions of law enforcement and the MMJ community are at this point unwilling to find common ground. Both sides are stuck and focused on their narrow needs and wants after a 30-year battle on the war on drugs. Medical cases like Janice's compel us to come together and make truly common sense policy and regulations for a reasonable market for medical marijuana. We need to propose a model that will not only destigmatize medical marijuana by working to keep it out of the hands of those who would only seek to use it recreationally, but more importantly to create a fair and regulated market that is best for the patients who can benefit immensely from it.

So where do we go from here? In order to buy a few weeks for Janice and others to mobilize, we now will divide the legislation into two bills. The first bill, which I will sponsor in the Colorado Senate, will deal solely with the need for a meaningful doctor patient relationship to get a MMJ referral and the creation of a 24-hour per day registry for patients. This is the one part of the bill that most reasonable people can agree on.

The second bill dealing with dispensaries and growing operations will start in the House and most likely will be very similar to the Sheriff Association's proposed legislation, including a five patient cap per caregiver. I will continue to fight for clinics to serve patients like Janice, but I am getting increasingly skeptical that either side understands her needs.

What a shame. We really could have set the national model for medical marijuana including research and sophisticated evidence-based medicine, but the same old fight on both sides--and the failed status quo--appears to have prevailed.

I am sorry Janice. The black eye has happened. Some members of law enforcement seem to not believe or truly care about your pain or the pain and suffering of thousands of patients just like you, many of whom are afraid to speak out. It is the dispensaries versus law enforcement and neither seems to have the time or inclination to care.

Are there any more patients willing to go public? Are there any law enforcement officers in Colorado willing to admit that patients like Janice will be forced back into the black market? Time is running out and the legislative session begins next week.


NewsHawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: huffingtonpost.com
Author: Chris Romer- Chris Romer Is A State Senator Representing District 32 In Denver
Copyright: 2010 HuffingtonPost.com, Inc.
Contact: Contact us
Website: Chris Romer: Colorado Medical Marijuana: A Whiff of Greed May Cost Janice Her MMJ

 

[ipgrunt]

I'm also a Colorado resident. The voters of our state passed legislation in favor of the medical use of marijuana for the residents of our state who need it. Many law enforcement organizations, executives, and common patrolmen and women were not in favor of this legislation, and seem to act as if it never passed. There have been many documented instances of law enforcement ignoring this legislation, as if it never passed.

I don't wish to go off-topic, but spare me a moment -- this is relevant. We've also passed legislation in local communities, for instance, the City/County of Denver that gives specific rights to carry a concealed weapon (hand gun), and outlines those citizens who should be given this right, for instance, business persons like jewelers and coin dealers who have needs to transfer items of great value from time to time. People with such needs, defined under this bill, were to apply to the county sheriff, who was responsible for issuing a permit to carry.

I find this analogy quite similar to the medical marijuana situation. Legislation passed allowing a class of citizenry special access based on need, and allowed that access through the issue of a permit, issued by an accepted professional.

In the case of the concealed weapon bill, when first issued under the former administration, not one permit was issued by the county sheriff. For those who recall the Joseph Heller book/movie Catch-22, this book title became a code-word for those situations where due process under the law is restricted by a small, power grabbing segment of society -- in this case, the ex-Denver County Sheriff decided not to issue permits. Since you need a permit to carry, your rights under the law are denied -- a Catch-22 situation.

Those who need medical marijuana are also in a Catch-22 position. They have the right by state law, to use needed medication but only with a special permit. However, local communities choose not to comply with this law, usually through the directive of the local chief of police who may or may not be acting under instruction of a local mayor, or local government.

I believe right way to break this Catch-22 is through your local government representatives. The state has already spoken, to their credit. So now it is time to make your stand clear at the local level. Tell them: we want you to put procedures in place for permit recognition by law enforcement for those who need these medicines, and we want local law enforcement to enforce the law. Make this clear via the chain of command that all officers are to follow the spirit of this legislation, or we'll be electing a council who will hire a police chief who understands how to do a proper job. Let them know you will not tolerate unilateral non-cooperation because of prejudice against this medicine by either a local council or police chief.

The solution is via the ballot. Vote out non-cooperative local councils and vote in councilmen and women who will make sure that suffering people in their jurisdiction get the medicine they need, as mandated by state law.

This war has not yet been won. The problem seems to be at the local level, either county or municipal. In each community you may have to first, find the problem. Is it law enforcement or is it local politicians. Either way, you can win by using the ballot, but you must organize and you must be willing to fight by writing letters, talking to your friends and neighbors, and if necessary, holding legal public demonstrations. Find the bad-apple in your community barrel who expresses their prejudice by abuse of power, meaning their inaction to accept this new legislation, and vote them out of your local scene. They don't belong in a democracy. Organize and win this war.