T
The420Guy
Guest
Ed "NJWEEDMAN" Forchion's commercials dealing with free speech and the
first amendment have been barred from the airwaves.
"Comcast killed it," Forchion said. "They elected not to air them and they
won't tell me why."
But Comcast's vice-president of corporate communications, David Shane,
offered an explanation.
"There's a paragraph in our standard advertising contract that prohibits
drugs or other illegal products from appearing on air via a commercial,"
Shane said. "It's pretty cut-and-dried."
But Forchion's commercials, which were seen by The Trentonian, do not have
the dreadlocked Forchion advocating the use of marijuana.
Instead, he talks about free speech, the First Amendment and how the war on
drugs is a losing battle.
"The Partnership for a Drug-Free America can put out their opinions on
drugs," Forchion said. "It's the same thing I'm doing, except from the
opposite perspective."
Forchion was recently let out of prison after a 17-month stint on marijuana
charges.
He was released into the Intensive Supervisory Parole system, which placed
a load of restrictions on Forchion's behavior, including a clause that
prohibits him from openly advocating the use of marijuana.
A longtime pot activist, Forchion sought to circumvent that restriction by
plopping himself in front of the Burlington County Courthouse earlier this
summer and speaking about the drug war.
For his troubles, he was arrested and spent five days in jail.
"I wasn't advocating drugs," he said. "I was simply stating my opinion."
After his release, once again, from jail, Forchion decided to take his
message to the airwaves.
It was approved, and Forchion was busy raising the $5,000 needed to cover
the costs of the spots.
He receives donations through his website, njweedman.com.
But Thursday, Forchion said, he was called into the cable giant's local
Mount Laurel offices to be told the commercials would not run.
"They have no legal ground to stand on," Forchion said. "Now I just need a
lawyer."
In addition to trying to uphold the First Amendment, Forchion is also busy
trying to upend the judicial system via jury nullification.
Jury nullification, in it's purest sense, is when a jury decides that a law
is unjust and refuses to convict on those grounds.
It is a legal defense originally put in place by our founding fathers.
But over the years, it has fallen out of disfavor with the legal system,
and in New Jersey, it is illegal to inform a jury of their jury
nullification rights.
Forchion is appealing the decision in his earlier marijuana case, and if
granted, plans on pursuing the nullification defense with the help of a
Texas lawyer.
Forchion will be risking more than just a point of law if he gets a new
trial -- he also faces up to 20 years in prison if he is found guilty.
Pubdate: Sat, 17 Aug 2002
Source: Trentonian, The (NJ)
Copyright: 2002 The Trentonian
Contact: news@njtimes.com
Website: The Trentonian: Breaking News, Sports, Business, Entertainment & Trenton News
Details: MapInc
Author: Jeff Edelstein, Staff Writer
first amendment have been barred from the airwaves.
"Comcast killed it," Forchion said. "They elected not to air them and they
won't tell me why."
But Comcast's vice-president of corporate communications, David Shane,
offered an explanation.
"There's a paragraph in our standard advertising contract that prohibits
drugs or other illegal products from appearing on air via a commercial,"
Shane said. "It's pretty cut-and-dried."
But Forchion's commercials, which were seen by The Trentonian, do not have
the dreadlocked Forchion advocating the use of marijuana.
Instead, he talks about free speech, the First Amendment and how the war on
drugs is a losing battle.
"The Partnership for a Drug-Free America can put out their opinions on
drugs," Forchion said. "It's the same thing I'm doing, except from the
opposite perspective."
Forchion was recently let out of prison after a 17-month stint on marijuana
charges.
He was released into the Intensive Supervisory Parole system, which placed
a load of restrictions on Forchion's behavior, including a clause that
prohibits him from openly advocating the use of marijuana.
A longtime pot activist, Forchion sought to circumvent that restriction by
plopping himself in front of the Burlington County Courthouse earlier this
summer and speaking about the drug war.
For his troubles, he was arrested and spent five days in jail.
"I wasn't advocating drugs," he said. "I was simply stating my opinion."
After his release, once again, from jail, Forchion decided to take his
message to the airwaves.
It was approved, and Forchion was busy raising the $5,000 needed to cover
the costs of the spots.
He receives donations through his website, njweedman.com.
But Thursday, Forchion said, he was called into the cable giant's local
Mount Laurel offices to be told the commercials would not run.
"They have no legal ground to stand on," Forchion said. "Now I just need a
lawyer."
In addition to trying to uphold the First Amendment, Forchion is also busy
trying to upend the judicial system via jury nullification.
Jury nullification, in it's purest sense, is when a jury decides that a law
is unjust and refuses to convict on those grounds.
It is a legal defense originally put in place by our founding fathers.
But over the years, it has fallen out of disfavor with the legal system,
and in New Jersey, it is illegal to inform a jury of their jury
nullification rights.
Forchion is appealing the decision in his earlier marijuana case, and if
granted, plans on pursuing the nullification defense with the help of a
Texas lawyer.
Forchion will be risking more than just a point of law if he gets a new
trial -- he also faces up to 20 years in prison if he is found guilty.
Pubdate: Sat, 17 Aug 2002
Source: Trentonian, The (NJ)
Copyright: 2002 The Trentonian
Contact: news@njtimes.com
Website: The Trentonian: Breaking News, Sports, Business, Entertainment & Trenton News
Details: MapInc
Author: Jeff Edelstein, Staff Writer