NEWS: Patient Advocates Appeal Federal Decision to Deny Medical Marijuana to Millions of Americans

Notice of appeal filed in D.C. Circuit challenges recent denial to reschedule marijuana for medical use

Washington, DC -- The country's leading medical marijuana advocacy group, Americans for Safe Access (ASA), with the Coalition for Rescheduling Cannabis (CRC), today appealed a recent decision by the federal government to keep marijuana classified as a dangerous drug with no medical value. The appeal to the D.C. Circuit comes just two weeks after the Obama Administration denied a 2002 petition to reschedule marijuana filed by a coalition of patients and advocacy groups. ASA will argue in a forthcoming appeal brief to be filed in the next few weeks that the federal government erred by keeping marijuana out of reach for millions of patients throughout the United States.

"By ignoring the wealth of scientific evidence that clearly shows the therapeutic value of marijuana, the Obama Administration is playing politics at the expense of sick and dying Americans," said ASA Chief Counsel Joe Elford, who filed the notice of appeal today. "For the first time in more than 15 years we will be able to present evidence in court to challenge the government's flawed position on medical marijuana." Although two other rescheduling petitions have been filed since the establishment of the Controlled Substances Act in 1970, the merits of medical efficacy was reviewed only once by the courts in 1994.

Patient advocates argue that by failing to reclassify marijuana, the federal government has stifled meaningful research into a wide array of therapeutic uses, such as pain relief, appetite stimulation, nausea suppression, and spasticity control among many other benefits. In 1988, the government ignored the ruling of its own Administrative Law Judge Francis Young who said that, "Marijuana, in its natural form, is one of the safest therapeutically active substances known to man."

Since the CRC petition was filed, even more studies have been published that show the medical benefits of marijuana for illnesses such as neuropathic pain, multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer's. Recent studies even show that marijuana may inhibit the growth of cancer cells. Earlier this year, the National Cancer Institute, a division of the federal Department of Health and Human Services, added cannabis (marijuana) to its list of Complementary Alternative Medicines, pointing out that it's been therapeutically used for millennia.

Ironically, in December of 2010 the Obama Administration issued a memorandum on "the preservation and promotion of scientific integrity" of the executive branch. Yet, the application of such integrity appears to be applied selectively and not with regard to medical marijuana. "With science on our side, we will put an end to the government's political posturing," continued Elford, "and force the Obama Administration to adhere to its own stated policy of emphasizing science over politics."

When the latest petition was filed by the CRC in 2002, eight states had adopted laws recognizing and decriminalizing the medical use of marijuana. Today, sixteen states and the nation's capitol have passed medical marijuana laws with many more states currently considering proposals to implement similar laws.

Further information:
ASA notice of appeal filed today: http://AmericansForSafeAccess.org/downloads/CRC_Appeal_Notice.pdf

DEA answer to CRC petition: http://AmericansForSafeAccess.org/downloads/CRC_Petition_DEA_Answer.pdf

CRC rescheduling petition: http://www.drugscience.org/PDF/Petition_Final_2002.pdf

White House scientific integrity memo: http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/microsites/ostp/scientific-integrity-memo-12172010.pdf

VIDEO: Concerned patient advocates speak out on dispensary ban at Westminster City Council Meeting

David and Marla James (of Americans for Safe Access) speak on a Medical Marijuana Ban at the Westminster City Council Meeting during public comment. February 23, 2011.

NEWS: Medical Marijuana Advocates Bring Attention to DEA Confirmation Hearings

Acting DEA head Michele Leonhart, a Bush-holdover, led aggressive campaign against medical marijuana

WASHINGTON - November 15 - After more than two years as acting head of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Michele Leonhart, who served as Deputy DEA Administrator during George W. Bush's presidency, is scheduled to be confirmed by the Senate Judiciary Committee this Wednesday, November 17th at 2:30pm EST. No friend to medical marijuana patients, Leonhart along with her former boss, DEA Administrator Karen Tandy, were responsible for more than two hundred paramilitary-style raids on patients and their providers. As Acting DEA Administrator, Leonhart has continued to raid dispensaries, growers and medical marijuana testing labs despite a change in federal policy under President Obama.

Although Leonhart is expected to be easily confirmed, advocates want to hold her feet to the fire, and are encouraging Senate Judiciary Committee members to ask tough questions about adherence to President Obama's Justice Department policy and her plans for addressing the growing divide between federal and state medical marijuana laws. "Leonhart's track record of causing untold harm to patients and their providers over the years is cause for a serious lack of trust in the medical marijuana community," said Caren Woodson, Director of Government Affairs with Americans for Safe Access, the country's leading medical marijuana advocacy group, which has submitted questions to be asked of Leonhart during the confirmation hearing. "We need to know that Leonhart has a plan for medical marijuana and the protection of patients and that she will be held accountable for her actions."

What:
Michele Leonhart's confirmation hearing to be the next DEA Administrator

When:
Wednesday, November 17th at 2:30pm

Where:
Senate Judiciary Committee, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Room 226, Washington, DC

In October 2009, the Obama Administration issued a memorandum to U.S. Attorneys discouraging the use of federal resources to prosecute individuals who are in "clear and unambiguous compliance" with their state medical marijuana law. Since then, ASA has tracked more than 30 federal enforcement raids in California, Colorado, Hawaii, and Nevada, all medical marijuana states. By contrast, local and state governments are recognizing the need for, and authorizing methods of, distribution of medical marijuana. In a grassroots push over the next two days, medical marijuana advocates across the country are calling on Senate Judiciary Committee members to ask hard questions of Leonhart. "Leonhart must look at this as a public health issue and do more to reconcile the conflict between local, state and federal laws," continued Woodson.

In addition to enforcement, as head of the DEA, Leonhart will have authority over an unanswered marijuana Rescheduling petition that has been pending since 2002. Filed by the Coalition for Rescheduling Cannabis (CRC), the petition originally argued before the Bush Administration that marijuana has medical value and should be rescheduled. Now before the Obama Administration, advocates and coalition members are expecting more rigorous scrutiny on an issue that has been progressively moving toward scientific and mainstream acceptance. This past week it was confirmed that Arizona, which narrowly voted for Proposition 203, would become the country's 15th state to pass a medical marijuana law.

Under the authority of the Controlled Substances Act, Leonhart has significant control over medical marijuana research in the U.S., and has used her position as Acting Administrator to obstruct the scientific advancement of this important therapeutic substance. In January 2009, days before President Bush was to vacate his office, Acting Administrator Leonhart thwarted an effort to end federal obstruction of medical marijuana research, ignoring an 87-page recommendation from her own DEA Administrative Law Judge Mary Ellen Bittner, who ruled that such research was "in the public interest." The DEA and the National Institute for Drug Abuse (NIDA) have colluded to obstruct medical efficacy studies by prioritizing research on the supposed harmful effects of marijuana.

Further information:

Leonhart confirmation hearing notice: http://judiciary.senate.gov/hearings/hearing.cfm?id=4850

ASA Questions for Leonhart: http://AmericansForSafeAccess.org/downloads/ASA_Leonhart_Questions.pdf

ASA Memo to Senate Judiciary Committee: http://AmericansForSafeAccess.org/downloads/ASA_Leonhart_Memo.pdf

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Americans for Safe Access is the nation's largest organization of patients, medical professionals, scientists and concerned citizens promoting safe and legal access to cannabis for therapeutic use and research.