From: [d--p--n] at [ziggys.cts.com] (Rex Kahler)  619/262-6384
Newsgroups: alt.drugs
Subject: Sam Skipper/MJ Laws Update
Date: Tue, 18 Jan 94 23:43:26 PST

The following article is from today's San Diego Union-Tribune.

Kehoe Asks Prosecutors For Lenience Toward Medicinal Uses Of Marijuana

By Eric Young
Staff Writer

Prompted by the imprisoning of a La Mesa man who used marijuana to relieve
AIDS symptoms, San Diego City Councilwoman Christine Kehoe asked the city
attorney yesterday to explore whether prosecutors can give "low priority"
to cases involving medicinal marijuana use.

"It is important that as a society we do not treat individuals with life- or
sense-threatening illnesses the same as we treat common drug dealers and drug
addicts," Kehoe said during a news conference outside the San Diego AIDS
Foundation building.

"I am requesting a legal opinion of whether enforcement of (medicinal
marijuana) cases can be given a low priority," Kehoe said.

Kehoe, one of the newest members of the City Council, said she is not
advocating drug legalization. She said her attention is focused on a narrow
range of marijuana cases -- those involving people with life-threatening
diseases who are under a doctor's care, such as Samuel Skipper, the La Mesa
man now serving 16 months in jail.

Skipper was sentenced Thursday by Municipal Court Judge Charles Rogers, who
said he thinks laws against pot should be repealed. Skipper was cultivating
marijuana at his home and had told court officials that he could not abide by
probation conditions.

Skipper, a 39-year-old gardener and telephone-jack installer, claimed he
must ingest the illegal herb to prevent nausea and weight loss that is
often associated with AIDS. Skipper is infected with HIV, the virus that
causes AIDS, but does not have the disease.

"It is my contention that Mr. Skipper is being treated more harshly by our
judicial system than he deserves," Kehoe said. She said law-enforcement
resources are stretched thin already and focusing attention on cases like
Skipper's is a poor choice.

Responding to Kehoe, a spokeswoman with the District Attorney's Office said,
"Each elected official has their own list of priorities. Probably the best
place to address this sort of issue is in the state law. Talk to a state
legislator."

"We have to enforce the laws as they are," said Linda Miller, spokeswoman for
the district attorney. "The district attorney can't pick and choose what laws
we're going to enforce."

The City Attorney's Office said that it and the District Attorney's Office
already prioritize cases. The City Attorney prosecutes misdemeanor marijuana
cases and the District Attorney's Office handles felony cases for possession,
sale and cultivation of marijuana.

Currently, only a handful of people nationwide have government approval to
use marijuana as medicine. The Clinton administration is considering whether
to allow the compassionate use of marijuana for patients suffering from
serious illnesses.

Advocates of using marijuana for medicinal purposes say it combats nausea,
vomiting and weight loss experienced by cancer patients undergoing
chemotherapy and by some AIDS sufferers, and reduces eye pressure in
glaucoma treatment.


and so the saga continues.

coming soon : original post of sam's acquittal.



back beneath the waves
                        D o l p h i n R e x
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