The Compassionate Coalition

CALL CONGRESS TODAY ABOUT KEY MEDICAL MARIJUANA VOTE

From: DPAlliance - alerts@actioncenter.drugpolicy.org
Subject: Call Congress Today about MMJ
Date: Mon, 26 Jun 2006

Congress will vote on an amendment this week (as early as Tuesday
night) that would protect cancer, AIDS and other patients who use marijuana for medical reasons from federal prosecution. Make sure your Representative votes the right way: call him or her as soon as possible, and forward this alert to everyone you know.

What to Do: Call the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121. Ask to speak to your Representative. If you're not sure who represents you, the operator can tell you. You can also look up your Representative at http://actioncenter.drugpolicy.org/ctt.asp?u=3764476&l=126327 by entering your zip code at the top of the page.

What to Say: Once the operator transfers you to your Representative's office, give the person that answers the phone the following message: "Hi, I'm a constituent. I'm calling to urge my Representative to vote for the Hinchey-Rohrabacher medical marijuana amendment to the Science-State-Justice-Commerce spending bill, which will be voted on this week. This issue is very important to me." (Hinchey-Rohrabacher is pronounced Hinchee - Roy Bocker.)

Then forward this alert to friends, family, etc.

More Information:
Responding to the growing conflict between the states and the federal government over the issue of medical marijuana, Rep. Maurice Hinchey
(D-NY) and Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) will offer an amendment to the Science-State-Justice-Commerce Appropriations bill that would prohibit the U.S. Justice Department from undermining state efforts to provide terminally ill and chronic pain patients access to doctor-recommended medical marijuana. The amendment would prohibit the Justice Department from spending any money on arresting or prosecuting medical marijuana patients in states where medical marijuana is legal. 161 members of Congress voted for a similar amendment last year.

11 states have enacted effective medical marijuana laws - Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington. The U.S. Justice Department, however, continues to spend millions of dollars arresting medical marijuana patients and their caregivers - even in states where medical marijuana is legal. At a time when violent drug cartels remain at large and threats of terrorism continue to emerge, it is irresponsible for the Justice Department to jeopardize public safety by wasting scarce law enforcement resources conducting raids on hospice centers and medical marijuana patients.

The Hinchey-Rohrabacher medical marijuana amendment would not prevent the Justice Department from arresting people using, growing, or selling marijuana for recreational use. Nor would it prevent the Justice Department from arresting medical marijuana patients in the states that have not approved the drug for this use. It simply prevents the federal government from arresting cancer, AIDS and MS patients that use marijuana for medical reasons in states that have adopted medical marijuana laws.

Substantial majorities of Democrats, Republicans, and Independents support medical marijuana. A 2001 Pew Research Center poll found that 73% of Americans support medical marijuana. A 2002 Time/CNN poll found that 80% of Americans support it. The Institute of Medicine has determined that nausea, appetite loss, pain and anxiety "all can be mitigated by marijuana." Allowing cancer, AIDS, and MS patients legal access to medical marijuana is supported by the American Nurses Association, American Public Health Association, American Bar Association, the Whitman-Walker Clinic, and Kaiser Permanente, among other groups.

Please urge your U.S. Representative to support the Hinchey-Rohrabacher medical marijuana amendment to the Justice Department spending bill by calling the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121.

Thanks to the Drug Policy Alliance for providing this action alert! http://www.drugpolicy.org/

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Central Valley Patients Coalition Meeting: July 1st
Central Valley patients and supporters met in Modesto, CA on Saturday to plan and strategize for the defense of patients rights in Stanislaus County, Merced County, and beyond. Current president of the Merced County Patients Coalition(MCPC), Nick Osborne, announced that he will be moving to the Aloha State, and Stanislaus/Merced patients are stepping up to build upon the progress made by the MCPC. Patients in Stanislaus and Merced Counties are joining together, and the MCPC will become the "Central Valley Patients Coalition"(CVPC), a chaper of The Compassionate Coalition.

The newly-formed Central Valley Patients Coalition will meet again this Saturday to elect new officers, and make plans to defend safe access in the area. Please join us on Saturday July 1st at 1:00 PM at 4213 McHenry Ave, Suite F, Modesto California, 95354. For additional information, contact Nick Osborne at 209-261-8324 or nick@CompassionateCoalition.org

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Thunder Rector Court Support: June 27th
Fresno Hydroponics, tattoo and piercing entrepreneur, and Northern Lights Church Reverend Thunder Rector will be in court facing judge Wanger on Tuesday, June 27th, at 1:30pm, at the Fresno Federal Courthouse, 2500 Tulare, department 3, floor 7, in Fresno, California. On July 18, 2005, Thunder was arrested in a sting that allegedly netted 235 lbs. of pot. Thunder maintains that most of the weed was leaf. He is facing charges of conspiracy and manufacturing cannabis with intent to distribute. Rev. Rector spent time in the Fresno county jail, then at a halfway house called Nirvana. He is now out, but wears an electronic monitoring device. He still runs Thunder's Hydroponics, Tattoo and Piercing in Modesto, California, and is an officer in the central valley based Medicinal Cannabis Patients Coalition. Please support this passionate supporter or medical marijuana rights in court on June 27th.

Thanks to Peter Keyes for providing this report, and keeping us up-to-date on the case. For more information contact Peter at: petergkeyes@hotmail.com

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Solano County Board of Supervisors Meeting: June 27th
SPG is planning to visit the County Board of Supervisors on June 27th, 2006. The meetings are held at 8:30am at the Solano County Government Center 675 Texas Street in Fairfield, California.

This meeting is going to be one of the most important meetings that SPG will attend this year. We are asking ALL patients and supporters to please join us at this meeting. I have been told by the Health Department in Fairfield that the Medical Marijuana Card Program has not and won't be given a time line or put into effect because the County Board of Supervisors want to wait for outcome of the San Diego case before they make any decisions. Our plan is to go out there and educate them on the state mandate law and let them know how local patients are being harassed, arrested, and even terrorized. If anyone wants to speak before the Board, please contact us so that we may get organized before hand. We hope those who have the time can come out and join us on this very important day.

Thank You
Linda Jimenez, Secretary/Treasurer
Solano Patients' Group
http://www.solanopatientsgroup.org/
http://www.compassionatecoalition.org/node/3778

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Solano Patients' Group Meetings: June 27th
Hello All Activists, as most of you know, SPG has had a lot of activities and events happening in our county. We have decided to add an extra meeting this month so that we may get organized in our strategies. Please join us on June 27th at 7:00PM at 2145 Collinsville Road in Birds Landing, CA 94512. If you have any questions, please call us at 707-635-3752.

Thank You,
Linda Jimenez, Secretary/Treasurer
Solano Patients' Group
http://www.solanopatientsgroup.org/

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Laura & Galen Lawton Court Support: June 29th
Readiness conference at 1:30 PM at the Vallejo Superior Courthouse, 321 Tuolumne St., Vallejo, CA. More info: Linda Jimenez: linda4spg@CompassionateCoalition.org

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Louis Fowler in Court: June 30th
Controversial medical marijuana entrepreneur Louis Fowler will be in court facing judge Garcia on Friday, June 30th, 2006, at the Sacramento Federal Courthouse, 501 I street, in Sacramento, California. Louis faces an uphill battle for numerous reasons. His dispensary purchased large ads in Sacramento News & Review, offering free grams, and the storefront had dozens of cannabis plants growing within sight of a common thoroughfare 24 hours a day. Louis is alleged to have been driving with a loaded shotgun in his vehicle, and has served time for embezzling millions from the State of California. Giving a slight glimmer of hope to Louis' case is his savvy, flamboyant attorney, former Deputy District Attorney Johnny Griffin. Griffin has been in the news lately, as council for Pakistani-American ice cream vendor Umer Hayat. Umer was accused of lying to the F.B.I. in the infamous, "Lodi terrorist" scandal, but was released to house arrest in May, after a jury deadlocked on his case. Louis is currently residing in the Sacramento County Jail.

Thanks to Peter Keyes for providing this report, and keeping us up-to-date on the case. For more information contact Peter at: petergkeyes@hotmail.com

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Joaquin Brand Court Support: July 7th
Joaquin Brand continues to have problems with his public defender, who refuses to contact experts as needed. Next court appearance will be on July 7th, at 8:30 AM in Department 8 at 2775 Richardson Drive in Auburn, CA.

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Robin & Dustin Clark Court Support: July 12
Next court appearance on July 12th at 1:30 PM in Department 8 of the Sacramento County Courthouse, 720 Ninth Street, in Sacramento, CA. Background info: http://www.compassionatecoalition.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=5589

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Bryan Epis Court Support: July 17th
Former cannabis cultivator Bryan Epis will be in court for an evidentiary hearing on July 17th at 9:30am, in front of Judge Damrell, at the Sacramento Federal Courthouse, 501 I street (I at 5th). Bryan has already served over 2 years of a 10 year sentence, and has gotten out of the cannabis industry entirely. Bryan's case is one of many being resentenced due to the US Supreme Court's Raich ruling. www.compassionatecoalition.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=4666
http://207.41.18.73/wconnect/wc.dll?caedprocess~CourtRoomCalendar~&judgeID=5011&Date=2/6/2006

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Sacramento/National CC Meeting: July 19th (July 5th meeting cancelled due to holiday) Please join The Compassionate Coalition for our next planning meeting and information session! Agenda topics include: Patient meetings, news updates, court support, elections, and business items. This group meets the first and third Wednesday of each month at 7:00PM at the River City Patient Center, 1512 C El Camino Ave, Sacramento, CA.
Note: Any patients who wish to use their medicine at this meeting must be registered and verified in advance by the River City Patient Center.

For information please contact Nathan Sands at nathan@CompassionateCoalition.org
www.CompassionateCoalition.org

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AAMC Meeting: July 29th
The El Dorado County American Alliance for Medical Cannabis will meet on the fifth Saturday of the month, from 2:15pm until 4:20pm, at the Garden Valley Grange, 4940 Marshall Road, Garden Valley, California.
(Note: The group will normally has meetings on the 4th Saturday of each month)
http://www.ElDoradoCountyAAMC.com/

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The Compassionate Coalition is an all-volunteer, non-profit, educational organization. We work to defend the rights of medical marijuana patients and care providers, and your support enables our work to continue. Please consider making a donation today: http://www.compassionatecoalition.org/donate

Thank you for defending the rights of medical marijuana patients!

Nathan Sands
Chairman of the Board
The Compassionate Coalition
www.CompassionateCoalition.org
nathan@CompassionateCoalition.org

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