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Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
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US: DEA Denial Of Marijuana Rescheduling Petition To Be Appealed
NORML - Press Release
Tuesday 27 Mar 2001 Date: Tue, 27 Mar 2001 18:33:34 EST Subject: DEA DENIAL OF MARIJUANA RESCHEDULING PETITION TO BE APPEALED Please direct all media inquiries to: ROBERTO RIONDA 212-935-4500 March 27, 2001 From the Law Offices of Michael Kennedy, New York, NY. DEA DENIAL OF MARIJUANA RESCHEDULING PETITION TO BE APPEALED A statement on Behalf of Petitioners Jon Gettman and High Times Magazine. In a cruel and mean spirited attempt to deprive cancer and other seriously ill patients with the benefit of medical marijuana, the DEA formally denied a petition to repeal marijuana's Schedule I status and reschedule it under the provisions of the Controlled Substance Act (CSA). The denial of the six year old petition was issued only one week before oral arguments in the United States Supreme Court case, United States v. Oakland Buyers' Cooperative and Jeffrey Jones, a separate proceeding in which the Court will determine the viability of the "medical necessity" defense for medical marijuana patients. Clearly, the timing of the DEA's decision was a calculated attempt to strengthen the government's position in the Supreme Court case with the DEA's conclusions on the petition. This tactic poses a great danger to ill patients who rely on medical marijuana because the Supreme Court's decision may be influenced by the flawed conclusions of the DEA before the rescheduling petition has been appealed. In denying the petition, the DEA concluded that marijuana has a high potential for abuse similar to cocaine and heroin, that even small levels of THC in industrial hemp pose a threat to public health, and that marijuana use will lead to the use of other drugs. Further, the DEA argues that evidence of widespread nonmedical marijuana use is sufficient evidence of the drug's high potential for abuse to justify its Schedule I status. The decision departs widely from contemporary scientific consensus on the assessment of the relative abuse liability of both legal and illegal drugs, even while conceding that marijuana has low toxicity, a low dependence liability and that it contains a medically beneficial drug. In fact, several states have recently passed initiatives allowing medical marijuana use by patients with various illnesses. The DEA also argues that as long as marijuana has no accepted medical use in the United States and a lack of accepted safety for use under medical supervision, it must stay in Schedule I regardless of its abuse potential. The same argument has been rejected by the U.S. Court of Appeals, which noted in 1977 that the statute requires all three criteria be met for schedule I status. The DEA is also in violation of the Administrative Procedures Act by not providing an opportunity for a hearing on the record, as provided for in the CSA. Guaranteeing access to medically necessary drugs and substances is one of the primary purposes of the CSA. Another flaw in DEA's denial of the petition is that the impact of this decision on medical marijuana users was not considered in their review, despite instructions in the legislative history to study the impact of scheduling on those most affected by the decision. We cannot allow this erroneous opinion to result in the miserable and painful deaths of terminally ill patients, nor is it acceptable for government officials to define abuse potential without regard for scientific convention or due process of law. An appeal by petitioners will be filed with the U.S. Court of Appeals in the near future. -end- ----- End of forwarded message from NATLNORML@aol.com -----
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