August 30, 2001

Eliminating Pot Penalties Doesn't Violate International Treaties, Study Says

        London, United Kingdom:  Governments may abolish criminal
penalties for pot possession and other drug crimes without breaching
international treaty obligations, according to a legal study published
this week by a London think-tank.
        "For many years a major impediment to drug reform has been the
belief that UN [United Nations] conventions restrict any change," said
Roger Howard, chief executive of DrugScope, which published the study.
"This study dispels the myth that [governments] are tied rigidly by the
UN conventions, and shows we have considerable flexibility within them
to radically modernize our drug laws."
        The study, entitled "European Drug Laws: the Room for Maneuver,"
examines varying drug policies of six European Union (EU) nations:
France, Germany, Holland, Italy, Spain and Sweden.  Authors found that
although each conforms to UN drug conventions, several governments have
successfully eliminated jail sentences for drug possession and
small-scale supply.  They concluded that there exist no provisions in
the conventions requiring nations to use criminal laws exclusively to
control personal drug possession.
        Instead, the study's authors recommended that governments would
be better off sanctioning drug users with civil fines rather than
criminal arrest and imprisonment.  Such policies have already been
implemented in Italy, Portugal and Spain.
        "Eleven U.S. states and numerous municipalities have already
decriminalized small amounts of marijuana," explained NORML Foundation
Legal Director Donna Shea.  "National decriminalization of marijuana
would not be a violation of the UN conventions."
        For more information, please contact either Allen St. Pierre or
Donna Shea of The NORML Foundation at (202) 483-8751. Copies of the
study are available at: http://www.drugscope.org.uk.

USA Today/Gallup Poll: Record Percentage of Americans Back Marijuana
Legalization

        Washington, DC:  More than one in three Americans say that the
use of marijuana should be legal, according to the results of last
week's annual USA Today/Gallup poll.  The 34 percent support, up from
just 25 percent in 1995, is the highest level ever recorded by Gallup.
        "The American public are fed up with the 'war on drugs' and are
looking for alternative policies," said NORML Executive Director R.
Keith Stroup.  "Increasingly, they are supporting marijuana legalization
as a way to reduce costs, reduce harm and protect our children."
        America's rapidly rising public support for marijuana
legalization mimics dramatic upticks recently recorded in England and
Canada.  According to a July poll commissioned by the Independent on
Sunday newspaper, approximately half of all Britons support legalizing
marijuana - up from 26 percent in 1996.  In Canada, 47 percent of adults
now back marijuana legalization, double the percentage recorded in 1990.
Governments in both of those nations recently established commissions to
conduct scientific inquiries into the decriminalization of marijuana.
        The USA Today/Gallup poll found support for legalization to be
strongest among 18- to 49-year-olds, people in the West and independent
voters.  Opposition was greatest among the elderly, regular churchgoers
and Republicans.
        More than 1,000 adults participated in the poll.
        For more information, please contact Allen St. Pierre, Executive
Director of The NORML Foundation, at (202) 483-8751.

Pot Violators Comprise Largest Percentage of Federal Drug Offenders,
Department of Justice Study Shows

        Washington, DC:  Marijuana offenders are referred for federal
prosecution in greater numbers than any other drug offenders, according
to a study released Sunday by the Bureau of Justice Statistics.
        Authors reported that of the 38,288 suspects referred to U.S.
attorneys in 1999 by federal law enforcement agencies, nearly one-third
were involved with marijuana.  Twenty-eight percent were suspected of
powder cocaine violations, 15 percent for crack, 15 percent for
methamphetamine, and seven percent for opiates.  About 84 percent of all
suspects referred were eventually charged in federal court.
        "Despite the government's denials, these statistics show that
that America's 'war on drugs' is primarily a war on marijuana smokers,"
said NORML Executive Director R. Keith Stroup.
        The study also found that the total number of drug defendants
nearly tripled from 1984 to 1999.  Drug prosecutions now comprise 32
percent of the total federal criminal caseload, authors reported.
        For more information, please contact Donna Shea, Legal Director
of The NORML Foundation, at (202) 483-8751.  Copies of the DOJ study are
available online at: http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/ascii/fdo99.txt.

NORML Schedules Annual Key West Legal Seminar
        Washington, DC:  NORML is now accepting registrations from
criminal defense attorneys for its annual Key West Legal Seminar.  This
year's event will be held from Thursday, November 29 through Saturday,
December 1 at the Pier House Resort and Caribbean Spa in Key West.
        NORML's annual legal seminar - now in its 16th year - is fully
accredited in every state that requires continuing legal education (CLE)
for attorneys. For more details, or to register online, please visit our
website at: http://www.norml.org or contact Kris Krane of NORML at (202)
483-5500.

September 6, 2001

Marijuana Activists Killed by Police in Standoff Over Pot Plants, Rally

        Vandalia, MI:  Federal and state law enforcement agents shot and
killed a pair of outspoken marijuana-law reform advocates on their
property this week, violently ending a multi-day standoff with
authorities.  The shooting victims, Rainbow Farm owner Grover "Tom"
Crosslin and partner Rolland Rohm, were well known locally for their
support of the "medical, spiritual and responsible recreational uses of
marijuana," and were described by friends and neighbors as caring
individuals who often staged charity events for the community.
        Rainbow Farm hosted several annual music festivals to raise
awareness about marijuana prohibition, including HempAid and RoachRoast.
Authorities claimed that Crosslin violated a court order by holding a
recent festival in August.  Crosslin and five others had been charged by
police in May with manufacturing marijuana and maintaining a drug house
after undercover officers allegedly observed marijuana and other drug
use by festival attendees.  Authorities descended on Rainbow Farm
Friday, after Crosslin set fire to several buildings on his property
that had been targeted for civil forfeiture and missed a scheduled bond
revocation hearing.
        NORML Executive Director R. Keith Stroup called the fatal
outcome a needless tragedy.  "Law enforcement should never cause greater
harm than the alleged criminal activity they are entrusted to
investigate," he said.  "Crosslin and Rohm were charged with
non-violent, marijuana-related offenses and paid for it with their
lives.  If authorities can use tranquilizer guns to still wild animals
and rubber bullets against large crowds of WTO protesters, it's
inexcusable that they used deadly force against these two men."
        Both the Justice Department and the Michigan State Police will
commence full investigations into the shootings, the Associated Press
reported.For more information, please contact Keith Stroup or Donna Shea,
NORML Litigation Director, at (202) 483-5500.

Marijuana Spray Arrests Pain in MS, Spinal Cord Patients, Study Says

        Glasgow, Scotland:  Marijuana extracts administered under the
tongue dramatically reduce chronic pain in patients with multiple
sclerosis and spinal injuries, according to preliminary findings from a
recent clinical trial on marijuana and pain management.
        "We've had some patients say:  'This is brilliant; it stopped my
pain in its tracks,'" said lead researcher Dr. William Notcutt of James
Paget Hospital in eastern England.  "Several patients experienced a
dramatic improvement in the pain they were experiencing."  Notcutt said
he hoped to publish final conclusions of the trial next year.
        Of the 23 patients participating in the study, 20 experienced
significant benefits, including pain relief and sleep enhancement.
Patients self-administered marijuana extracts via a sublingual spray.
The extracts used in the study were taken from medical marijuana plants
specially grown by GW Pharmaceuticals, a London company licensed to
cultivate and test medical marijuana in clinical trials.
        Results of a previous UK trial of 75 patients conducted this
year found that marijuana extracts greatly reduced pain, muscle spasms
and bladder dysfunction in patients with MS.  Similar studies are
scheduled to begin in Canada later this year.
        "I hope it will not be long before this new medicine can be used
much more widely," Norcott said.
        "Evidence indicates that marijuana and its derivatives are
suitable for patients suffering from various types of chronic pain,
especially those unresponsive to traditional analgesics," NORML
Foundation Executive Director Allen St. Pierre said.  "In addition,
cannabis may offer fewer negative side-effects than opioids - which can
be highly addictive - and NSAIDS, which can induce stomach ulcers,
bleeding, and kidney failure."
        This Friday, the American Academy of Pain Management will host a
daylong seminar on the role of cannabis and pain management at its 12th
Annual Clinical Meeting in Arlington, Virginia.For more information, please
contact either Allen St. Pierre or Paul Armentano of The NORML Foundation
at (202) 483-8751.

Marijuana Is Neuroprotective, Journal Says

        Utrecht, The Netherlands:  Compounds in marijuana dramatically
protect brain cells during acute head trauma, according to research
findings published in this week's Journal of Neuroscience.  Researchers
reported that THC injected intracerebrally in rats significantly
"reduce[d] neuronal injury ... compared with control animals."
        Scientists concluded, "These results provide evidence that the
cannabinoid system can serve to protect the brain against
neurodegeneration."
        NORML Foundation Executive Director Allen St. Pierre said that
the findings should dispel myths that marijuana is toxic to the brain.
"This research indicates that just the opposite is true" he said.
        Former NORML Foundation Chairman Dr. Lester Grinspoon, author of
Marijuana: The Forbidden Medicine, said the study confirms earlier
research performed in Israel and the US showing cannabinoids to be
potent anti-oxidants.  He added that smoked marijuana likely also
possesses the same neuroprotective properties.
        In their 1999 report Marijuana as Medicine: Assessing the
Science Base, authors at the Institute of Medicine noted, "One of the
most prominent new applications for cannabinoids is for
'neuroprotection,' the rescue of neurons from cell death associated with
trauma ... and neurological diseases." For more information, please contact
Paul Armentano or Allen St. Pierre of The NORML Foundation at (202) 483-8751.

September 20, 2001
Medical Pot Spray Shows 80 Percent Success Rate in Clinical
Trials
    Arlington, VA: Nearly 80 percent of multiple sclerosis and
spinal cord patients enrolled in British research trials obtained
clinical benefit from marijuana extracts, according to data
presented by a London researcher during this year's annual
meeting of the American Academy of Pain Management (AAPM).
    "Somehow a million years of evolution between cannabis and
humans have come up with an amazing medicine," announced keynote
speaker Geoffrey Guy, Chairman of GW Pharmaceuticals, a London
company licensed to cultivate and test medical marijuana in
clinical trials.  The company is currently evaluating several
cannabis-based medicinal extracts in double blind, placebo
controlled randomized trials to determine each strain's quality,
safety and efficacy.  Trial subjects self-administer the extracts
via a sublingual spray.
    According to Guy, 41 of the 53 patients enrolled in GW's most
recent trials sustained "clinically significant therapeutic benefit"
from cannabis - including relief from pain, spasticity,
bladder-related symptoms and tremor, as well as a 50 percent
average reduction in their use of opiates.  Guy called the
preliminary results "very encouraging," noting that many of
those who attained relief suffer from "conditions previously
considered intractable."
    Guy said that all 41 patients have elected to continue using
medicinal cannabis extracts long-term. Recently, England's
Medicines Control Agency (MCA), the equivalent of the United
States' FDA, affirmed the safety of GW's extracts and extended
the duration for which they can provide them to patients from
12 to 24 months.
    GW is scheduled this fall to begin a series of large-scale
Phase III trials in England and Canada on the efficacy of
cannabinoids in the treatment of chronic pain.  The company
does not currently have trials pending in the US.
   In addition to Guy, other medi-pot speakers at this year's
AAPM conference included Ethan Russo, editor of The Journal of
Cannabis Therapeutics, Patients Out of Time co-founder Mary
Lynn Mathre, Common Sense for Drug Police (CSDP) Executive
Director Kevin Zeese, and Institute of Medicine researcher
Janet Joy, co-author of the 1999 report Marijuana As Medicine:
Assessing the Science Base.
    For more information, please contact Paul Armentano,
NORML Publications Director, at (202) 483-5500.

Largest Australian State Ponders Legalizing Medical Marijuana
    Sydney, Australia:  New South Wales Premier Bob Carr
(Labor Party) is considering legalizing the use of marijuana
for medicinal purposes, according to a recent Associated Press
report. "Carr has said he has a moral obligation to consider
legalizing the use of marijuana to relieve the pain of seriously
ill people," AP said.
    The announcement comes nearly one year after the release of
an Australian Parliamentary study recommending "the introduction
in New South Wales of a compassionate regime to assist those
suffering from [a] range of illnesses ... to gain the benefits
associated with the use of cannabis without facing criminal
sanctions."
    Also backing the law change is the NSW branch of the American
Medical Association, which supports legalizing "the currently
prohibited drug in specific medical cases to alleviate patient
suffering and facilitate research."
    Presently, possession and cultivation of marijuana for
recreational use is a non-criminal (fine-only) offense in
several Australian states, including the Australian Capitol
Territory (ACT) and South Australia.  Possession of marijuana
in New South Wales remains punishable by a fine and up to two
years in jail.
    No Australian state currently has separate laws regulating
marijuana for medical purposes.
    For more information, please contact either Allen St. Pierre
or Paul Armentano of The NORML Foundation at (202) 483-8751.

Thousands Protest US Drug Policy, Mourn Terrorist Attacks at
Boston Freedom Rally
    Boston, MA: An estimated 40,000 people gathered Saturday
at the Massachusetts Cannabis Reform Coalition's (MassCann/NORML)
12th Annual Freedom Rally to show their support for reforming
US marijuana laws and reflect upon last week's tragic terrorist
attacks.
    Many in attendance waved flags and chanted "USA" throughout
the daylong event, held at the historic Boston Common.  Others
wore black armbands and observed a moment of silence in memory
of the victims of Tuesday's "Attack on America."
    Speakers at the event, including NORML Executive Director
Keith Stroup, longtime political activist John Sinclair, Efficacy
President Clifford Thornton Jr. and Libertarian gubernatorial
candidate Carla Howell, addressed the crowd from a stage adorned
with American flags.  All spoke of the horror of last week's
tragedy, and many concluded that the nation would be better served
if our law enforcement resources targeted terrorists and violent
criminals rather than pot smokers.
    "MassCann's organizers are to be commended for making the best
out of a very difficult situation," Stroup said.  "Saturday's
event effectively combined protest and patriotism, and was well
attended and well received by Bostonians."
    MassCann/NORML President Bill Downing said he was happy the
event took place as scheduled.  "There [was] a great sense of
community here," he said.  "It seemed to renew people's spirits."
    To view photos or read first hand accounts of this year's rally,
please visit http://www.masscann.org.

since 4/20/98

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