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New push for medical marijuana legalization
Advocates will bring forward cancer and HIV-AIDS victims to make their case, but they still face a tough road.
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Backers of medical marijuana want the face of Stephanie Whiting-Shadinger to be one of those Minnesota lawmakers remember as debate resumes at the State Capitol on allowing some patients to use the now-illegal drug.
Whiting-Shadinger died in 2003 at age 26, suffering from malignant melanoma that required experimental treatments, chemotherapy and 10 surgeries. Daily doses of pain killers failed to relieve her misery.
Joni Whiting, a suburban grandma from Jordan, will be testifying today in a Senate committee that she reluctantly abandoned her anti-drug sentiments and went along with her daughter smoking marijuana in her final days. And she's glad she did.
Opposition to legalizing medicinal marijuana remains strong among those concerned about its effects on drug abuse. But supporters hope new strategies can build support for their cause.
Like nothing else, Joni Whiting said, marijuana eased some of her daughter's pain and restored some of her appetite. She lived three months longer than doctors predicted, smiled for the first time in months and was able to eat a mushroom and cheese omelette the day before she died.
Before her daughter's illness, Whiting said, "I looked at people talking about medical marijuana as the potheads, lazy people wanting to smoke pot and sit on the couch all day. My daughter was living proof that this plant is a miracle plant and it worked.
"She smiled again and she played with her children. It was a miracle what happened to my daughter from the moment she smoked that pot."
It's stories like those -- from people no one would expect to sing marijuana's praises -- that supporters hope will persuade legislators to add Minnesota to the list of 13 states that permit some form of medicinal use of marijuana. The proposal, debated repeatedly in recent years, has gained support among legislators but has been blocked by Gov. Tim Pawlenty.
Pawlenty spokesman Brian McClung said the governor remains opposed but would reconsider if law enforcement officials do.
A different strategy
The proposal, as in past years, would establish a system through which qualified patients could obtain marijuana to ease pain and other symptoms through nonprofit organizations registered with the state. Its proponents are aware that credibility is an issue, having failed to win decisive support in previous years with the testimony of pony-tailed supporters saying they needed the marijuana to treat unusual or elusive conditions.
This time, advocates will be bringing forward people with spinal cord injuries, cancer and HIV-AIDS to make their case.
"There are real human faces behind this issue," said Chris DeLaForest, a former Republican legislator now lobbying for the medical marijuana advocacy group. "What we are doing is presenting, in flesh and blood, people who represent those medical conditions."
Even though one quarter of the states have passed laws regulating the use of medical marijuana, they remain in conflict with federal law. But the Obama administration has sent signals that federal resources should not be used to circumvent state laws related to medical marijuana. Advocates hope the new president's views will aide their cause.
'Our opposition is steadfast'
But local law enforcement has seen nothing new to lessen their opposition. Dakota County Attorney Jim Backstrom, immediate past president of the Minnesota County Attorneys Association, said law enforcement's concerns that medical marijuana systems are rife for abuse and legitimize drug use remain serious.
"Every major law enforcement organization continues to oppose it. It would simply be bad public policy to adopt the bill. Our opposition is steadfast," Backstrom said.
In addition, the Minnesota Family Council plans to oppose the bill as it has in the past, with people testifying about personal experiences with the dangers of smoking marijuana and how the bill will put the public's health at risk.
Mark Brunswick • 651-222-1636 Bob von Sternberg • 612-673-7184
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Governor: Tim Pawlenty
One of only a few prominent Republicans to win a competitive re-election contest in the Democratic sweep of 2006, Tim Pawlenty is widely seen as politically shrewd and naturally likable.
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