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Opinion
May. 30, 2008
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

EDITORIAL: 'Vindictive prosecution'

The owners of six Southern California medical marijuana dispensaries, including one store linked to an accident that killed a motorist and paralyzed an officer, are facing federal drug charges.

Virgil Grant III, 41, and his wife, Psytra Grant, 33, were arrested Tuesday, according to a spokesman for the U.S. attorney's office in Los Angeles.

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    • The Grants, of the town of Carson, also face money laundering charges, which the federals routinely add to any such indictments the way an ice cream shop adds whipped cream and nuts.

    So far, we have only the government's side of the case. It's tempting to say the defendants' side will come out in court, and then we'll know whether criminal activity really occurred. But in fact, whether these defendants will be allowed to present "the whole truth," to offer their best defense, now becomes the major question at hand.

    Federal authorities, despite the 10th Amendment and the fact that the U.S. Constitution grants the central government no expressed power to regulate drugs or medicine, choose not to recognize the medical marijuana laws in California and 11 other states.

    In 2003, the federal government put "Pot Guru" Ed Rosenthal of Oakland on trial for growing and selling thousands of marijuana plants -- and threatened to jail his lawyers if they attempted to tell the jury that Rosenthal had been licensed by the state of California and the city of Oakland to do exactly that.

    Rosenthal was convicted, but spent only a single day in jail -- the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in 2006 threw out his conviction based on jury misconduct. Interestingly, at a pointless 2007 retrial where Rosenthal faced no additional jail time, prosecutors "added charges that he had laundered marijuana proceeds by buying four money orders totaling $1,854, and that he had falsified tax returns for 1999, 2000 and 2001 by omitting income from his marijuana distribution," The Oakland Tribune reported.

    But U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer --brother of the Supreme Court justice -- tossed out those new charges, deeming them to be "vindictive prosecution," the Tribune reported.

    Sounds like a pretty good description of this entire hopped-up campaign to stuff the genie of medical marijuana back into its bottle.

    What next? Will federal revenuers go back to whacking at beer barrels with axes?



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    El Blablazo wrote on May 30, 2008 01:09 PM: John Chase- you're wrong. After displaying a successful mastery of abuse tactics, the subjects are then promoted into the management track.

    For once, MikeL's every word rings true.


    John Chase wrote on May 30, 2008 12:11 PM: You'd think DEA agents and federal prosecutors would know their abusive tactics are career limiting. It is only a matter of time before they will be looking for other work.


    JC wrote on May 30, 2008 09:50 AM: Why is it that the federal government won't recognize a doctors right to prescribe marijuana as any other drug? We don't live in the 1950's. Get over it DOJ!


    hillobamacain wrote on May 30, 2008 09:40 AM: this is the end result of federalism overtaking states rights


    Mike L. wrote on May 30, 2008 08:34 AM: The DEA is a terrorist organization that preys on US citizens, and sucks our money through taxes like leeches.


    HaciendaMike wrote on May 30, 2008 08:05 AM: Mr. Walker,

    I believe what you're referring to is the Dram Act, which I grew up with in New York, as my family owned a tavern. It held bartenders and owners responsible if they served someone already obviously drunk, and that person then proceeded to have an accident or whatnot and cause damage.

    That is quite different than the instance of a person who purchases medical cannabis and then consumes it in his vehicle offsite of the purchase place, which is more akin to buying a alcohol at a convenience store and then consuming it as he drives away. If the purchaser was not intoxicated when he purchased the substance, no blame can be attached to the seller.

    Furthermore, you muddy the issue by alluding that the cannabis in question was an illegal substance. In fact, the person had a doctor's recommendation,and the medical cannabis program is legal and administered under state law in California.

    The fact that a town did not renew an existing business license to a legitimate, taxpaying business just demonstrates an executive branch equivalent of the vindictive prosecution mentioned in the editorial.

    More than half of all Americans alive have tried cannabis and more than 10% consume it on a regular basis. It has been used throughout recorded history, and America's lamentable attempt to change human nature is pure folly, which has resulted in the tattering of our beloved Constitution.

    We can have a free America or a drug-free America, but not both.


    Robert Walker wrote on May 30, 2008 07:12 AM: An accident occurred that was linked to the supplier of hemp. How interesting.
    Several years ago a young lady was involved in a very tragic accident. There were traces of an illegal substance in her blood. Was the supplier ever indicted? tried? sentenced?
    There are laws on the books that make bartenders and owners culpable if one of their patrons who may have over indulged, causes harm after leaving the establishment. Yet, nary a word regarding the supplier of an illegal substance.
    Hey, if you don't gut no business icense, you don't get arrested. And business expenses are lower.
    Thank You.


    Helen Weils wrote on May 30, 2008 06:50 AM: This editorial is just One of the reasons I LOVE the RJ! The other is
    Vin's articles.
    Erin, Molly, Jane, can all go. Why not make this a true Libertarian voice?


    ralph wrote on May 30, 2008 05:41 AM: Just another example of our tax dollars at work. Our government is out of control.


    DennisL wrote on May 30, 2008 05:32 AM: Vindictive prosecution is exactly what it implies and should not be a part of the justice system no matter what the case is. End of story.


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