IMMLY PRESS RELEASE: Wisconsin Medical Marijuana Patient-Activists Applaud 9Th U.S. Circuit Court Of Appeals Decision In California Medical Marijuana Case
For immediate release December 17, 2003
WISCONSIN MEDICAL MARIJUANA PATIENT-ACTIVISTS APPLAUD 9TH U.S. CIRCUIT COURT OF APPEALS DECISION IN CALIFORNIA MEDICAL MARIJUANA CASE
Mondovi & Madison - Members of the group, Is My Medicine Legal YET? (www.immly.org) were celebrating Tuesday's ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in the case Raich v. Ashcroft, 03-15481, that found provisions of the Controlled Substances Act may not apply to sick people with a doctor's recommendation in states that have approved medical-marijuana laws.
One of two plaintiffs in the case, Angel Raich, suffers from an inoperable brain tumor, wasting syndrome, and numerous other ailments that cause severe chronic pain and seizures. She weighs only 97 pounds and has said without marijuana she'd starve to death. IMMLY Founder and executive director Jacki Rickert can definitely identify with Raich's plight. She suffers constant intractable pain, nausea, spasticity, joint dislocations, continuing muscle and bone marrow loss and other painful symptoms from two severe incurable medical conditions, Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and advanced reflex sympathetic dystrophy. Rickert was down to 68 pounds when her then-physician realized she was in what he called "a dangerous zone". She now weighs around 84 pounds. Despite being approved for government medical marijuana supplies in 1991 for both research and compassionate use, federal officials refused to honor their contract to Rickert.
"68 pounds was terrible, painful and very life-threatening. In short, my doctor was terrified, as he had exhausted every other therapy. I'm so glad these judges understand that there is no public interest in keeping medical marijuana from seriously ill patients. This gives me hope that I may yet see legal medical marijuana in my lifetime."
Gary Storck, IMMLY's director of communications, who suffers from degenerative disc disease, arthritis, severe
congenital glaucoma, and heart problems said, "Coming on the heels of October's Supreme Court decision declining a federal appeal of another Ninth Circuit decision prohibiting federal authorities from
punishing doctors for discussing medical marijuana with patients, IMMLY hopes this decision will spur Wisconsin lawmakers to quickly move forward and pass medical marijuana legislation this session".
For further information contact Jacki Rickert at 715.926.4950 or Gary Storck at 608.241.8922.
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