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6/16/2005
A U.S. Supreme Court ruling against
state medical-marijuana laws has not deterred lawmakers in seven states
from continuing their campaigns to pass such measures,
USA Today reported June 15.
Lawmakers in Alabama, Connecticut, Minnesota, New Mexico, New Jersey,
Rhode Island, and Wisconsin say they plan to proceed with
medical-marijuana bills despite the fact that the U.S. Supreme Court
ruled that such laws do not protect drug users and suppliers from
federal prosecution. A bill to prevent such prosecutions also was
defeated this week in the U.S. House of Representatives.
The Rhode Island Senate, for example, passed a medical-marijuana bill
the day after the Supreme Court ruling. At least one house of the
legislature has passed similar bills in New Mexico, Alabama, and
Connecticut. Alabama bill sponsor state Rep. Laura Hall said that while
the rulings could make passage more difficult and give ammunition to
opponents, "I will continue to sponsor the bill."
Minnesota state Sen. Steve Kelley said the U.S. House vote might cause
some lawmakers to take pause in acting on state medical-marijuana laws.
But New Mexico state Sen. Cisco McSorley said the federal decisions
would have little impact on local lawmakers. "The folks who voted for
(the state law) last time didn't really care what the federal government
was doing," McSorley said.
In New York, however, Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno, a Republican
who was endorsing medical marijuana prior to the Supreme Court decision,
has backed off plans to bring a state measure to a vote. "In light of
the Supreme Court decision, it doesn't make sense to go ahead and pass a
bill that's against the law," said a Bruno spokesman.
Source:
Join Together
Online.
Join Together is a project of the
Boston University School of Public Health |
