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About this blog

Victories and commentary on the absurdity of daily struggles in the courtroom during this war on drugs.

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Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

New York State recommends legalizing marijuana in long awaited report

What sticks in my craw is that the only reason this is happening is because of polling and political wind. Has anything changed in the past 10 years about the science? About the safety? About the prescription drug deaths? The incarceration rates? The usage rates? The racist policing and court sentences? The asset forfeiture? The gangs, cartels, black markets? The gray markets operating legally under state law but not under federal law? The absolute zeal and fight to the death that prosecutors attack medical marijuana patients with? NO! Nothing has changed, except the polling.   No one is going to give you an apology for keeping a plant illegal. Only Dr. Sanjay Gupta has apologized. You think Chuck Schumer will ever apologize? Or any of the Democrats and Republicans who have voted to keep marijuana illegal all of these years, that are now turning around and saying we should legalize it? Nah, just crickets from Gov Cuomo and former AG Eric Holder and President Obama. https://www.marijuanamoment.net/gop-silences-congressional-apology-for-war-on-drugs/ Look at the summary and conclusions of the New York State marijuana legalizing report. Read the executive summary: http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/new-york-state-legalizing-marijuana-executive_summary_07-13-18.pdf Or read the Full Report http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/new-york-state-marijuana-report.pdf   Marijuana is going to get real weird real fast. With Canada legalizing it nationwide this year and more and more states voting on the issue, there will be an end of the war on drugs battle. Will the police go full balls out trying to get as many arrests as possible before the vote in November? No one can predict. Stay tuned for more news and inside information from the battlefield of the war on drugs.
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

Years of blood, sweat and tears to get Autism as a Qualifying Condition in the MMMA.

We have come a long way from 2013, when a parent submitted the first petition to add Autism as a qualifying condition within the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act. It was ultimately rejected due to a lack of any research materials and testimony. http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/Final_Determination_Autism_436526_7.pdf In 2014, a Parent tried to submit a new Autism petition with some testimony about physicians treating Autism patients who qualify due to also having epilepsy. LARA rejected this petition because it said it had "issued its final decision" on Autism and would not reconsider new evidence. Komorn Law stepped in to protect the rights of the petitioner and her family member with Autism. We filed a lawsuit against LARA to force them to hear the new petition with the new testimony and new scientific research. After stalling for months and months in court, LARA gave up the fight and decided to hear the petition. The Medical Marihuana Review Panel held a public meeting and took public testimony.  But the patient advocate panel member noticed that LARA had withheld the scientific research presented with the petition, depriving the review panel from the evidence! The panel postponed the vote on adding Autism until they had a chance to review the information.   ARE YOU SERIOUS? LARA HOLDING THE SCIENCE FROM THE PANEL?  https://www.mlive.com/news/detroit/index.ssf/2015/07/michigan_panel_delays_decision.html Dr. Christian Bogner testified in support of treating Autism with medical marijuana. He described his scientific theory on why Autism has been increasing, restated here on the Dr. Nandi show shortly after he testified in 2015.   After hearing all of these parents begging for any option of a remedy to help their families, the review panel voted to recommend adding Autism as a condition in 2015. https://www.michigan.gov/lara/0,4601,7-154-79571_79575_79582-358181--,00.html
  Mike Zimmer, the Director of LARA, issued a 4 page opinion on why he was rejecting adding Autism as a qualifying condition to the MMMA. In his opinion he stated multiple reasons why he was rejecting the condition. The petition used some language describing symptoms as "severe autism" but the petition was only for "autism" not "severe autism" , thus any person with "autism" could qualify for the medical use of marihuana. A lack of clinical based studies and scientific evidence and research on marijuana and Autism. That the MMMA did not require a physician recommending marihuana to be an expert in Autism or marihuana. That the "petition failed to acknowledge the direct impact on children" Some of the forms of delivery of medical marijuana (oils, extracts and edibles) advocated by those appearing at public hearing would not appear to be authorized under the MMMA. Mr. Zimmer was saying that because of a court opinion, he thought that some forms of medical marijuana were illegal. http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/Final_Determination_Medical_Marihuana_Autism_08272015_554191_7.pdf We were completely knocked out by this denial and rejection. LARA Director Mike Zimmer delivered a knock out. We dotted the i's and crossed the t's, we played the court game, we forced LARA to hear a new Autism petition with physicians and parents testifying. Autism was fully rejected in 2015. That did not stop the parents, the families who have to deal and cope and live with Autism every day. This fight for a non-toxic medicine was far from over.   https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/politics/2015/08/28/agency-rejects-marijuana-autistic-kids/32486185/   https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2015/07/18/medical-marijuana-cannabis-autism-seizures-cbd-thc-stoned-prohibition/30360041/   Meanwhile, other petitions have been rejected 2013-2016 , including Anxiety, Parkinson's Disease, Asthma, Insomnia, Manic Depression and Retinitis Pigmentosa. Only Post Traumatic Stress Disorder has been approved as a new condition. https://www.michigan.gov/lara/0,4601,7-154-79571_79575_79582-360123--,00.html Some of the petitions were denied due to there only being 6 panel members attending the public meetings. LARA decided that this was too few and would deny the conditions based on this "quorum" rule, that they themselves created. After some back and forth they finally changed this and made the administrative rules right. LARA did not reevaluate its decisions on the petitions that were rejected for a bogus internal reason however. Since almost every petition to add a new condition had been defeated, any morale and fighting spirit to continue petitioning for new conditions had petered out. LARA continued to add more and more hoops for petitioners, requiring that any petition to add a condition now MUST HAVE scientific research attached or it would be instantly rejected. That requirement sound reasonable, we all want our medical decisions to be based in science and peer-reviewed medical journals. However, the absurdity of this research requirement is illustrated by the actions of the National Institute of Health and the National Institute on Drug Abuse, which grants funding for research on medicine. Back in 2010, the New York Times asked NIDA what kind of research they fund on marijuana. https://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/19/health/policy/19marijuana.html The article goes on to detail multiple researchers who have waited YEARS to research marijuana benefits, not even requesting a grant, but self or privately funded research gets delayed. This delay, roadblock and hoop jumping is typical with research on marijuana, and it continues to this day. Researchers have even been "let go" for trying to research marijuana. http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/news/weeded-out-how-the-u-of-a-fired-pot-researcher-sue-sisley-after-a-state-senator-complained-6635510 Local Michigan parent and 2015 Autism petitioner Dwight Zahringer, blogging his journey with Autism at the AutismDad website, did not give up on his son. Dwight was ready for another FIGHT, another petition. Something to help his child and all of the other families struggling with the terribly debilitating Autism diagnosis. The fight was on again! After losing so badly in 2015, we wanted to make sure we studied our failures as well as the weaknesses of the process of petitioning. Our new strategy going forwards was to study every single comment and complaint that every LARA director and LARA employee and review panel member made on the petitions over the last 5 years. Dwight was very patient waiting for us as we spent a year working on this project. After we learned each and every concern, complaint and comment , we used that information to build a massive resource of peer-reviewed scientific and medical research on marijuana to present to the review panel. Encouraged by the community and by her own son's transformation from an angry punching autism ball of anxiety into a loving child again, Michigan mom Amie Carter stepped up to be the petitioner on the 2018 petition. We took the original 2015 petition, cleaned it up, added new research from the past 3 years and resubmitted it in January 2018. While there has not been much research for marijuana and autism in the past 3 years, there has been a lot of research on the safety of marijuana and medical marijuana. We submitted many studies on the safety and efficacy of medical marijuana so that the panel could see the difference between the conventional and traditional treatment for autism versus medical marijuana. As all of the research and government reports have shown from years and years of research, marijuana is non-toxic, has no long term physical or mental effects and very few serious side effects. The most common side effects being drowsiness, euphoria, dry mouth and fatigue. This is in vast contrast to the serious, dangerous and sometimes fatal side effects of the prescription drugs that autism patients are routinely prescribed on a daily basis. http://www.health.state.mn.us/topics/cannabis/about/firstyearreport.html We waited for LARA to review our petitions. Three months later LARA scheduled two public meetings for our petitions.   The review panel is appointed by the Governor of Michigan and composed of physicians and one non-physician patient advocate. Only one of the physicians on the panel had intimate knowledge and had treated medical marijuana patients. On April 27th 2018, the review panel held a public meeting for public testimony in Lansing. Due to LARA's stonewalling and discouraging of petitions over the years, almost everyone had given up on the petition process. Less than a dozen people testified in support of the conditions at the April 27th 2018 meeting. No one testified in opposition to the conditions. This is in stark contrast to the many families who showed up in 2015 to testify in support, and went to the panel begging for their help to allow them to use a non toxic medicine for Autism.   The second meeting on May 4th 2018 was for the review panel to vote on the conditions.     The panel at times argued different ideas and points about the law, petitions, the research, the lack of research and their experience in treating patients with the conditions.   After the panel approved of 10 conditions, we had to wait again. The director of LARA has 180 days (July) from when the petitions are submitted (January) to decide to add or reject adding a new qualifying condition to the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act.       Finally the day had come. One day before July 10th 2018, the 180th day limit to decide on the petitions, LARA Director Shelly Edgerton approved the conditions that the medical marijuana review panel had recommended. Five years of fighting for some relief from self injuring behavior. Five years of fighting for chronic irritability, screaming, punching, anxiety, compulsive tics and behavior and other autism symptoms. Medical Marihuana is just now an OPTION, another tool, another medicine, another thing to TRY. Five years of knock outs, bloody knuckles, bruised egos, black eyes, screaming, begging, pleading, rejection, scorn, hatred and crying. Friendships were forged and bridges were burned, physicians who we thought were there for us turned around and withdrew their support at the drop of a hat. Finally parents can breathe a small sigh of relief. A massive team effort of people, families, physicians, researchers, petitioners and organizers came together at random to work on this.   As the president of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association, I am proud to have been part of this process. I hope that the families who benefit, and the families who don't benefit share their experiences in trying medical marijuana for autism, so that we can advance science and knowledge of this condition and the cannabis plant. I also call on the governments of the world to encourage and conduct clinical trials of medical marijuana for diseases. To date, the FDA and National Institute of Health and National Institute of Drug Abuse have refused to fund research into medical marijuana.
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

Prohibitionists fail to predict future, legalization is a win for freedom.

Prohibitionists would use the predicted _possible_ harmful societal effects of marijuana as an excuse to continue the racist war on drugs that put hundreds of thousands of people in jail in the USA each year. Eventually, people realized that if you cried WOLF enough, and no WOLF ever showed up, that you were probably just a professional WOLF troll and that your predictions were false. As is the case here in reality.   https://hightimes.com/news/legalization/five-years-marijuana-legalization-what-didnt-happen/
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

Nevada traffic deaths drop 10 percent in first year of legal marijuana.

Nevada traffic deaths show 10 percent decrease since marijuana was legalized. Can this be directly attributed to marijuana? Probably not. Still, watching these numbers should tell us something useful, as marijuana is a substitute for alcohol and that alone should shrink alcohol related traffic crashes. http://mynews4.com/news/local/nevada-traffic-deaths-dropped-10-percent-in-first-11-months-of-recreational-marijuana   Read more about traffic statistics and marijuana driving research at my website http://komornlaw.com/driving-research/
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

Victory for an MMMA patient in a Federal Park with his medical marijuana.

The conflict between state medical marijuana laws and the Federal Controlled Substances Act has been playing itself out in courts across the country. In addition, Congress has passed an act to prohibit the Department of Justice from prosecuting patients and caregivers in medical marijuana states. The DEA and DOJ have taken the position that this appropriations act rider means nothing, and have argued as such in court on many occasions in courts nationwide. Funny, they said we should "change the laws" if we wanted marijuana to be legal, so we legalized medical marijuana. Then they said marijuana was still illegal. So we got congress to protect medical marijuana states. Then the Department of Justice said these laws still didn't apply to them.   Our client hired us because he felt that his medical marijuana card protected him from this marijuana ticket that a park ranger gave him for possessing his medical marijuana in a national forest park in Michigan. Kayaks? Canoes? The Department of Justice is blind.   We filed a motion to dismiss based on the the Rohrabacher–Farr amendment to the Appropriations Act (the appropriations act is how the legislature funds the government departments). The Department of Justice prosecutor fought us on all counts of our motion, forcing us to dig our way out of a bunch of different rabbit holes of other medical marijuana cases across the country. Ultimately, after doing the proper research , filing motions, writing briefs and responses to opposition replies, we finally got the victory our client deserved. The magistrate agreed with all of our well thought out arguments and dismissed the ticket. All this over "three marijuana joints". At least our client was lucky! Noted poet, activist and Michigan native John Sinclair was given 10 years for 2 joints of marijuana in Ann Arbor of all places. Such an injustice brought John Lennon and Yoko Onno to Michigan where he made a song for John Sinclair to protest and demand his freedom from unjust marijuana laws.   John Sinclair sat in jail for years before his appeal was finally heard by the Michigan Supreme Court which overturned the draconian marijuana laws. Marijuana was legal again, until the Michigan Legislature reinstated the marijuana laws a few months later.   Lessons for all patients and caregivers: Never talk to the police (or park rangers)! Never answer questions! Ask if you are free to go, and then go if they say yes! Always ask for an attorney to be present during any questioning. Always call your lawyer before talking with the police! Never consent to a search! Without consent, the police officer would have no cause to search you. Never smoke in public! The park is a public place. Do not take marijuana with you on or in: Any School Grounds or school bus. Any Correctional facility, or any state or federal government buildings Any Federal Park or land, including border areas with Canada. Any Native American Reservation or Tribal Land. If you want the protections of the MMMA, you MUST stay in compliance with the MMMA. Plant limits, weight limits, etc. Being outside the boundaries of the MMMA could land you in jail.
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

Schizophrenic bureaucrats and legislators battle medical marijuana laws.

On the one hand you have bureaucrats at LARA, Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, and on the other hand you have out of touch legislators. Both are trying to jump head first into the brick wall that the last 100 years of marijuana prohibition. UPDATE: 5-30-18: LARA has posted updated Emergency Rules to extend marijuana business license deadline to Sept 15th 2018  https://www.michigan.gov/lara/0,4601,7-154-79571_79784-469818--,00.html http://komornlaw.com/mmfla-all-forms/   While this is all going on, the federal Drug Enforcement Agency with the Department of Justice, headed by Jeff Sessions, is doing everything it can to block industrial hemp and medical marijuana.     https://m.metrotimes.com/detroit/what-are-michigans-lawmakers-smoking/Content?oid=12485965
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

Cannabis Industry Delivers 100,000+ Jobs And Billions In Tax Revenue

Polls and surveys conducted across the USA all agree that about 50% of the entire US population has used or enjoys marijuana. With marijuana selling anywhere from $5-$30 per gram, its no wonder that legalizing marijuana brings jobs and tax dollars out of the black market and into the regulated market. The prohibition of alcohol gave us Al Capone and the American Mafia, the prohibition of marijuana and other drugs gave us El Chapo and the Mexican Cartels.       https://www.forbes.com/sites/civicnation/2018/05/11/how-providence-promise-is-building-a-college-going-culture-the-follow-your-dreams-tour/#6275595149f3
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

Kent County uses medical marijuana money to buy illegal marijuana raid vehicle

The oversight and operational grant money, stolen out of the Michigan Medical Marihuana Fund was supposed to be for education and oversight of the medical marijuana program. Instead, funds from the program have been used to buy any toy that the drug tasks forces want. Tasers and bullet proof vests? For sick patients ? None of this makes any sense. In the FY2018 budget, Gov Rick Snyder proposed removing that $3 million grant.        https://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2018/05/rapid_deployment_vehicle_to_co.html
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

Probational Industrial Complex, once you are part of the system you're there forever.

Courts are not about justice or helping, their main focus is solely to collect fees and fines. Call any court at any time and the information provided on the automated phone system is exclusively about how to stream line payments. Any other concern or question of the court requires you to go through an endless and bottomless rabbit hole of phone tree tag. If , by some miracle you do get through to a live voice, it becomes immediately apparent that the person behind the phone is neither user friendly or  ready with answers for the reason why you have called.   When did this practice become the norm? When did this unhelpful court attitude become acceptable? Who has empowered these civic employees to be rude and dismissive? What happened to the old adage that the customer is always right? Who told these people that they have an allegiance to anyone other than the people who have business with the court?   Think they treat lawyers or law firm employees any differently? HAH! I have to use the same phone numbers and go through the same hoops that any person does when interacting with the court. Except I have to use their voice mail systems. Imagine having to contact a court for a client only to get a voice mail and wait for the system to tell you to leave a message after the tone, only to hear “mailbox is full”. This only happens every day to me, in multiple courts with multiple judges, prosecutors, clerks and even police officers!   Courts, prosecutors and Judges all take lunch breaks, but so do all of the clerks, all at the same time. Don’t even bother trying to call anyone from 11:30-1pm. Likewise, Court is over at 4pm, everyone including the clerks leave. There is no automated answering service, just voice mail with full mailboxes after 4pm.   There is a small window of time when you are able to get a live person at a court. Between 9:00-11:00am and then 1:00pm-3:45pm.   The probation and drug testing industrial complex has taken over the courts. I Represented Client/Medical Marihuana patient in a probation violation today in court. I was not her lawyer at the time she plead guilty and was sentenced to probation. The allegations of the probation violation were that my client had continued to test positive for THC, in violation of the court's order.   “Your client can't use medical marijuana while on probation. The Certifying physician is not in the probation departments list of approved doctors.”   Generally speaking the court is looking to the following main issues when setting bond; is the accused a danger to the community is the accused a flight risk   With these legal principles in mind the judge or magistrate where there's an allegation of a domestic violence case, or an alcohol-related driving case, will conclude for purposes of setting bond they have an interest in protecting the community from a person who consuming alcohol. In that scenario despite being presumptively innocent, allegations of assault and battery or something worse, the court in the interest of protecting the community or because of the defendants “danger to the community” would set a bond with the condition of no contact with the alleged victim.   Each of these examples draw from allegations, or the facts set forth in the complaint that resulted in the issuance of the charges. Their intent associated with the elements of the crime or certainly socially with alcohol which is a substance that is not medicinal, and is exclusively perceived as being recreational and subject to abuse, within the court system.   In other words the use of alcohol is routinely perceived as the roots or reason or identifiable concern by the court, independent of whether it is needed, identified, or even alleged, is something almost every single court prohibits a person on bond from doing even in cases where alcohol may not be involved.   These were the facts...   Client was put on probation for an alcohol driving offense. Judge sentenced her to 2 years probation, 10 days in jail immediately, followed by 2 years probation. Outpatient treatment, Alcoholics Anonymous, fines and costs.   At the time of her sentencing and prior to commencing the 10 days she paid a $2300 fine.   The additional terms of probation were: Report to the probation officer. Complete an intensified outpatient treatment program at Dawn Farms, Participate in alcoholics anonymous, Complete two years of probation.   It is important to note, that the court at the time of sentencing entered/ ordered the traditional terms of sentencing which include   Upon release from the jail after completing 10 days in jail, the client reported to the probation department as directed to by the court.   Upon appearing at the probation department and going through the intake process, my client interacted with her probation officer's assistant. At that time she presented to the assistant to her probation officer her medical marijuana card which was copied and entered into the file.   Over the next year ( the first year of her 2 year probation) she proceeded to complete the inpatient treatment program. She enrolled in AA and another Secular program similar to AA called SMART. In fact after enrolling in these 2 programs, she habitually attended 2 times a week for the next 2 years.   Additional terms of her probation included write in or non-reporting probation, which required her to call or write in to her probation officer monthly.   All of these requirements were completed as ordered by the Court.   At approximately the one year mark of her probation, my client got a call from her probation officer, directing her to take a drug test. Of course being a medical marihuana patient, she tested positive for THC. To my client, this was not a suprise because she had let the probation department know was in fact a medical marihuana patient. In her initial intake at the probation department she had made it clear of this status. Furthermore, she believed she  had a right to engage in the medical ise of marihuana.   333.26424 Sec. 4. (a) A qualifying patient who has been issued and possesses a registry identification card is not subject to arrest, prosecution, or penalty in any manner, or denied any right or privilege, including, but not limited to, civil penalty or disciplinary action by a business or occupational or professional licensing board or bureau, for the medical use of marihuana in accordance with this act, provided that the qualifying patient possesses an amount of marihuana that does not exceed a combined total of 2.5 ounces of usable marihuana and usable marihuana equivalents, and, if the qualifying patient has not specified that a primary caregiver will be allowed under state law to cultivate marihuana for the qualifying patient, 12 marihuana plants kept in an enclosed, locked facility. Any incidental amount of seeds, stalks, and unusable roots shall also be allowed under state law and shall not be included in this amount. The privilege from arrest under this subsection applies only if the qualifying patient presents both his or her registry identification card and a valid driver license or government-issued identification card that bears a photographic image of the qualifying patient.   My client’s probation officer however didn’t see things the same way...   Upon learning of the drug test results, the probation officer told my client that she was in violation of the terms of her probation.   Your client can’t use medical marijuana while on probation. The certifying physician is not in the probation departments list of approved doctors.   This is frankly disgusting. A probation department telling a person which physician they can or cannot go to for treatment? What kind of justice is that?   This was all done in the last two weeks of probation for my client. They wanted and waited to violate her right at the end of her probation.   Client hired me, I was able to argue the law, got her off the hook for the Violation of Probation VOP and she was able to finish her probation in the mean time, and has been alcohol free for two years and has really changed her whole life around. Although I can’t take credit for that, I am glad happy to see that her right to be a medical marijuana patient was recognized by the court. Victory
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

Cannabidiol Based Medical Cannabis in Children with Autism- a Retrospective Feasibility Study (P3.318)

A New study out of Israel for the treatment of Autistic children using medical marijuana was released last month. Although the study says it used Cannabidiol, the study used an oral oil containing both CBD and THC at a ratio of 20:1. It is sad that the USA cannot study marijuana for autism and that we have to rely upon other countries to do the research. This is the main reason why people have taken it into their own hands to legalize medical marijuana because the FDA and DEA refuse to allow cannabis to be studied for benefits of medical conditions. Parents who have been able to treat their autistic children with medical cannabis already knew what the results of trials would be. When the child's behaviors and communication improve, the parents stress levels go down.  This study goes on to say that oils made from the cannabis plant helped tremendously with autism spectrum disorder symptoms: Behavioral outbreaks were much improved or very much improved (on the CGIC scale) in 61% of patients. The anxiety and communication problems were much or very much improved in 39% and 47% respectively. Disruptive behaviors, were improved by 29% from 4.74±1.82 as recorded at baseline on the HSQ-ASD to 3.36±1.56 following the treatment. Parents reported less stress as reflected in the APSI scores, changing by 33% from 2.04±0.77 to 1.37±0.59     http://n.neurology.org/content/90/15_Supplement/P3.318 https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02956226
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

Minnesota Dept of Health studies Medical Marijuana patients, large pain reduction is found

Minnesota is the only state that I've seen which actually studies it's patients in it's medical marijuana program. The Minnesota DOH released a report of all of its patients a year ago, and in March, released a report about patients with intractable pain who are enrolled in the medical marijuana program. Minnesota studies and conducts trials and surveys while Michigan conducts criminal trials for patients and caregivers. This is all the fault of Governor Rick Snyder and Attorney General Bill Schuette who continue to allow patients and caregivers to be thrown into courts and jail for being part of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Program.
    The new 2018 report of Intractable Pain Patients in the Minnesota Medical Cannabis program can be read here: http://www.health.state.mn.us/topics/cannabis/about/ipreport.html   The first year report of Minnesota Medical Marijuana patients is here: http://www.health.state.mn.us/topics/cannabis/about/firstyearreport.html        
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

The Chief of the DEA ignores science and reality.

The DEA is supposed to be using science to inform and regulate the pharmaceutical and health of the United States.  But yet, the appointed chiefs of the DEA continue to be ill-informed, ignorant and plain out lie about the substances they are supposed to be researching.   This is precisely why the USA is in an opioid drug crisis right now. Because the DEA is ran by idiots.   Read the 2017 NASEM report that DEA Acting Administrator Patterson has ignored here. It contains solid evidence of the medical use of marijuana to treat many different conditions, and was a basis to our scientifically backed petitions. Read our petitions to add qualifying conditions here: http://komornlaw.com/petitions   https://www.marijuanamoment.net/dea-head-slammed-over-marijuana-stance-by-lawmakers/   http://thehill.com/opinion/healthcare/387640-on-marijuana-and-opioids-the-dea-has-no-clue-what-its-talking-about  
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

When the Prosecutors and Judges really do conspire against you.

My client is facing a number of years in jail. A confidential informant aka C.I. is involved. In most cases a C.I. is a person who is caught committing a crime by the police, and instead of being put on trial, the police use them as undercover informants. Usually the buying and selling of controlled substances. Using the "little fish" to catch "bigger fish" is the justification of this, but it routinely backfires and the C.I.'s have been murdered in a large number of cases. Back in my client's case, I get the C.I. on the witness stand and start asking her questions. Why are you testifying in this case? Why did you become a C.I. ? The C.I. responds she did this out of the concern for the children and safety of Michigan's Citizens. What? You would put yourself in a potentially dangerous situation ... for nothing in return? No payment? No Salary? No vacation days? Unheard of, because it was not the truth. The C.I. committed perjury. Not really a deal changer, although it makes the witness less credible, its not a conspiracy at this point. But the prosecutor in the case denied she was a C.I. , denied documents related to her being a C.I. existed, and denied he knew she was a C.I. Interestingly, the prosecutor in my client's case was also the prosecutor in the C.I.'s case. The prosecutor also failed to correct the record after the court relied upon this witness's false testimony. The prosecutor was then appointed as a judge, the next prosecutor notified me about the perjury. But did not notify anyone else that the prosecutor committed all of these cover-ups. All I have to do now is undo a case based on a lying witness, disrobe a judge, disbar a prosecutor and be a champion for truth and justice. Sounds real easy. Here is a case that sounds similar to mine. Although my case is just another medical marijuana case. All of these Very Important People are throwing their careers' away just for a medical marijuana conviction. Makes no sense at all.   https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/wayne-county/2018/05/15/detroit-murder-conviction-tossed-withheld-evidence/34965287/      
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

Get cops out of mafia-style fencing racket

Checks and Balances are put in place to protect the human rights of every citizen of the United States of America. One of those rights is the right to due process, meaning that you have the right to be secure in your home and with your property unless a court says otherwise. And you have the right to have your day in court before a jury of your peers. Asset Forfeiture has been tainted by police, prosecutors and courts where police just steal your stuff, leave, then go auction it off later. In some cases, not even a single criminal charge is filed. In other cases, prosecutors bring criminal charges, lose the criminal case, but continue with the forfeiture case. Other taint comes when police take all of the cash from you, but the amount they took is less than what it would cost to hire a lawyer to get it back. Why would anyone hire a $3000 lawyer to fight over a seized $2000 car ? We need more civil asset forfeiture and this bill would help a little bit.     https://www.detroitnews.com/story/opinion/editorials/2018/05/10/civil-asset-forfeiture/34783509/
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs

Uruguay's lessons on marijuana legalization

The Brookings Institute released a comprehensive report on Marijuana legalization in Uruguay in March. In the report the researchers detail how well the program has worked and why the limitations placed upon legalization have only backfired against the country. The implementation of legalization in Uruguay has directly mirrored the implementation of medical marijuana here in Michigan. With local police forces ignoring and treating marijuana as if it were still illegal in many cases, while the state licenses and regulates the market.    Timeline of legalization in Uruguay The report made the following recommendations:  
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

Medical Marijuana Review Panel approves 10 conditions

Parents and caregivers of children and persons with Autistic Spectrum Disorder have been fighting to try medical marijuana as an option after exhausting all other treatment options available. This fight has been going on for at least 5 years, when LARA denied the petition for autism in 2013. In 2013, the review panel voted 2 yes and 7 no votes.   The 2013 petition lacked any research or studies, so parents Dwight Z. and Dr Christian Bogner submitted a new autism petition with studies and help from researcher Joe Stone in 2014. 10/4/13 Final Determination of Department - Autism 8/27/15 Final Determination of Department - Autism LARA rejected the 2014 petition because they had made a "final decision" on autism in 2013. Michael Komorn, president of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association, filed a lawsuit against LARA to get them to hear the 2014 petition. After months of stalling from LARA they finally decided to hear the petition, and in May 2015, the review panel heard the petition and testimony. LARA tried a dirty trick by not sending the research and studies to the panel. This was brought to the attention of the panel that research was submitted, so the board came back a week later to give time to the panelists to review the research. The panel then voted 4 yes and 2 no votes to approve Autism as a qualifying condition.   In August 2015, the Director of LARA, Mike Zimmer, then rejected adding autism as a qualifying condition to the Medical Marihuana program against the wishes of the panel. In his rejection, Mr. Zimmer gave the reason that edibles may be illegal due to a confusing ruling from the Court of Appeals among other objections.    Parents and caregivers of people diagnosed with autism continued to fight, and worked together to submit another autism petition. Adding 20 new peer-reviewed research studies from the past 4 years. The new autism petition was submitted in February and was sent by LARA and heard by the review panel on 4-27-2018. Wonderful and brave parents Amie Carter and Jamie Cooper testified before the panel, laying their hearts and family stories out there for the world to gawk at.   At the following review panel meeting on 5-4-2018, the review panel approved of 10 conditions including Autism in a 6 yes and 1 no vote. Voting no on a condition is voting to subject the rejected-condition patient to arrest for the medical use or possession of marihuana. A suggestion was made by a panel member that the marijuana legalization ballot initiative would save any concerns for the denied patient conditions. This is not true. There are several differences between legalization and the medical marijuana program that would negatively affect a patient. First, the recreational marijuana initiative will apply a large tax and other costs that would not apply to patients if they were part of the MMM program. Second, patients are treated in the law differently regarding several issues. ·       Driving ·       Housing ·       CPS / Parenting / Custody issues ·       Employment ·       Immunities and Affirmative Defense Patients should not be punished for their use of cannabis when it is medical and not for adult recreation. Medical use and recreational use have significant distinctions, that were played out in the discussion of the panel and specifically the experience shared by Dr. Crocker who sees a variety patients with various diseases that are treated by cannabis. It makes no sense to deny the petition for these conditions when the evidence supports the therapeutic and palliative relief.   1.  The panel are ignoring the reality of what a “no vote” is and means to patients. 2.  The excuses used to deny or vote no have been: ·       Not enough research ·       Not enough clinical trials Panel members have lamented on this topic for years, but this argument makes no sense. Why would they approve of some conditions but not others, as they have given this reason for rejecting conditions? No condition has been thoroughly researched to use with marijuana. Absolutely zero clinical trials for any condition have been performed with crude marijuana flowers. Even though marijuana smoking has been shown to absolutely stop epileptic seizures, reduce eye pressure in glaucoma patients, open up airways in asthma patients, return appetite to AIDS patients, prevent nausea, reduce anxiety/stress and control pain signals. There are few, small, less than 100 people research studies on a few small conditions. Those studies are conducted only with Marinol, Sativex or other pharmaceutical formulations, not crude marihuana flowers and extracts. The FDA refuses to study crude marijuana extracts and flowers, and prefers a mono chemical therapy. One plant chemical, THC. Recently the FDA has been testing CBD. Two plant chemicals total from over 400 known cannabinoids (plant chemicals) within the cannabis plant.   At this rate, the FDA will have tested each of the 400 cannabinoids separately within 16,000 years. Counting 40 years for THC-only studies, 40 years x 400 cannabinoids = 16,000 years.   Which is why, the American people have bypassed the FDA and have approved marijuana as a medicine on a state by state basis. Sick people cannot wait for the FDA to continue to hamper research and deny that marijuana is a medicine. All because the FDA refuses and prefers a single chemical standardized consistent drug. These are terrible reasons because research on marijuana has been hampered. We mentioned this in our petition  https://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/19/health/policy/19marijuana.html

 
·       Dr. Crocker and other physicians have conflated marijuana smoke and tobacco smoke and then offered and relied upon this unproven fact that the two smokes are the same and have the same health effects.   Marijuana smoke is different than Tobacco smoke and has different effects on humans and animals. See The large studies on lung function by Dr Tashkin and all of the other studies that show the only difference between a non-smoker and a marijuana-only smoker is that the marijuana-only smoker has a larger forced air lung capacity. Effects of smoked marijuana in experimentally induced asthma. Effects of cannabis on lung function: a population-based cohort study   ·       Legalization, if the review panel does not approve a condition, the sick patient can possess by adult recreational means. The review panelist who made this comment is a physician and in her reason for denial of the petition is saying that a person should self-medicate! Unheard of advice from a physician.   ·       The panel mentioned several times that they wanted “severe” conditions, severe brain injury vs brain injury or severe autism vs autism.   Aren't people with less severe conditions allowed treatment? Are we equal or are severe conditions more important? Nothing about this reason makes any sense to deny a condition from this non-toxic safe medication.   The review panel is supposed to look at each individual petition, and only those petitions, to determine if the condition should be added to the MMMA. Frequently, the panel members have made comments or asked questions about other conditions while debating petitions. "Why are we voting on "chronic pain" when "severe and chronic pain" is a qualifying condition?" "Why are there petitions for Arthritis and Rheumatoid Arthritis?" "Brain Injury is too vague, but Traumatic Brain Injury is a condition that may be more appropriate" "Colitis is too broad, colitis can be infectious or non-infectious"    Panelist Dr Lewandowski said there was only one "good" study that showed "clinical improvement with dronabinol in this submission" of obsessive compulsive disorder and "this meet the expectation in support of peer-reviewed information". All of the research we submitted in our petitions was peer-reviewed except for one paper on Autism, all of the studies showed palliative or therapeutic benefit and efficacy. The requirements by LARA are the following: Provide a summary of the evidence that the use of marihuana will provide palliative or therapeutic benefit for that medical condition or a treatment of that medical condition. Rule 33(1)(a). Include articles published in peer-reviewed scientific journals reporting the results of research on the effects of marihuana on the medical condition or treatment of the medical condition and supporting why the medical condition or treatment should be added to the list of debilitating medical conditions under section 3(b) of the MMMA, MCL 333.26423(b). Rule 33(1)(b).    Note that Lewandowski's remarks about clinical improvement is not a requirement within the MMMA, the LARA Administrative rules, nor the Petitions themselves. The whole point about medical marijuana programs is that we cannot get marijuana into clinical studies. Cannabis's schedule 1 status, FDA monotherapy rules, NIDA grant bias for harms not benefits, DEA hoop jumping, propaganda and political football including bribery, corruption and market forces (from private prison unions, alcohol, tobacco and Big Pharma industry not wanting competition) makes it incredibly difficult and near impossible to study marijuana for medical benefits.   Tabled conditions: ·       Non chronic non severe pain ·       Colitis ·       Organ Transplant            
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

Polls say Majority of people want Marijuana to be Legalized.

About six-in-ten Americans support marijuana legalization. Nancy Reagan's "Just Say No", the unsuccessful campaign that failed to keep children and adults off of drugs is finally over. Prohibition has never worked in any country. Especially with the history of Alcohol prohibition, there is no way that marijuana prohibition would ever work. Now, a majority of the people of the United States would rather make marijuana legal, and tax it instead of giving the industry to the black market cartels.
  http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/01/05/americans-support-marijuana-legalization/
 
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2018/02/07/fox-news-poll-support-for-legalizing-marijuana-hits-record-high.html



 
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/support-for-marijuana-legalization-at-all-time-high/
 


https://poll.qu.edu/national/release-detail?ReleaseID=2539

 
http://news.gallup.com/poll/221018/record-high-support-legalizing-marijuana.aspx
  Even Republicans want Legal Marijuana.     https://www.mpp.org/news/press/initiative-to-regulate-marijuana-like-alcohol-in-michigan-qualifies-for-november-ballot/    
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

New Study on Medical Marijuana as a Treatment for Autism

A large private donation will fund another study on using medical marijuana for autism. But this is not the first, nor is it the last clinical study on marijuana for autism. Marijuana aka Cannabis regulates the body and mind into a more normative state. Cannabis is also a very strong anti-inflammatory, and thus relieves a lot of pain. Many people with autism also suffer from pain, but are unable to communicate their pain. The autistic person in pain unable to communicate then manifests into aggression, irritability, self-injurious behavior, screaming and other outbursts.   With the help of parents and physicians, the Michigan Medical Marihuana Association has submitted autism to be a qualifying condition again with the Michigan Medical Marihuana Review Panel. There will be a meeting on May 4th 2018 at 9am in Lansing, MI where the panel will vote on autism along with 21 other new proposed conditions. Please if you can show up to the meeting and give your support to the board members so they support adding these conditions to the Michigan Medical Marijuana Program. While we at the MMMA of course support more research on cannabis for all conditions, it is cruel to prohibit this safe non-toxic medicine from people who suffer and may already be using cannabis illegally to treat autism.   If you want to leave a public comment, the deadline is 5/3/2018 at 5pm to email comments to LARA-BMMR-Legal@michigan.gov   http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/MMRP_Notice_of_Public_Hearing_5.4.18_618072_7.pdf http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/MMRP_Notice_of_Public_Hearing_4.27.18_618073_7.pdf   Autism is a qualifying medical marijuana condition in California, Minnesota and Pennsylvania.    https://www.pa.gov/guides/pennsylvania-medical-marijuana-program/ http://www.health.state.mn.us/news/pressrel/2017/cannabis113017.html https://www.mprnews.org/story/2017/11/30/minnesota-oks-medical-marijuana-for-autism-apnea       The main "treatment" for autism is Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA). ABA is mostly about teaching behaviors and correcting unwanted behaviors as you would train a dog or animal. ABA does not treat the person itself, nor does it diagnose, treat or check for pain or discomfort. ABA is akin to a nun using capital punishment using whips and canes to "fix problem children".   https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/312723     https://www.cmcr.ucsd.edu/index.php/2015-11-20-20-52-15/active-studies/123-the-effects-of-cannabidiol-cbd-on-symptoms-of-severe-autism     Although the above clinical trial is still in Phase 1 and has not started yet, there are other clinical trials which have advanced to phase 2. An interesting clinical trial below is part of the US Department of Defense budget.     https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03202303     This clinical trial in Israel seems to be more fleshed out and has more information.   https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02956226     http://www.nbc4i.com/news/u-s-world/dad-uses-medical-marijuana-to-treat-daughter-with-autism/1102805672   http://www.wfla.com/community/health/tampa-doctor-uses-medical-marijuana-to-treat-patients-with-autism/1153159741        
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

LARA holds Meeting to Review Petitions to Add New Medical Marijuana Conditions.

As the president of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association, I testified before the Michigan Medical Marihuana Review Panel earlier today in support of the 21 petitions submitted by our patient and caregiver educational non-profit organization as well as other researchers, patients and caregivers, physicians and parents who combined resources to work on the petitions. There is another meeting for the panel to vote on these conditions NEXT WEEK Friday, May 4th ,2018 at the same location. I do not think there will be additional comments, but by being present you may sway the panel members.     http://www.mlive.com/news/index.ssf/2018/04/michigan_considers_authorizing.html  
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

New to medical marijuana? Don't be frightened! Cannabis is like any other prescription medication, except its non-toxic, no deaths ever!

While the experienced members in the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association already know the ins and outs of certifications, physician appointments and sending paperwork into the state, hopefully articles like this one help people who know nothing about medical marijuana. Although the article never answers the question in the headline, getting a Michigan medical marijuana card is very similar to getting a prescription from a doctor. Although there is an extra step required that is more like getting a professional medical license from the state. The process is fairly easy, although needlessly stressful and LARA likes to reject patients for not "dotting every i" in the application. Prescription holders do not have to jump through the same hoops as medical marijuana patients. It is an unfair system.         https://www.lansingstatejournal.com/story/news/2018/04/23/how-hard-get-michigan-medical-marijuana-card/450779002/
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

Three new Michigan medical marijuana bills introduced on 4/19

When the legislature banned a patient and caregiver from extracting marijuana using butane inside of a residence, the reason given was for the safety of the public. The changes to the MMMA proposed by Triston Cole do not rely on safety, or any logical reason at all. This kind of power grab is frightening. It is one thing to ban an activity, it is quite another to make extracting marijuana a 5 year felony. Triston Cole wants extracting marijuana to carry a longer sentence of 5 years in prison when the manufacture of marijuana is only a 4 year sentence. What is next? Making a felony out of a medical marijuana patient baking their own brownies? Making it a felony for a medical marijuana patient to grow their own medicine? This would ban iso extraction and ice/water extraction, not to mention CO2 and other forms of extractions. Talk with your representatives about these bills. Tell them to leave medical marijuana patients alone and give them the same respect as other patients.     http://legislature.mi.gov/doc.aspx?2018-HB-5843

This bill modifies the MMFLA to make it explicit that only a processor licensee or its agents can extract marijuana resin.

http://legislature.mi.gov/doc.aspx?2018-HB-5844

Adds a 5 year felony for extracting marijuana resin without a processor license. Adds a 10 year felony for extracting marijuana resin if it causes severe injury. Adds a 20 year felony for extracting marihuana resin if it causes death.


http://legislature.mi.gov/doc.aspx?2018-HB-5845
Modifies the MMMA Section 7 , 333.26427, removing all immunity if a patient or caregiver extracts plant resin by chemical extraction.

   
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

Pennsylvania will allow cannabis to treat opioid addiction

The Michigan Medical Marijuana Association has submitted a petition for treating opioid dependence with medical marijuana. The public hearing for public comments will be heard on April 27, 2018. Read more about it at http://komornlaw.com/petitions              Pa. approves sale of marijuana 'flower,' and will allow cannabis to treat opioid addiction Updated: APRIL 16, 2018 — 5:58 PM EDT   by Sam Wood, Staff Writer  @samwoodiii |  samwood@phillynews.com The price of medical marijuana could fall dramatically for some patients by mid-summer. And the drug will soon be used to treat opioid withdrawal in Pennsylvania, which will become the second state after New Jersey to allow it for that purpose.   At a news conference in Harrisburg, Secretary of Health Rachel Levine said she had approved the sale of cannabis flower, the traditional smokable or vaporizable form of the plant. “It’s another tool,” Levine said. “The whole idea of this program is to provide another tool in the toolbox of physicians to treat these conditions.”   Since the launch of the state medical marijuana program in February, dispensaries in Pennsylvania have sold only pricey marijuana oils and extracts. Flower, also known as leaf or bud, needs no processing and is less expensive to produce.   “For some patients, the cost of their medical marijuana could drop by 50 percent with the addition of flower,” said Chris Visco, owner of TerraVida Holistic Centers, a chain of dispensaries with shops in Sellersville and Abington. “It offers the lowest price per milligram of THC, the active ingredient.” Marijuana producer Charlie Bachtell, CEO of Cresco Yeltrah, said being able to sell plant material will streamline a large part of his production. “We just have to weigh it and put it in a container,” he said. “There’s no manual labor turning it into something else, whether it’s filling a capsule or filling a vape pen. Every time someone touches it, it makes it more expensive.” Though smoking cannabis is prohibited by Pennsylvania law, the difference between lighting up and vaporization is literally a matter of degrees. Vaporizing requires less intense heat and a specialized electronic device so that the marijuana doesn’t combust, but the method delivers the same psychoactive and physical effects as smoking. (To discourage smoking, dispensaries are forbidden from vending pipes, bongs and rolling papers.) Nearly all of the 29 states that have legalized marijuana in some form allow for the distribution of plant material. Minnesota and West Virginia are among the last weed-legal states with laws banning its sale. Levine accepted more than a dozen recommendations made last week by the state’s medical marijuana advisory board. With her decision, doctors will still need to register but will be able to opt out of the published registry. Terminal illness, neurodegenerative diseases, and dyskinetic and spastic movement disorders are now qualifying conditions. Allowing the use of cannabis to help wean people off of opioids may have the greatest impact on the state. New Jersey was the first to approve “addiction substitute therapy for opioid reduction” last month. By adding treatment for opioid withdrawal to the list of approved uses, Levine opened up the possibility for clinical research on the two drugs at state health systems. “This is major news,” said physician Sue Sisley, founder of the Scottsdale Research Institute,  where she researches medical marijuana’s effects on PTSD in veterans. “We have all these opioid task forces in so many states, and almost none of them even mention cannabis as a substitution for opioids as part of the treatment strategy.” Sisley called Levine’s decision “courageous” but warned it could be politically “radioactive.” “It’s a very conservative medical environment you have in Pennsylvania,” said Sisley, who serves on the steering committee of Jefferson’s Lambert Center for the Study of Medicinal Cannabis and Hemp in Philadelphia. “But Dr. Levine recognizes she needs to solve the problem and start preventing all these deaths that are all so preventable.” Advocates applauded the evolution of the state marijuana program. “I am ecstatic today,” said State Sen. Daylin Leach (D., Montgomery), who helped drive the legislation that became the state’s medical marijuana law. “Allowing the whole plant will dramatically expand the number of patients who benefit from medical cannabis and will go a long way toward guaranteeing that this huge new industry survives and prospers.” Becky Dansky, legislative counsel of the Marijuana Policy Project, said that allowing the sale of flower represented more than a cheaper option for patients, many of whom are on disability.   “For many patients, it’s the best form to treat their symptoms,” Dansky said. “The key now is to get it on the shelves as soon as possible.” http://www.philly.com/philly/business/cannabis/marijuana-medical-flower-opioid-addiction-therapy-rachel-levine-cresco-terravida-20180416.html
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

Rapes and Marijuana, What is more important to the Michigan Attorney General ?

Pat Miles, Dana Nessel and Unions.
Michigan Democratic Party members will be voting and nominating their pick for the Attorney General in the April nomination convention. A few weeks before the convention, the Union Auto Workers endorsed Pat Miles. This is strange, because Pat Miles has a history of working at anti-union law firms.
  http://www.btlaw.com/Patrick-Miles http://www.btlaw.com/Union-Free-Training-Labor-and-Employment-Law-Practices/   It is clear that Pat Miles works for a law firm that brags and specializes in busting unions and stopping employees from unionizing. 
When challenged on this, Pat Miles denied everything.  
https://www.freep.com/story/news/politics/2018/04/05/pat-miles-attorney-general-uaw-endorse/489401002/   Pat Miles flip flops depending on who he is talking to. Not only has Miles changed his opinion on marijuana legalization, but he also states that his federal prosecution of Michigan Medical Marihuana Patients was correct. Miles’ comments about people hallucinating from Marijuana and his comments on adults eating gummy bear ears should tell everyone that he is the wrong choice. https://www.milesformichigan.com/single-post/2017/01/01/MARIJUANA-LEGALIZATION
  https://www.milesformichigan.com/single-post/2018/03/07/Statement-from-Pat-Miles-on-legalizing-recreational-marijuana
Try to read all of that together. On the one hand, pat said he prosecuted medical marijuana patients, but then paradoxically, says he focused resources on “large-scale drug trafficking organizations as well as those who used violence”. Which is it, Pat?
What will he do as Michigan’s Attorney General? Focus on large scale drug traffickers or go after more medical marijuana patients?
Michigan needs an attorney general that supports reform for Marihuana. Miles position before his flip flop sounded exactly like Bill Schuette, and his actions were the exact same as Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette when he prosecuted medical marijuana patients who were out of compliance.  Miles flopped on the issue because, like our current AG Bill Schuette, Pat Miles will say anything to win. Bill Schuette destroyed the MMMA - arrest for marijuana are up 14 percent. Forfeiture proceeds were 15 million dollars last year in Michigan; not one dollar was spent on training Law Enforcement about Medical Marihuana. http://www.usccr.gov/pubs/Michigan Civil Forfeiture Report_2016.pdf
The MSP-FSD Michigan State Police Forensic Science Division spends 40% of its budget and time testing Marihuana for criminal cases. There is nothing to wonder about why the rape test kits go untested. 
Pat Miles has never addressed this issue. This issue does not exist to him, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he is oblivious to these statistics.
Direct Sources : 
http://www.michigan.gov/msp/0,4643,7-123-1586_3501_4621-25744--,00.html
http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/2000-glanc2000_17302_7.pdf
http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/2001_UCR_glanc_49319_7.pdf
http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/2002_UCR_Glance_76503_7.pdf
http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/2003-CrimeGlance_106230_7.pdf
http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/2004-Ag-glanc_140048_7.pdf
http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/2005-Ag-glance_175997_7.pdf
http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/2006-Ag-glance06_220683_7.pdf
http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/2007Ag-glance07_GroupA_259540_7.pdf
http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/2007Ag-glance07_GroupB_259541_7.pdf
http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/2008-Aa-Introduction_GroupA_B_305552_7.pdf
http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/2009Annual_CrimesAtAGlance_332333_7.pdf
http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/2010_Annual_CrimeAtAGlance_358703_7.pdf
http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/2011-a_CrimesAtAGlance_391376_7.pdf
http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/2012-CrimesAtAGlance_433544_7.pdf
http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/2013_Annual_Crime_At_A_Glance_461464_7.pdf
http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/2014-Annual_Crime_At_A_Glance_493230_7.pdf
http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/2015-Crime_At_A_Glance_528343_7.pdf
http://komornlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/2016-a2_Crime_At_A_Glance_598812_7.pdf
Dana Nessel however is fully aware of these tragedies and speaks about protecting these victims often. Dana Nessel has answers on how to change the priority of the Attorney Generals’ office to solve rape crimes before nonviolent drug crimes. If one asked Miles this question, he would lock up like he did when asked the simple question of if he voted for the MMMA in 2008.
While some think that the AG race is about ending Marihuana prohibition, a good argument can be made that it is about focusing resources and the budget on protecting rape victims and prosecuting rapists. These are the things that Dana Nessel addresses when she speaks, not the REEFER MADNESS of medical marijuana gummy bear ears. The AG position is about leadership, and representation of and for the People of the State of Michigan. Most significantly it is about enforcing the law as written and with the true intent of the law to be enforced. Trusting a flip flopper to do this is a bad idea. Dana Nessel is the only candidate that has earned the nomination.  
Stories From the Theater of the War on Drugs
 

Victory over 3 cases in two cities.

Our clients in Wayne and Garden City were charged with four counts of controlled substance felonies, as well as the police seizing retirement bank accounts, vehicles and other unrelated property. Count 1: Controlled Substances – Delivery / Manufacture of marijuana 5-45 kilograms Count 2: Controlled Substances – Delivery / Manufacture of marijuana 5-45 kilograms At the time of the charged offense, the clients were valid registered patients and caregivers with the Michigan Medical Marihuana Program, and were in possession of their cards, and identification at all times during the incident. At the time of the execution of the search warrant, officers were aware the accused were medical marihuana patients and caregivers.   In the criminal case in Garden City we had to file many motions to maintain and preserve our client’s rights. ·        Motion for immunity from prosecution, Section 4 MMMA defense. ·        Motion for immunity from arrest, Section 4 MMMA Defense. ·        Motion in Limine to preclude the Search Warrant as defective. ·        Motion to dismiss charges, Section 4 paraphernalia MMMA defense. ·        Motion in Limine to preclude evidence from an unconstitutional warrantless cell phone search. ·        Motion to return untainted property based on lack of a probable cause.   Simultaneously, the county seizes assets via civil asset forfeiture laws at the same time as the criminal charges. If you do not challenge the civil asset forfeiture, the county or state will just take the property. The only the police and prosecutors are required to give you is the piece of paper that they hand you when the police take the property. For our clients to get their bank accounts back and other property, we had to file motions to compel the court to uphold our client’s constitutional rights to their property. After putting in an appearance on the forfeiture case, the prosecutor failed to notice us of any actions. When we showed up to court, the forfeiture case was dismissed due to “Failure to Serve” in 2015. Wayne County Prosecutors then refiled the forfeiture case TWO years later. We fought again with a series of motions. ·        Motion to dismiss due to statute of limitations, failure to refile case “promptly”. ·        Motion to quash discovery. ·        Motion to dismiss, Section 4 MMMA defense to any penalty (forfeiture). ·        Motion / Memo to demand a show cause hearing for reason why property was not returned.   The clients were charged by the police who thought they were committing serious crimes. The police officers thought, based on their training and experience, our clients were manufacturing marijuana. In cross-examinations of the police officers involved in the raids, we asked a few standard questions.   Mr. Komorn : Have you read the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act? Sgt. Police officer: The whole thing?   How are the enforcers of the law supposed to carry out the law, if they don’t know the law? How are the police officers supposed to decide who is in compliance with the law and who is not in compliance with the law? There are also 2,000 pages of case law on the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act, detailing out various immunities and procedures that are not being followed by the police. The police were overzealous and caused ridiculous violations of our client’s constitutional rights. Our clients were charged with the following crimes in Garden City, due to the police using false and incompetent search warrants. Controlled substance--- Manufacture of Marijuana, contrary to MCL; 333.7401(2)(d)(ii), a 7 year felony Controlled substance--- Possession with Intent to Deliver Marijuana, contrary to MCL; 333.7401(2)(d)(ii), a 7 year felony The criminal case against our client was dismissed in Garden City after filing two motions. ·        Motion to suppress evidence due to lack of probable cause. ·        Motion to return untainted property.  The judge in the case read the original search warrants and said it was ridiculously deficient!           https://www.wxyz.com/news/rep-lucido-says-bill-would-prevent-police-from-seizing-innocent-peoples-stuff  


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