DEA SEIZES PORTLAND MAN'S OLD MARIJUANA

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration on Thursday followed through on
its plans to seize 2.5 grams of marijuana that the Portland Police Bureau
has been holding for three years and was scheduled to return to its owner.

The aging buds are the property of Samuel Nim Kama, a 52-year-old heart
bypass patient who uses marijuana to control nausea brought on by his
numerous other medications.

After Portland police seized the tin of pot from him in 1999, Kama was able
to convince state authorities that he was allowed to use it under Oregon's
Medical Marijuana Act. But the property remained in police lockup while the
city fought in court to keep Kama from getting it back. When the city lost
that fight earlier this month, the DEA stepped in with a federal seizure
warrant.

Kama, who lives on a fixed income and has incurred several thousand dollars
in legal bills, said he would continue to pursue his now-stale property in
federal court.

"The principle of the thing is the law," Kama said. "Do the people have a
right to make a law and live by the law, or can the federal government just
take it away from us?"

Assistant U.S. Attorney Leslie Baker said the marijuana will be sent for
storage at a DEA facility in San Francisco.