CLUB TO PASS OUT POT TO SICK

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A federal judge on Monday cleared the way for an
Oakland club to distribute marijuana for medicinal purposes, saying the
government hasn't proved why seriously ill patients should be denied the drug.

The decision will allow the Oakland Cannabis Buyers' Cooperative to provide
cannabis to members who face imminent harm from a serious medical condition
and have found that legal alternatives to marijuana don't work or cause
intolerable side effects.

"We believe this is the tip of the iceberg," said John Entwhistle, a
spokesman for Californians for Compassionate Use, the lobbying group that
wrote the state's medical marijuana initiative, known as Proposition 215.
"We think at least the feds are starting to recognize the strength and
reality of the medical necessity of using marijuana as medicine, at least
for certain conditions."

Justice Department spokeswoman Gretchen Michael said officials were
reviewing the decision by U.S. District Court Judge Charles R. Breyer. She
had no further comment.

The victory for the Oakland club is only the latest development in a
years-old conflict between federal drug regulations and Proposition 215,
which has been tangled up in court since California voters approved it in 1996.

The state initiative allows seriously ill patients to grow and use
marijuana for pain relief, with a doctor's recommendation, without being
prosecuted under state law. But federal law says marijuana has no medical
purpose and cannot be administered safely under medical supervision.

In allowing the Oakland club to operate, Breyer modified an injunction he
issued in 1998 that shut down that club and five others. In his ruling
Monday, he noted that the U.S. 9th District Court of Appeal ordered him to
consider an exemption for patients who face imminent harm and have no
effective legal alternative to marijuana. The Oakland club was the only one
that had appealed.

Measures similar to California's marijuana initiative have passed in
Alaska, Arizona, Hawaii, Maine, Nevada, Oregon and Washington.