- On June 11, 2009, federal judge George Wu sentenced California
resident, Charlie Lynch, to one year and one day in federal prison after
a federal jury of deliberately uninformed Americans found Mr. Lynch guilty
of federal charges for running a California medical marijuana dispensary
that was completely legal under California laws.
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- The federal case against Charles C. Lynch might actually
be seen as another test case in which the "federal government"
was yet again testing the response and reactions of Americans to federal
government tyranny, while once again trampling people's rights and liberties.
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- The jury deliberated two weeks before finding Charlie
Lynch guilty of all federal charges, while apparently never being allowed
to hear all of the facts pertaining to the case. In a brief statement,
one jury member claimed that while Charlie seemed to be a "nice man
with good intentions," he didn't "stay within the parameters
of the federal law." What she and the other jurors did not know was
that Charlie was operating in full compliance with state and local laws,
that he had a business license to be dispensing medical marijuana, that
he had the blessings of the local mayor and had been invited to join the
Chamber of Commerce. His was a legitimate business serving a legitimate
and compassionate medical purpose, not an illegal drug cartel.
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- According to numerous reports, none of this information
was permitted to be heard in the federal court, however, giving further
evidence that it is today perhaps impossible to receive anything resembling
a "fair trial." No trial can be fair when only one side
the prosecution is permitted to present damning charges, while the
defense cannot present even simple facts for the jury to hear and consider.
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- Included in the federal charges against Mr. Lynch were
charges that he was selling marijuana to minors, a charge that on the surface
certainly painted a demonic picture of Mr. Lynch. The truth, however, is
that state and local laws had given Mr. Lynch legal permission to dispense
medical marijuana to people 18 years of age and older with medical prescriptions.
The marijuana could be dispensed to younger patients if they were accompanied
by a parent, as was the case with a 17-year-old cancer victim who lost
a leg to bone cancer. The teen's physician had suggested that the family
consider obtaining medical marijuana to help relieve the young man's intractable
phantom pain caused by his amputation, as well as his severe nausea and
vomiting caused by his chemotherapy. The boy's father took the boy to the
dispensary and the medical marijuana proved to be a godsend for the suffering
teen. It was the only substance that worked effectively, thus allowing
the boy to finally keep down the food he badly needed.
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- Devoid of any compassion, however, the federal agents
were blind to anything but the federal law that, unlike California law,
defines "minor" as anyone under the age of 21. None of the circumstances
were explained to the jurors. "They used that law against me to make
it sound like I was down on the streets in front of the school yards, selling
marijuana to minors," Mr. Lynch said in an interview with Al Roker.
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- At the sentencing, the judge claimed that his hands were
tied and he had to sentence Mr. Lynch to at least a minimum prison sentence,
despite the fact that US Attorney General Eric Holder had announced earlier
this year that in keeping with Mr. Obama's new policy of allowing medical
marijuana in states with laws permitting it, the Drug Enforcement Administration
(DEA) was ending its raids on state-approved medical marijuana dispensaries.
These announcements came a little late for Charlie Lynch. Over a dozen
DEA agents threatened to break Mr. Lynch's home door down if he did not
open it to them, he states, and when he opened it they stormed into his
home, threw him to the ground and held a gun to the unarmed man's head.
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- No judge's hands should ever be "tied." All
facts and circumstances should be considered when justice is being served,
and judges should be allowed to consider all facts on an individual basis.
Any reasonable person can see that Mr. Lynch is clearly not a criminal
and should never have been ill-treated by federal thugs or handed a "mandatory"
federal prison sentence based upon a guideline that did not consider the
facts of the specific case.
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- The US "justice system" is completely broken
now and it has been for some time, but we do not hear about most of its
victims who are forced to serve time in federal prisons. At this time,
the "Department of Justice" (DOJ) is a misnomer, and the DOJ's
DEA thugs are hardly more than government sponsored, armed terrorists who
have no Constitutional right to be holding guns to the heads of the citizens
they are supposed to be serving.
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- The case of Charlie Lynch appears to offer an ideal opportunity
for Mr. Obama to bring about even more badly needed "changes."
Allowing medical marijuana was a good start, but much more needs to be
done at this time: Set Mr. Lynch free, and compensate him for the damage
done to him by the federal government. Compensate him for his destroyed
business, destroyed life, humiliation, shame, fear, loss of his home, privacy
and property and for the nine months he suffered under house arrest wearing
an ankle bracelet while awaiting trial.
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- Eliminate the archaic and utterly ridiculous "marijuana"
laws completely. Marijuana should have never been banned. It is not a pharmaceutical
chemical, but a naturally occurring herb that was once widely grown for
its many economical, industrial uses in this country. Its use as a medicinal
herb has also been recognized predating recorded history, but its usefulness
is something else that receives very little publicity. It has been used
as a natural cancer-fighting remedy, an antiemetic, and a powerful natural
pain reliever and immune booster. The reason it is so effective is that
the human body was created with natural cannabinoid receptors throughout
it, including in the brain where marijuana has been shown to effectively
fight the most difficult types of brain cancers.
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- Our bodies were created with natural cannabinoid receptors
throughout them in order to give us an opportunity to achieve optimal health
with the help of a natural plant that was also given to us in great abundance
by Nature. The "federal government" has no right to ban something
we are meant to have access to, especially since many people working in
the federal government represent large pharmaceutical manufacturers. Manufacturers
can neither profit from natural cannabis, nor can they create anything
from chemicals that is as effective as natural cannabis in treating disease
or symptoms. If people want to use this herb or if they want to put
marjoram rather than oregano into their spaghetti sauce there should
be no "federal law" barring them from doing so.
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- Mary Sparrowdancer is the author of a bestselling internationally
published book, and an investigative journalist. www.sparrowdancer.com
She is currently working on another federal injustice case that can be
seen by running a Google search on:
- CNN Johnson & Johnson
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- References
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- Al Roker Interview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Cist_J_KoI
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- The Lynch Case: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/12/us/12pot.html?ref=global-home
- DOJ, DEA: http://www.usdoj.gov/dea/history.htm
- Cannabis Shrinks Brain Tumors: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/12088.php
- Cannabis, Health: http://www.nature.com/nrrheum/journal/v5/n6/full/nrrheum.2009.95.html
- Cannabis Health: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/08/080801074056.htm
- Cannabis Health: http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/574787
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